Snoozing Through School—

NHS Students Pray For Pillows During Early Periods

BY ANDREW ROTE

It’s a school night, so being the average teenager you go to bed between 9:30 and 10:30 pm. You then lie awake until after midnight and once you finally get to sleep, it’s time to wake up.

If a teenager doesn’t fall asleep until around midnight, that leaves no more than six hours of sleep. The fact that many people wake up a number of times during the night makes that time even shorter. According to family.com, the average teen sleeps five hours per night during the week.

National Parent Information Network (NPIN) recommends that teens get at least nine hours of sleep each night. The older teens get, the more sleep they need. The NPIN also offered another interesting statistic: 20 percent of all high school students fall asleep in school.

The first bell in Newtown High School sounds at 7:25 am. Taking into consideration that students and teachers have to wake up, get prepared and travel to school, this means the alarm clocks start buzzing between 5:30 and 6:15.

“[Students] are tired, but become more alert as the day goes on,” Allison Zmuda, a teacher in the high school’s social studies department, says of her students in her period one American Studies class. She also added that students always arrived late until she applied a strict late policy.

The NPIN says that teens are most alert after 3 pm.  Though the problem with sleep could be blamed on going to bed too late, that is not always the case. The NPIN explains that sleep deprivation is associated with memory deficits, increased irritability, anxiety, depression, or the decreased ability to handle tasks.

Karen Mann, the high school’s library media specialist, maintains that there is a big difference in the way students act in first period versus later periods. Students are commonly found asleep in the early periods while they can be very attentive later on in the day.

A popular trend identified by many teachers is the number of students who eat breakfast and suck down coffee during first period classes.

“By mid-day, the students consume so much caffeine that they’re wired,” Mrs Mann explains.

Yet Mrs Zmuda recommends caffeine for students struggling against sleepy eyes.

Teacher Linda Sykes, who is in guided study during first period, notices the effects of sluggish students.

“Five out of the ten [students] are on time,” comments Mrs Sykes. She adds that the five that show up consistently late are all freshmen. “It is difficult for freshmen to adjust to the time,” she says. “Eventually, you develop a habit [of waking up early].”

Mrs Sykes says that she had to constantly tap students on the shoulder last year to keep them awake in a lecture class.

Jennifer Huettner, a foreign language teacher, has her students do activities in period one to keep them from falling asleep. She feels that this is more effective in keeping students awake rather than lecturing. Other teachers share this strategy.

Steven George, a history teacher, says that at least four of the 30 students in his period one history class show up late. Mr George admits he is used to being up early because he went through four years in NHS and also spent time in the military. He added that many people wake up that early for work, and he doesn’t feel there is a problem with the starting time of school.

When students and teachers were polled as to whether or not school should start and end later, almost all of them said between 30 and 45 minutes later would make a big difference. This, however, could cause problems because of students’ jobs and after-school activities and sports.

Junior Alana Brier has American studies during periods one and two in the morning. Unlike the majority of her classmates, she feels that she has a better learning experience in the mornings because it is calmer.

Larry Dworkin, a freshman, says he is almost asleep in his period one English class. When asked if there is a difference in the way he learns in period one and later periods, Larry nods. “In period one, I don’t [learn], and later, I do.”

“School should start later. I have math first period, and I don’t think in numbers that early. I think in monosyllabic grunts,” says Lauri Manion, a tired sophomore.

“In later periods, I raise my hand more,” Tom Fullman, a junior, points out.

Freshman Heather Page notices herself zoning out during early periods, and also feels that her teachers act a little tired as well. She gets her sleep on the bus ride to school, but would rather have the school schedule as it is now, instead of later on.

Though there is not much that can be done about sleep deprivation, NewsNet5 has a few suggestions. Exercising regularly, avoiding caffeine after dinner, cutting back on TV, and cutting back on computer time are all ways to guarantee a better night’s sleep. These tips might help, but will they cure the ever-popular sleeping problems of students?

(Andrew Rote is a sophomore journalism student who contributes sports and technology stories to the school’s paper, The Hawkeye.)