Czech parents petition for later school start times

The initiative ‘Nespi v lavici’ (Don’t Sleep in the Desk) has launched a petition calling for later start times in Czech schools to combat chronic sleep deficits among students. The group argues that the standard 8:00 AM start forces children to wake up too early, negatively impacting their health and ability to learn, noting that adolescents require 8–10 hours of sleep.

The Ministry of Education has acknowledged the debate as legitimate but emphasized that the authority to set school hours remains with individual school principals. Current regulations allow instruction to start as late as possible, provided it does not begin before 7:00 AM. While some private schools have already implemented later starts, a ministry spokesperson noted that most principals are hesitant to change schedules due to the resulting later end to the school day and its impact on extracurricular activities.