Does sleep hinder student performance?
Sleep plays a vital role in the overall functioning of our mental and physical health. Throughout a good night’s rest, the body works to maintain healthy brain functions and to repair vital organs and cells, thus, the need for a good night’s rest is crucial, especially for students. Therefore, my intended issue for this topic is, “How does sleep affect student performance?”
Many students, suffer the burden of having to balance work, study, a social life and time for themselves, therefore leaving sleep as a factor that is underappreciated and disregarded. Moreover, causing many individuals to be sleep deprived and unfocused during tutorials, lectures and their overall study. As a result, grades, attendance and participation within class and content is reduced.
On average (according to the National Sleep Foundation Australia) individuals between the ages of 18-25, which is primarily a university students age, should be receiving seven to nine hours of sleep per night. However, a different study conducted within Australia (BetterHealth Channel) conveyed that students within this age group (18-25), only received between 6-7 hours of sleep or less per night. A third and nation wide study found that overall 4 out of 10 Australians suffer from sleep deprivation. (Pash, 2017) Therefore demonstrating the prevalence and relevancy of this issue.
As an individual who undertakes a work and university life balance, I recognise first hand how difficult it can be for an individual to have a bad nights sleep and wake up in the morning having to go to university and sit through hours of lectures and tutorials, to simply be retaining minimal information. The inability to focus, and feeling the strain of your tired eyes looking up at a screen and then down towards your laptop, is something that most university students would have experienced within their lives. Therefore, I would like to undertake this project, to understand the extent that sleep can have on students and their overall performance within university.
Two separate academic sources, one written by Patrick, Y (2017) titled, ‘Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Cognitive and Physical Performance in University Students’ and the other by Krause, A (2018) titled ‘the sleep deprived human brain’, both state the effects that a sleep deprived brain can have on an individuals physical and mental health and how it can negatively effect factors such as memory and emotions. Factors such as a decrease in motivation and attention as well as a lower reaction time were also recorded.
Both academic sources, share similar reasoning on the effects of sleep among students, with both sources undertaking their own study of students. The source by Patrick, Y (2017) argued that sleep deprivation had an effect on students, however it was not a detrimental outcome and found that students who were older, were effected more by sleep deprivation compared to younger students. The study also found that areas of the brain such as memory and executive functions, had reduced activation when sleep deficient.
Alternatively, Krause, A(2018), addressed similar topics within his academic source, however the focus was more on feeling and emotions rather than brain functions. It suggests that students who do not have an adequate night’s rest are more likely to undertake attention lapses, which involves the gaining and loss of attention during class. During their study it found, that areas of the brain which controlled the emotional stimuli, had a weaker response when tested, compared to when students had a full night’s sleep. Thus, through this source it demonstrates the emotional effects that a lack of sleep can have on an individual and the way that it can effect them, both in university and socially.
Ultimately, the topic of “How does sleep affect student performance?” is a relevant and timely topic and there is reasonable evidence and studies undertaken to establish that sleep is a vital part of student life, as it allows an individual to be able to focus on the task being undertaken.
Bibliography:
BetterHealth Channel n.d. Teenagers and Sleep, Victoria State Government. Viewed 16 March 2019. <https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/teenagers-and-sleep>
Krause, A, Simon, E, Mander, B, Stephanie, G, Saletin, J, Goldsetin- Piekarski, A, Walker, P 2018. ‘The Sleep Deprived Human Brain’, Nature Reviews, Neuroscience, 18(7), 404-418.
Pash, C 2017. ‘4 Out of 10 Australians are Sleep Deprived,’ The Pedestrian, 9 August 2017, Viewed 17 March. <https://www.businessinsider.com.au/4-out-of-10-australians-are-sleep-deprived-2017-8>
Patrick, Y, Lee, A, Raha, O, Pillai, K, Gupta, S, Sethi, S, Mukeshimana, F, Gerard, L, Moghal, M.U, Morrell, M.J, Moss, J, Sale, S.N, Smith, S.F 2017, ‘Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Cognitive and Physical Performance in University Students’. Sleep and Biological Rhythms, 15(3), 217-224.
The National Sleep Foundation n.d. How Much Sleep do we Really Need? The National Sleep Foundation Australia. Viewed 17 March 2019. <https://www.sleepfoundation.org/excessive-sleepiness/support/how-much-sleep-do-we-really-need>
Paris' Perspective 