Matthew Rickert: I decided to test one of the recommendations from this site. I tested my chronotype and discovered that I was a slight morning person. With this in mind, I decided to see if a 2 hour delay in the start of my day had an impact on my performance, alertness, and productivity throughout the day. On the first day of this short 2 day test, I woke up at 6:55. With trepidation, I arose from my bed and lumbered to the shower. Prepared for the day, I went to classes and discovered an improved focus and a lack of sleepiness. The following day, my alarm blared at 8:55. Slowly, with a mighty stretch, I turned off my alarm and sprightly arose from my mattress. After undergoing my hygienic morning routine, I endeavoured the mighty trek to my first class of the day. With an initial burst of energy, I honed in on the lessons being taught. However, as evening approached and homework loomed, I found myself in want of sleep. Unable to pay attention and with a decreased focus, I dejectedly shuffled to bed. Having tested my chronotype, and then seeing if the time I woke up affected me, I believe that there is a true difference in the 2 hour delay of wakefulness. As a morning person, it is important that whether or not I have a class, I wake up at an early time to set myself up for the rest of the day. While the initial burst of energy is nice, my body is not willing to work in the evening when it feels that I should be asleep.
Murray Manley: The Green Team recommended that students make sure they eat a nutritious breakfast in the morning before school at a set time every day. Research has shown that when humans eat breakfast at a regular time each day, their bodies adjust to the schedule in and begin to wake up just before the meal in anticipation of food. Therefore, eating meals at regular times every morning should help you wake up more easily. To test our recommendation, I ate breakfast at 6:00 am on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings. I noticed that about 30 minutes after I ate, I felt more energized and alert. On Thursday morning I didn’t eat breakfast at all. Compared to the earlier days in the week, I felt much more tired and groggy all morning, not to mention hungry. (I never skip meals). Although I don’t believe eating breakfast made me less tired throughout the day, I do believe that eating breakfast made me more awake and alert in the morning for my early classes. Limitations of the test include the fact that I was the only one who tested out the theory; one person is an extremely small sample size. Additionally, although I ate breakfast at the same all three mornings, I woke up at various times before 6, which adds in another variable.
Olivia Howell: The green team recommended that students and teachers use brighter lighting (especially natural light) in the mornings to help keep students awake. I have seen the evidence of these effects in my two morning classes, biology lab and biology class. After an hour in a lab room with large windows, I feel more alert and ready to face the day then after the hour in the darker class room with no outside windows. Also, this week I got ready in the morning two different ways: one time using only dim room lights and the other with my shade up and overhead light on. On the well-lit morning, I felt more alert and was able to function more efficiently, both mentally and physically.
Even though we fully support our research and recommendations, we do acknowledge that there are certain limitations such as availability of time and money to appropriately follow through with each recommendation. For example, some students may not be able to make time in their schedules for early morning exercise. Additionally, everyone responds to treatments differently, so some students may not be as receptive to certain recommendations, like sleep education, as others.
At the library, we completed our outline for the presentation in power point form, as well as established a new tradition of sharing highs and lows of the week at every group meeting.
In recent years, an increasing amount of research has been done on adolescent sleep deprivation. Sleep chronotype shifts with age; during adolescence, teens tend to go to bed later and wake up later when given the choice. Unfortunately, students often suffer from inadequate quantity of sleep due to their evening chronotype in combination with early school start times. Although adolescents typically need 9 hours of sleep in order to function properly, research shows that most students sleep fewer than 8 hours each night which “negatively [affects] academic performance, behavior, and social competence in adolescents” (Ming et al 72). Growing apprehensions about performance in school spurred research linking poor grades with adolescent sleep deprivation. However, little research has been done to confirm whether or not there is more than one contributing sleep issue. The goal of this study is to examine the multiple factors that contribute to sleep deprivation and result in poor performance in school. Ming hypothesizes that unnatural sleep cycles adapt to fit with the school schedule, ultimately resulting in poor performance in school.
To collect data, Xue Ming and fellow researchers created an “anonymous questionnaire [consisting] of 13 categories of questions regarding sleep habits and schedules, symptoms of sleep disorders, school performance and school start time” (Ming et al 72). Students also noted their typical waking time and bedtime both on weekdays and weekends, grades, sleep regularity, as well as their own assessment of their “sleep adequacy” (Ming et al 72). In all, 2147 high school students from the state of New Jersey responded to the questionnaire.
The results indicated that Ming’s hypothesis was indeed correct; there is a link between poor academic performance and lack of sleep, as well as a link between “earlier start time [and] poorer sleep quality and quantity” (Ming et al 76). Ming concluded that even though temporary sleep deprivation bears little effects on academic performance and health, long-term sleep deprivation can severely affect grades and functioning. In these cases, students are not catching up on sleep on the weekends like many of their peers. Ming observed that circadian rhythm and later evening chronotype play a major role in the effectiveness and efficiency of the body. Because students are forced to wake up earlier than they naturally would, their academic performance is inhibited. Day to day activities affected by sleep adequacy/inadequacy and circadian rhythm include “decision making, memory, processing speed, selective attention, and vigilance” (77). Lastly, Ming explains that the issue of sleep deprivation can be combatted by educating high school students about the negative impacts of not getting enough sleep, as well as mandating later start times in high schools.
**This figure establishes the percentage of students that got the specified amounts of sleep on both weekends and week nights. The majority of students got 8 hours or less of sleep, which is significantly lower than the recommended 9 hours of sleep for high school-age students.
Work Cited
Ming, X. (10/2011). Clinical medicine insights. circulatory, respiratory and pulmonary medicine Libertas Academica. doi:10.4137/CCRPM.S7955
Staying in sync with the world.
