School Start
Times Task Force

Global School Start Times Task Force Members

Saadoun Bin-Hasan (Kuwait), Scott Coussens (Australia), Michal Kahn (Australia/Israel), Judith Owens (USA), Karen Spruyt (France); Jessica Page (USA; ad hoc)

World Sleep Society representative: Lindsay Jesteadt

Interim Report 7/29/2026

  • The 2022 IPSA Global School Start Times survey paper “Perceptions of school start times and adolescent sleep by WHO region”  has been published in Sleep Medicine:  Coussens SW, Kahn M, Spruyt K, Bin-Hasan S, Page J, Owens J. Perceptions of school start times and adolescent sleep by WHO region. Sleep Med. 2026 Jul;143:108890. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2026.108890. Epub 2026 Mar 6. PMID: 41830786. We also received 2 thoughtful letters to the editor regarding the article from Portugal and Indonesia, both of which has been published in Sleep Medicine along with the responses.
  • Duarte A. From evidence to action: addressing the implementation gap in adolescent school start times.  Sleep Med. 2026 Jul;143:108910. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2026.108910. Epub 2026  Mar 23.PMID: 41880882 
  • Arifyanto AT, Nufi EP. When global policies meet local realities: School start times in LMIC contexts. Sleep Med. 2026 Sep;145:109048. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2026.109048. Epub 2026 May 27. PMID: 42218844.
    • Coussens SW, Kahn M, Spruyt K, Bin-Hasan S, Page J, Owens J. Response to: SLEEP-D-26-01174R1 “When global policies meet local realities: School start times in LMIC contexts”.  Sleep Med. 2026 Sep;145:109047. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2026.109047. Epub 2026 May 28. PMID: 42214895.
  • The scoping review of the literature following PRISMA-ScR guidelines used four bibliographic databases to identify cross-sectional and longitudinal studies examining differences in school start times and school start time changes (SSTC) and key sleep parameters in students aged 10 – 19 years from 1/1/2018 – 3/31/2025 has been divided into 2 separate manuscripts. The first paper “School Start Time Change and Adolescent Sleep: A Scoping Review of the Recent Global Literature” Authors: Michal Kahn, Jessica Page, Scott Coussens, Sadoun bin Hasan, Karen Spruyt, Judith Owens, includes a total of 39 studies from 18 countries, representing private, public, urban, and rural middle/high schools, and focuses on sleep health outcomes using both self-report and objective measures and as well as a variety of approaches to SSTC. It will undergo one last internal task force review before forwarding to the WSS and IPSA BOD for review and approval before submitting to Sleep Medicine Reviews. The second paper examines other outcomes, including mental health and depression/anxiety symptoms, academic performance, automobile and other accidental injuries, alcohol use, life satisfaction and social relationships, and is anticipated to be submitted to Adolescent Research Reviews in the next 2 months.