Upon seeing the title, many students will probably agree that yes, we should have a longer lunch time. We get to have a longer break from our school work and we get to spend more time with friends on opposite teams. But while there are many benefits to the students when it comes to extended lunch, most administrators may not agree.
What Some Administrators would say:
First of all, having a longer lunch break for students will reduce learning time in the classroom, which teachers will be discouraged at. And even with a whole block (80 minutes) in the mornings to cover all the necessary content, there’s always one or two things that have to get postponed to the next class, which can cause a delay in learning and lower grades for students.
And this year, there’s a new schedule, where students will alternate classes on different days, so teachers are forced to postpone things even further.
And some teachers would argue that because of our 15 minute recess during an alternating period, kids would be learning a lot less than they might already be. So what should we do?
What Students and some administrators would Say:
There are always two sides to a coin, and this has been a heavily weighted debate over the years. And most students differ against their teachers. Some administrators in certain schools across the country are too fighting for a longer lunch time for students.
According to Starved By the Bell, written by Harvard University, less time for lunch can deprive students of the healthful nutrients they need like vitamins, minerals, and other important nutrients. And research suggests that when people eat faster, they tend to take in more calories and feel hungrier. And do we really want our kids/ students to grow up to be obese or have diabetes?
And many studies have shown that when kids have a longer time to eat, they can absorb more nutrients, improve their mental and physical health, and keep them at their best performance all day. Karen LeBillon, who was interviewed by the Public School Review Lunch Blog, says that “If we are giving our children a short lunch break, we are teaching them that food is an inconvenience, and eating is an interruption to their day.” And do we want students to adopt unhealthy eating habits and get sick when they’re older?
What we can do at PFMS?
After many schools increased the lunch break for students, overall performance boosted to incredibly high rates. And many teachers and administrators say that they made the right decision by increasing students’ lunch time. Let’s make PFMS one of those schools.
A couple solutions- we can make the lunch line system more efficient- so that students can get their lunch faster and have more time to eat. Or, we can take away a minimal amount of time from morning classes and contribute that towards lunch. That way, classes after lunch like Tech Ed or World Languages will be slightly longer than usual.
It’s important that us students have time to eat and a reasonable break from our studies. And while there are good arguments on both sides, who will win the debate? Will students rejoice and get a longer lunch time? Or will the administrators decline to change the current situation? ~