Kids look tired as they go to school. A teacher says, so much for springing ahead

Illustration by RJ Matson; Shutterstock.com (background); Debate photos courtesy of families

Do We Need Daylight Saving Time?

March 1, 2021

Most kids in the U.S. will lose some sleep on March 14—but not because they’re up late studying or watching a movie. In most of the country, people will set their clocks ahead one hour for daylight saving time (DST).

The sun sets later during DST, so the thinking is that people will use less electricity to light their homes. When DST ends in November, people will change their clocks to “fall back” one hour to what’s known as standard time.

But not everyone will be “springing ahead” on March 14. Hawaii and most of Arizona don’t observe DST. Critics of the time change say it upsets people’s sleep cycles and can be a safety hazard. When the sun rises later during DST, many people must go to work or school in the dark.

But other people think we should have DST year-round. They say the extra hour of sunlight allows more time for outdoor activities.

Here’s what two of our readers think.

I think having an extra hour of sunlight in the evenings during DST is great. It gives people more time to run errands, hang out with friends, and do other activities more safely. For example, many kids, including me, like to play sports. They could get hurt if they play while it is dark outside.

Also, some people have trouble driving in the dark. An extra hour of sunlight can help them avoid getting into accidents.

I don’t think we need DST. It can mess up your sleep habits, and that can lead to other problems. If you don’t get a good night’s sleep, you might feel groggy or unfocused, which could cause you to fail a test. Even worse, tired workers might have accidents on the job and could get hurt.

People who live in states that don’t use DST seem to do just fine. That shows that we don’t need to change the time on our clocks.