Michael Breus says any tired driver is dangerous, but especially a teenager with a lack of experience.

So what can schools do about sleepy students? The psychologist says one thing they can do is start classes later in the morning. He points to studies showing that students can improve by a full letter grade in their first- and second-period classes.

Eric Peterson is the head of St. George's School in the northeastern state of Rhode Island. He wanted to see if a thirty-minute delay would make a difference. It did.

He says visits to the health center by tired students decreased by half. Late arrivals to first period fell by a third. And students reported that they were less sleepy during the day.

Eric Peterson knows that changing start times is easier at a small, private boarding school like his. But he is hopeful that other schools will find a way.

ERIC PETERSON: "In the end, schools ought to do what's the right thing for their students, first and foremost."

Patricia Moss, an assistant dean at St. George's School, says students were not the only ones reporting better results.

PATRICIA MOSS: "I can say that, anecdotally, virtually all the teachers noticed immediately much more alertness in class, definitely more positive mood. Kids were happier to be there at eight-thirty than they were at eight."

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report. You can read, listen and comment on our programs at voaspecialenglish.com. We're also on Facebook and Twitter at VOA Learning English. I'm Bob Doughty.