Name:__________________________________ Class/Hour:____________________ Date:_____________________________

Informational Texts: Opinion-Editorial Unit Assessment _____/ 22

1. What is the purpose of the Opinion-Editorial section of a newspaper? (2 points)
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Read the following Opinion-Editorial article and answer the questions that follow.
From Our Kids Need More Sleep by Valerie Erde
appeared in Greenwich Time on January 25, 2012

After seeing last Thursday's Greenwich Time cover that shows teens studying in the
library until 11 p.m., I'm sure many people thought, "Gee, isn't that great how hard the
kids are studying?"
However, my reaction was, "These kids shouldn't be at the library at 11 p.m. They need
adequate sleep to do well on their exams."
Teens' natural circadian rhythm favors both going to bed and waking up later than
younger children. So it isn't really that they're up until 11 that is the problem. It's that they
then have to rise around 6 a.m. so they can get ready and eat a decent breakfast
before making the insanely early buses (to get to Greenwich High School by 7:35)
which, oddly enough, gets many of them to [school] a good 20 minutes or so before [it]
even begins -- time they could be sleeping!
I and other proponents of changing the school start times are simply baffled by how
Greenwich, and many other communities around the nation, simply ignore the wellresearched and incontrovertible scientific studies that consistently show that insufficient
sleep (less than 9.25 hours for a teen) results in poorer reaction time, vigilance, learning
and alertness; so students perform less well in school and in other aspects of their lives
and are at a greater risk of having a depressed mood.
For communities that have been able to change school start times, they report
improvement in academic performance, a decrease in teen depression, a decrease in
tardiness and truancy, an increased alertness in class, and reduction in teen car
accidents. In fact, according to an article that appeared in Psychology Today (Feb. 27,
2011), a change in start time from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. in Fayette County, Kentucky
yielded a dramatic decrease in car accident rates for 16-18 year olds, while rates
actually increased in the rest of the state for 17-18 year olds. You would think that that
alone would be reason enough to change the times.

Kyla Wahlstrom, a leading education researcher, has been following 12,000 high school
students in Minnesota where the high school start time was changed from 7:20 to 8:40,
giving the kids an extra hour and 20 minutes each morning. In a report to NPR,
Wahlstrom said, "students reported less depression when there was a later starting time
... and teachers reported that students were more alert and ready for learning."
According to Wahlstrom, parents reported that, "their children were easier to live with
because their emotions were more regulated." Additionally, Wahlstrom found a
decrease in the number of students who were dropping out of school or moving from
school to school.
Apparently, this benefit also extends to pre-teens at the middle-school age. According
to the same NPR report, in Massachusetts with a change in middle-school start time
from 7:15 a.m. to 8:37 a.m., kids had less difficulty staying awake in school, and had
better grades than students at a school with a 7:15 a.m. start time.
There are new data that also suggest a strong correlation between increased sleep
and improved athletic performance. Researchers at the Stanford University Sleep
Disorders Clinic performed a study on basketball players and concluded:
"Improvements in specific measures of basketball performance after sleep extension
indicate that optimal sleep is likely beneficial."
In communities that make the change, or actively try to do so, oft-cited obstacles are:
the "inconvenience" of changing the bus schedule, the athletic schedule, or the
teachers' commutes. While I am sympathetic to some teachers' long commutes, I feel
that we must make the well being of our children and teens the number one priority.
And many districts -- some much larger than Greenwich, with equally active/successful
athletic programs -- have been able to overcome these "inconveniences," which really
have nothing to do with the mental and physical health of the kids.
I'm sure there are many parents and coaches who would say, "but our teams already
are at the top, so obviously it is not a problem," or "at [Greenwich High School] my kid is
a good student." What they miss in that argument is that their kids might perform even
better, achieve more, and be happier, were they to be less sleep deprived. So why
don't we stop doing what's best for the bus companies, the teachers' commutes, and
the athletic schedule and do what is best for our still developing children and
teenagers?

2. What is the main idea of the article?

a. Later school start times would be better for students and teachers because it
would improve test scores and athletic performance.
b. Later school start times would significantly affect bus and sport schedules
and so would be impossible to implement.
c. Later school start times would improve students performance in all aspects
of school life by allowing them the adequate sleep that they require.
d. Due to the early start times that schools have, students should not be staying
up late at night.
3. Based on your reading of the article, who can you infer wrote it?
a. A concerned parent.
b. A tired teacher.
c. An angry middle-schooler.
d. A researcher.

4. Justify your response from question three (3)What makes you believe do you that
person wrote it? (2 points)
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5. Re-read the underlined portions of the article. What is the authors purpose in
including that information if it clearly opposes her argument? (2 points)
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6. Complete the following T-Chart with at four (4) facts and four (4) opinions.
(4 points)

FACTS

OPINIONS

1.

1.

2.

2.

3.

3.

4.

4.

7. Respond to the article with your perspective on the issue. Use two (2) pieces of
textual support and your own opinion to fully support or refute the authors
opinion. (10 points)
Element

Persuasion
using Evidence

Audience and
Purpose

Grammar and
Mechanics

3 Advanced

2 On Target

1 Novice

0 Not Included

The writing:

Effectively persuaded the

audience using 2 pieces
of strong evidence and
the authors own opinion.
The writing:

Demonstrates a clear
understanding of
audience and purpose.

The writing:

Persuaded the audience

using 2 pieces of
evidence and the authors
own opinion.
The writing:

Demonstrates an
understanding of
audience and purpose.

The writing:

Attempted to persuade
the audience using a
piece of evidence and the
authors opinion.
The writing:

Only occasionally
demonstrates an
understanding of
audience and purpose.

The writing:

Used no evidence to
persuade the audience.

The writing:

Uses mostly correct

grammar, spelling, and
punctuation that moves
the reader easily through
the text.

The writing:

Includes some grammar,

spelling, and punctuation
errors, but it does not
impede the
understanding of the text.

The writing:

Demonstrates little
attention to grammar,
spelling, and
punctuationerrors
make the text difficult to
read.

The writing:

Was not written, or does not

show any attention to
grammar and punctuation.

The writing:

Does not demonstrate an

understanding of audience
or purpose.

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