subject: Sleep and better grades at school [print this page] Author: John Scott Author: John Scott
The British press has been full of stories about a sleepy backwater town on the north bank of the river Tyne. Welcome to Monkseaton, a suburb of Whitley Bay which is an exurb of Newcastle. Here the local High School is home to 850 young people aged between 11 and 18. They have all become willing participants in an experiment. After taking detailed advice from sleep experts, the local government and parents, the school has now redefined its day. Instead of opening its doors to sleepy children at 9 every morning, it will start at 10 for the next six months. The initial plan had been to start at 11 but too many parents objected. It will close for study at 5 in the afternoon. What's going on? Most sleep experts agree that teens need more sleep as they come into puberty. Forget the broad distinction between the larks who are best in the early mornings and the owls who are best at night. Most teens are best in the afternoon. Research shows disturbing sleep patterns reduces the quality of performance at school and grades suffer. Give everyone the chance for nine-and-a-half hours of sleep, and grades improve. Is this any different in the US? Well, teens are teens wherever they are. The research evidence shows them to be the most sleep-deprived group in the US. The problem is always striking a balance between the school day, homework and a social life. Everyone has their own circadian rhythm telling them when sleep is most natural. But when the calls from the body's internal clock clash with homework, the latest electronic game or hanging out with friends at the mall, sleep gets left in the dust. It's only at the weekend they can give into the exhaustion and catch up. The schools are also caught up in their own rhythm of life. Parents have their own commitments. They expect to be able to drop off their children before going on to work. When it comes to sports and other activities with other schools, everything is built around the same school day. If some schools suddenly got out of step, parents and a range of other activities would be thrown out of gear. So although it's interesting to see a single school in Britain running an experiment, it's likely to stop after six months without any other schools joining in. It will take very clear evidence of an improvement in grades before local governments will allow a general change in the school day. It's likely the same in the US. There have been one or two test runs in Canada but, so far, the hours of schools have remained unchanged for fifty and more years. The fact that some teens walk around like zombies is just part of learning how to cope as an adult. If older teens do find their sleep is too disrupted and insomnia seriously affects their grades, talk to a doctor about using ambien. This is the best of the drugs to help people sleep through the night. With your doctor's approval, buy ambien and give your teen the chance of an uninterrupted night of rest with better concentration at school the next day.About the Author:
