The love-hate relationship between school and sleep, and its effects on academics
By Uzma Ferdous
When was the last time you’ve gotten that succulent, tantalizing 10 hours of sleep? Yeah, me neither. We’ve all been through those sleepless nights and coffee-ridden mornings. The homework, assignments, and pressure seem insurmountable. With this lack of sleep and added pressure from school, your academic performance may be at risk.
Importance of Sleep in School
Teens should be sleeping around 9–10 hours every night. However, the regular teen gets only 7 hours of sleep. Yet, I know we can all agree that 7 hours of sleep would be an above average night for us. The student life has become synonymous with insomnia and constant exhaustion. But this tiredness affects our cognitive abilities, thus impacting our academic performance as well. We’ve all woken up exhausted and fatigued to a math exam and later gone red with embarrassment after the paper with our mark is handed back. There is a clear correlation between our sleep quantity and academic performance. A study by students at the University of Minnesota analyzed the relation between sleep quality and academic performance. They chose to examine the GPA of a set amount of university students and their amount of sleep as well as the quality. The students tracked six different variables of sleep quality, academic success with GPA, and four different measures of sleep quantity. After analyzing the responses from their surveys they found that “The students who slept for more hours on an average night tended to obtain slightly better grades…The average number of days per week a student got less than five hours of sleep increased, GPA decreased” (Lowry, Dean, Manders, 2010). The study clearly demonstrates that the University of Minnesota students had less academic success when they had less sleep in quality and quantity. The infographic alongside illustrates the results of Carnegie Mellon students and their struggle with sleep. The bar graphs depict the sleep quantity on weekdays and weekends and the cause for the lack of sleep thereof. Students are clearly lacking in sleep due to academic pressure. The infographic includes a survey of 102 students.
An infographic depicting the survey results of a student body when asked about
their sleep patterns and issues. 73 of these 102 students claimed they performed badly on an exam or assignment due to lack of sleep. It is evident that sleep is crucial for students everywhere. Thus, successfully getting enough sleep is just as important as performing successfully in school.
How to Balance School and Sleep
We need sleep. No matter how many assignments we have, sleep will always be a must. If a traditional sleep is not easy to manage, one can take short naps during the day. We can also try improving the quality of our sleep by limiting our phone usage before bedtime (no screens 1 hour before sleeping), having a relaxing nighttime routine, and avoiding caffeinated beverages like coffee and tea. Our education and health are adversely affected by our sleep patterns. Pressure from school may seem daunting and stressful, but we must always prioritize our self-care and health. A good night’s sleep may even be more satisfying than a simple mark! Sleep well, readers!
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