To what extent there is a link between sleep and school academic performance?

(Research Project, Final)

Murtaza Shadiyar

201384065

Tutor: Craig Coulson

Word count: 2174

University Preparatory Course, Nazarbayev University

CONTENT

Abstract 3

Introduction: New society problem - sleep deprivation 3

Importance of sleep: Sleep recovers body functioning 4 The result of meta-analytic review: School performance depends on sleep duration and quality 6

Sleep duration has impact on performance: How much sleep do we need? 7

Effects of later bedtimes: Delayed bedtime is associated with destroyed normal lifestyle and lack of school scheduling 8

Neurogenesis and memory studies on sleep: Well academic performance comes with an adequate sleep 9

Recommendations 11

Conclusion 12

Reflective component 13

Reference list 14

Abstract

A lot of studies had proven that there is a link between sleep and academic performance. While remaining question to what extent, XX century started with a lot studies researching new society problem which is a sleep loss. Many researchers have studied with an eager attention with significantly evidenced results and continuing to explore with more developed technologies to make it fully certain. Using evidences from meta-analytic review, claims on sleep quantity, deep mechanism of sleep waves, effects of later bedtimes, neuroscience studies and self-reports on memory functions comparing both poor and good sleepers, it can be proficiently concluded that there is a strong existing link between them. As well as sleeping is convincingly important for well academic performance, students should avoid late bedtimes and have sufficient amount of sleep. Briefly, this conclusion proves the following fact as academic performance weakens with decreased amount of sleep.

Introduction: New society problem - sleep deprivation

Considering the information from Ferrara and De Gennaro(2001, 155-156), from the beginning of 21^st century, sleeplessness related problems have been observed by many scientists. As a matter of fact, the widespread network of telecommunications, social demands, an active lifestyle like internet, media, work and schooling have also promoted to these habit changes in modern societies, which often lead to inadequate sleep within young people. Frequently, severe sleepiness and performance impairment is connected with working or studying until the late night. As numerous studies among the world countries have explored and evidenced the relation between sleep and academic performance taking attention to technologically proven sleep activity spindling episodes of memory functioning and surveys on delayed bedtimes, it can be deduced that there is a strong link between sleep and academic performance.

Importance of sleep: Sleep recovers body functioning

Indeed, a one third part of our life passes with sleep. While body movements are constrained during sleep, the spindling episodes of 7–14 Hz take place in the thalamus and cortex of brain(Sejnowski and Destexhe 2000, 208). Afterwards, sleep activity with the low amplitude and high frequency, when a person is awake, is replaced with high amplitude and low frequency rhythm of sleep. Consequently, the cortex(Figure 1) interchanges between periods of slow-wave sleep in the 2–4 Hz range and episodes of sharp waves called Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep. Actually, slow-wave sleep (SWS) is a stage of deep sleep and important in consolidation new memory cells, whilst REM is the deepest stage of sleep with random movement of the eyes; which occupies only short amount 20–25% of total night sleep(Sejnowski and Destexhe 2000, 208). To summarize, sleep regulates the rhythm of normal body functioning as well as a performance of memory is consolidated within large stages of sleep.

Figure 1. Structure of the Brain: Source: Andy 2010.

Research by Dewald et al.(2010, 179) asserts serious effects of increased sleep fragmentation and late bedtimes on learning performance and neurobehavioral functioning. A lot of intrinsic and extrinsic factors may cause poor sleep as society and school schemes are rapidly changing(Dewald et al. 2010, 179). What is more, it was enumerated that around 20–50% of youth outline daytime sleepiness. Therefore, this result also confirmed true fact of rising problem of late bedtimes and its effects on school performance.

While a person does not carry the necessary amount of time for sleep, "sleep deprivation" occurs whether for medical or behavioral reasons(Dinges et al. 2006, 303-304). Dr. Cirelli, Ph.D. in Neuroscience, claims that delayed sleep has harmful effects on new cells in the hippocampus, which is found as a part of the brain relating to the “consolidation” of knowledge from “short-term memory” to “long-term memory” and “spatial navigation”(2006 quoted in Dinges et al. 2006, 303-304). In fact, sleep strengthens memory in the case of both “procedural” and “declarative” memories.

On the whole, if a person taking excess amount of sleep with increased Slow-Wave Sleep(SWS)(Figure 2) against sleep deprivation, even sudden 4 or 5 hours of restricted sleep without SWS may lead to the problem of increased sleep need(Ferrara and De Gennaro 2001, 159). Furthermore, it brings to the concept of opposite evidence that our fundamental sleep is revealed in the first beginning three to four sleep cycles, even rapid eye movement (REM) sleep contains only about half of our nightly sleep. Thus, it can be argued that for a whole sleep procedure, a mankind needs to have a complex sleep and without any restrictions. Additionally, greatness of sleep deprived people is rising which is known from numerous self-reports, and sleep deprivation is the main of factor of failure among students as well as today it is very difficult to overtake school schedule without restricted sleep.

Figure 2. Slow-wave sleep. Source: Sejnowski and Destexhe 2000.