Daylight Disruption

Twice a year, the clocks spring forward and fall back, marking the start and end of daylight saving time. While intended to conserve energy and make better use of daylight, this biannual change often leaves people scrambling to adjust their routines. For students, the one-hour shift can be particularly disruptive, affecting sleep schedules, productivity, and even emotional well-being.

To better understand these challenges, we asked students to share their experiences with daylight saving time. Their insights reveal just how much an hour can influence daily life, shedding light on both the frustrations and occasional benefits of this century-old practice. Here’s what some of them had to say:

“It didn't affect me very much this year since it was on a Sunday, though it was nice to get an extra hour of sleep before my early morning soccer game. I feel like daylight savings time is pretty useless and more of a hassle than it's worth. I appreciate gaining an hour of sleep at some point during the year, but losing that same hour of sleep at another point in the year is not great. It doesn't come up all that much, but there are reminders that get sent out for things,” full time student Audrey 26’ said. 

“I am staying up later and waking up earlier than I was before the time shift. I think it's a nice change of pace - keeps us on our toes! It's kinda funny - one day, it's 7:00, and that same time the next day is 6:00! This often results in a little bit of confusion for the first few days - not everyone has changed the clocks back yet, and so you'll glance at the time and exclaim ‘how is it 4:00 already!’ when it's actually only 3:00. But overall, I think that it is pretty okay —- it's a nice tradition in my mind,” full time student Beatrice 28’ said.

“When it gets dark as early as 4 p.m., I get sleepy and it throws me off. It's a little depressing that it's dark so early. I think it adds unnecessary complication to an already busy time of the year and makes communication internationally and inter-state much more difficult. Even our cats notice the difference and complain about not getting food. Overall, it just seems to have so many harmful aspects without doing any real good–we are not actually ‘saving any daylight... I wish we could actually control the sun like that,” single-course student Dax 29’ said.

The idea behind daylight savings time dates back to World War I, where people aimed to make better use of daylight during waking hours. As seen in the experiences shared, the impact varies—some students view it as a quirky tradition, while others question its relevance in today’s world. Despite the differing opinions, it’s clear that the biannual adjustment requires significant mental and physical effort to adapt to.