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Associations of time spent on homework or studying with nocturnal sleep behavior and depression symptoms in adolescents from Singapore

• Sing Chen Yeo, MSc Sing Chen Yeo Affiliations Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Program in Neuroscience and Behavioral Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore Search for articles by this author
• Jacinda Tan, BSc Jacinda Tan Affiliations Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Program in Neuroscience and Behavioral Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore Search for articles by this author
• Joshua J. Gooley, PhD Joshua J. Gooley Correspondence Corresponding author: Joshua J. Gooley, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuroscience and Behavioral Disorders Program, Duke-NUS Medical School Singapore, 8 College Road, Singapore 117549, Singapore Contact Affiliations Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Program in Neuroscience and Behavioral Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore Search for articles by this author

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Homework, Sleep, and the Student Brain

At some point, every parent wishes their high school aged student would go to bed earlier as well as find time to pursue their own passions -- or maybe even choose to relax. This thought reemerged as I reread Anna Quindlen's commencement speech, A Short Guide to a Happy Life. The central message of this address, never actually stated, was: "Get a life."

But what prevents students from "getting a life," especially between September and June? One answer is homework.

Favorable Working Conditions

As a history teacher at St. Andrew's Episcopal School and director of the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning , I want to be clear that I both give and support the idea of homework. But homework, whether good or bad, takes time and often cuts into each student's sleep, family dinner, or freedom to follow passions outside of school. For too many students, homework is too often about compliance and "not losing points" rather than about learning.

Most schools have a philosophy about homework that is challenged by each parent's experience doing homework "back in the day." Parents' common misconception is that the teachers and schools giving more homework are more challenging and therefore better teachers and schools. This is a false assumption. The amount of homework your son or daughter does each night should not be a source of pride for the quality of a school. In fact, I would suggest a different metric when evaluating your child's homework. Are you able to stay up with your son or daughter until he or she finishes those assignments? If the answer is no, then too much homework is being assigned, and you both need more of the sleep that, according to Daniel T. Willingham , is crucial to memory consolidation.

I have often joked with my students, while teaching the Progressive Movement and rise of unions between the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, that they should consider striking because of how schools violate child labor laws. If school is each student's "job," then students are working hours usually assigned to Washington, DC lawyers (combing the hours of the school day, school-sponsored activities, and homework). This would certainly be a risky strategy for changing how schools and teachers think about homework, but it certainly would gain attention. (If any of my students are reading this, don't try it!)

So how can we change things?

The Scientific Approach

In the study "What Great Homework Looks Like" from the journal Think Differently and Deeply , which connects research in how the brain learns to the instructional practice of teachers, we see moderate advantages of no more than two hours of homework for high school students. For younger students, the correlation is even smaller. Homework does teach other important, non-cognitive skills such as time management, sustained attention, and rule following, but let us not mask that as learning the content and skills that most assignments are supposed to teach.

Homework can be a powerful learning tool -- if designed and assigned correctly. I say "learning," because good homework should be an independent moment for each student or groups of students through virtual collaboration. It should be challenging and engaging enough to allow for deliberate practice of essential content and skills, but not so hard that parents are asked to recall what they learned in high school. All that usually leads to is family stress.

But even when good homework is assigned, it is the student's approach that is critical. A scientific approach to tackling their homework can actually lead to deepened learning in less time. The biggest contributor to the length of a student's homework is task switching. Too often, students jump between their work on an assignment and the lure of social media. But I have found it hard to convince students of the cost associated with such task switching. Imagine a student writing an essay for AP English class or completing math proofs for their honors geometry class. In the middle of the work, their phone announces a new text message. This is a moment of truth for the student. Should they address that text before or after they finish their assignment?

Delayed Gratification

When a student chooses to check their text, respond and then possibly take an extended dive into social media, they lose a percentage of the learning that has already happened. As a result, when they return to the AP essay or honors geometry proof, they need to retrace their learning in order to catch up to where they were. This jump, between homework and social media, is actually extending the time a student spends on an assignment. My colleagues and I coach our students to see social media as a reward for finishing an assignment. Delaying gratification is an important non-cognitive skill and one that research has shown enhances life outcomes (see the Stanford Marshmallow Test ).

At my school, the goal is to reduce the barriers for each student to meet his or her peak potential without lowering the bar. Good, purposeful homework should be part of any student's learning journey. But it takes teachers to design better homework (which can include no homework at all on some nights), parents to not see hours of homework as a measure of school quality, and students to reflect on their current homework strategies while applying new, research-backed ones. Together, we can all get more sleep -- and that, research shows, is very good for all of our brains and for each student's learning.

The Impact of Sleep on Learning and Memory

By Kelly Cappello, B.A.

For many students, staying awake all night to study is common practice. According to Medical News Today , around 20 percent of students pull all-nighters at least once a month, and about 35 percent stay up past three in the morning once or more weekly.

That being said, staying up all night to study is one of the worst things students can do for their grades. In October of 2019, two MIT professors found a correlation between sleep and test scores : The less students slept during the semester, the worse their scores.

So, why is it that sleep is so important for test scores? While the answer seems simple, that students simply perform better when they’re not mentally or physically tired, the truth may be far more complicated and interesting.

In the last 20 years, scientists have found that sleep impacts more than just students’ ability to perform well; it improves their ability to learn, memorize, retain, recall, and use their new knowledge to solve problems creatively. All of which contribute to better test scores.

Let’s take a look at some of the most interesting research regarding the impact of sleep on learning and memory.

How does sleep improve the ability to learn?

When learning facts and information, most of what we learn is temporarily stored in a region of the brain called the hippocampus. Some scientists hypothesize that , like most storage centers, the hippocampus has limited storage capacity. This means, if the hippocampus is full, and we try to learn more information, we won’t be able to.

Fortunately, many scientists also hypothesize that sleep, particularly Stages 2 and 3 sleep, plays a role in replenishing our ability to learn. In one study, a group of 44 participants underwent two rigorous sessions of learning, once at noon and again at 6:00 PM. Half of the group was allowed to nap between sessions, while the other half took part in standard activities. The researchers found that the group that napped between learning sessions learned just as easily at 6:00 PM as they did at noon. The group that didn’t nap, however, experienced a significant decrease in learning ability [1].

How does sleep improve the ability to recall information?

Humans have known about the benefits of sleep for memory recall for thousands of years. In fact, the first record of this revelation is from the first century AD. Rhetorician Quintilian stated, “It is a curious fact, of which the reason is not obvious, that the interval of a single night will greatly increase the strength of the memory.”

In the last century, scientists have tested this theory many times, often finding that sleep improves memory retention and recall by between 20 and 40 percent. Recent research has led scientists to hypothesize that Stage 3 (deep non-Rapid Eye Movement sleep, or Slow Wave Sleep) may be especially important for the improvement of memory retention and recall [2].

How does sleep improve long-term memory? 

Scientists hypothesize that sleep also plays a major role in forming long-term memories. According to Matthew Walker, professor of neuroscience and psychology at UC Berkeley, MRI scans indicate that the slow brain waves of stage 3 sleep (deep NREM sleep) “serve as a courier service,” transporting memories from the hippocampus to other more permanent storage sites [3].

How does sleep improve the ability to solve problems creatively?

Many tests are designed to assess critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills. Recent research has led scientists to hypothesize that sleep, particularly REM sleep, plays a role in strengthening these skills. In one study, scientists tested the effect of REM sleep on the ability to solve anagram puzzles (word scrambles like “EOUSM” for “MOUSE”), an ability that requires strong creative thinking and problem-solving skills.

In the study, participants solved a couple of anagram puzzles before going to sleep in a sleep laboratory with electrodes placed on their heads. The subjects were woken up four times during the night to solve anagram puzzles, twice during NREM sleep and twice during REM sleep.

The researchers found that when participants were woken up during REM sleep, they could solve 15 to 35 percent more puzzles than they could when woken up from NREM sleep. They also performed 15 to 35 percent better than they did in the middle of the day [4]. It seems that REM sleep may play a major role in improving the ability to solve complex problems.

So, what’s the point?

Sleep research from the last 20 years indicates that sleep does more than simply give students the energy they need to study and perform well on tests. Sleep actually helps students learn, memorize, retain, recall, and use their new knowledge to come up with creative and innovative solutions.

It’s no surprise that the MIT study previously mentioned revealed no improvement in scores for those who only prioritized their sleep the night before a big test. In fact, the MIT researchers concluded that if students want to see an improvement in their test scores, they have to prioritize their sleep during the entire learning process. Staying up late to study just doesn’t pay off.

Interested in learning more about the impact of sleep on learning and memory? Check out this Student Sleep Guide .

Author Biography

Kelly Cappello graduated from East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania with a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies in 2015. She is now a writer, specialized in researching complex topics and writing about them in simple English. She currently writes for Recharge.Energy , a company dedicated to helping the public improve their sleep and improve their lives.

• Mander, Bryce A., et al. “Wake Deterioration and Sleep Restoration of Human Learning.” Current Biology, vol. 21, no. 5, 2011, doi:10.1016/j.cub.2011.01.019.
• Walker M. P. (2009). The role of slow wave sleep in memory processing. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 5(2 Suppl), S20–S26.
• Walker, Matthew. Why We Sleep. Scribner, 2017.
• Walker, Matthew P, et al. “Cognitive Flexibility across the Sleep–Wake Cycle: REM-Sleep Enhancement of Anagram Problem Solving.” Cognitive Brain Research, vol. 14, no. 3, 2002, pp. 317–324., doi:10.1016/s0926-6410(02)00134-9.

Posted on Dec 21, 2020 | Tagged: learning and memory

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Teens, Sleep and Homework Survey Results

Better sleep council research finds that too much homework can actually hurt teens' performance in school.

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ALEXANDRIA, Va. , Dec. 11, 2018 – According to new research from the Better Sleep Council (BSC) – the nonprofit consumer-education arm of the International Sleep Products Association – homework, rather than social pressure, is the number one cause of teenage stress, negatively affecting their sleep and ultimately impacting their academic performance.

American teenagers said they spend 15+ hours a week on homework, and about one-third (34%) of all teens spend 20 or more hours a week. This is more than time spent at work, school clubs, social activities and sports. When asked what causes stress in their lives, about three-quarters of teens said grades/test scores (75%) and/or homework (74%) cause stress, more than self-esteem (51%), parental expectations (45%) and even bullying (15%). In fact, according to the American Psychological Association’s Stress in America™ Survey, during the school year, teenagers say they experience stress levels higher than those reported by adults.

Further, more than half (57%) of all teenagers surveyed do not feel they get enough sleep. Seventy-nine percent reported getting 7 hours of sleep or less on a typical school night, more than two-thirds (67%) say they only get 5 to 7 hours of sleep on a school night, and only about one in five teens is getting 8 hours of sleep or more. Based on the BSC’s findings, the more stressed teenagers feel, the more likely they are to get less sleep, go to bed later and wake up earlier. They are also more likely to have trouble going to sleep and staying asleep – more often than their less-stressed peers.

“We’re finding that teenagers are experiencing this cycle where they sacrifice their sleep to spend extra time on homework, which gives them more stress – but they don’t get better grades,” said Mary Helen Rogers , vice president of marketing and communications for the Better Sleep Council. “The BSC understands the impact sleep has on teenagers’ overall development, so we can help them reduce this stress through improved sleep habits.”

The BSC recommends that teens between the ages of 13-18 get 8-10 hours of sleep per night. For teens to get the sleep their bodies need for optimal school performance, they should consider the following tips:

• Establish a consistent bedtime routine . Just like they set time aside for homework, they should schedule at least 8 hours of sleep into their daily calendars. It may be challenging in the beginning, but it will help in the long run.
• Keep it quiet in the bedroom.  It’s easier to sleep when there isn’t extra noise. Teens may even want to wear earplugs if their home is too noisy.
• Create a relaxing sleep environment. Make sure the bedroom is clutter-free, dark and conducive to great sleep. A cool bedroom, between 65 and 67 degrees , is ideal to help teens sleep.
• Cut back on screen time. Try cutting off screen time at least an hour before bed. The blue light emitted from electronics’ screens disturbs sleep.
• Examine their mattress. Since a mattress is an important component of a good night’s sleep, consider replacing it if it isn’t providing comfort and support, or hasn’t been changed in at least seven years.

Other takeaways on the relationship between homework, stress and sleep in teenagers include:

• Teens who feel more stress (89%) are more likely than less-stressed teens (65%) to say homework causes them stress in their lives.
• More than three-quarters (76%) of teens who feel more stress say they don’t feel they get enough sleep – which is significantly higher than teens who are not stressed, since only 42% of them feel they don’t get enough sleep.
• Teens who feel more stress (51%) are more likely than less-stressed teens (35%) to get to bed at 11 p.m. or later. Among these teens who are going to bed later, about 33% of them said they are waking up at 6:00 a.m. or earlier.
• Students who go to bed earlier and awaken earlier perform better academically than those who stay up late – even to do homework.

About the BSC The Better Sleep Council is the consumer-education arm of the International Sleep Products Association, the trade association for the mattress industry. With decades invested in improving sleep quality, the BSC educates consumers on the link between sleep and health, and the role of the sleep environment, primarily through www.bettersleep.org , partner support and consumer outreach.

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Better Sleep Council Research Finds That Too Much Homework Can Actually Hurt Teens’ Performance In School

Dec 19, 2018 | Age | 0 |

According to new research from the Better Sleep Council (BSC)—the nonprofit consumer-education arm of the International Sleep Products Association—homework, rather than social pressure, is the number-one cause of teenage stress, negatively affecting their sleep and ultimately impacting their academic performance.

American teenagers said they spend 15+ hours a week on homework, and about one-third (34%) of all teens spend 20 or more hours a week. This is more than time spent at work, school clubs, social activities, and sports. When asked what causes stress in their lives, about three-quarters of teens said grades/test scores (75%) and/or homework (74%) cause stress, more than self-esteem (51%), parental expectations (45%) and even bullying (15%).

Further, more than half (57%) of all teenagers surveyed do not feel they get enough sleep. Seventy-nine percent reported getting 7 hours of sleep or less on a typical school night, more than two-thirds (67%) say they only get 5 to 7 hours of sleep on a school night, and only about one in five teens is getting 8 hours of sleep or more. Based on the BSC’s findings, the more stressed teenagers feel, the more likely they are to get less sleep, go to bed later, and wake up earlier. They are also more likely to have trouble going to sleep and staying asleep—more often than their less-stressed peers.

“We’re finding that teenagers are experiencing this cycle where they sacrifice their sleep to spend extra time on homework, which gives them more stress—but they don’t get better grades,” says Mary Helen Rogers, vice president of marketing and communications for the Better Sleep Council, in a release. “The BSC understands the impact sleep has on teenagers’ overall development, so we can help them reduce this stress through improved sleep habits.”

The BSC recommends that teens between the ages of 13-18 get 8-10 hours of sleep per night. For teens to get the sleep their bodies need for optimal school performance, they should consider the following tips:

• Establish a consistent bedtime routine. Just like they set time aside for homework, they should schedule at least 8 hours of sleep into their daily calendars. It may be challenging in the beginning, but it will help in the long run.
• Keep it quiet in the bedroom. It’s easier to sleep when there isn’t extra noise. Teens may even want to wear earplugs if their home is too noisy.
• Create a relaxing sleep environment. Make sure the bedroom is clutter-free, dark and conducive to great sleep. A cool bedroom, between 65 and 67 degrees, is ideal to help teens sleep.
• Cut back on screen time. Try cutting off screen time at least an hour before bed. The blue light emitted from electronics’ screens disturbs sleep.
• Examine their mattress. Since a mattress is an important component of a good night’s sleep, consider replacing it if it isn’t providing comfort and support, or hasn’t been changed in at least seven years.

Other takeaways on the relationship between homework, stress and sleep in teenagers include:

• Teens who feel more stress (89%) are more likely than less-stressed teens (65%) to say homework causes them stress in their lives.
• More than three-quarters (76%) of teens who feel more stress say they don’t feel they get enough sleep—which is significantly higher than teens who are not stressed, since only 42% of them feel they don’t get enough sleep.
• Teens who feel more stress (51%) are more likely than less-stressed teens (35%) to get to bed at 11 p.m. or later. Among these teens who are going to bed later, about 33% of them said they are waking up at 6 am or earlier.
• Students who go to bed earlier and awaken earlier perform better academically than those who stay up late—even to do homework.

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Education scholar Denise Pope has found that too much homework has negative effects on student well-being and behavioral engagement. (Image credit: L.A. Cicero)

A Stanford researcher found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter.

“Our findings on the effects of homework challenge the traditional assumption that homework is inherently good,” wrote Denise Pope , a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and a co-author of a study published in the Journal of Experimental Education .

The researchers used survey data to examine perceptions about homework, student well-being and behavioral engagement in a sample of 4,317 students from 10 high-performing high schools in upper-middle-class California communities. Along with the survey data, Pope and her colleagues used open-ended answers to explore the students’ views on homework.

Median household income exceeded $90,000 in these communities, and 93 percent of the students went on to college, either two-year or four-year.

Students in these schools average about 3.1 hours of homework each night.

“The findings address how current homework practices in privileged, high-performing schools sustain students’ advantage in competitive climates yet hinder learning, full engagement and well-being,” Pope wrote.

Pope and her colleagues found that too much homework can diminish its effectiveness and even be counterproductive. They cite prior research indicating that homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night, and that 90 minutes to two and a half hours is optimal for high school.

Their study found that too much homework is associated with:

* Greater stress: 56 percent of the students considered homework a primary source of stress, according to the survey data. Forty-three percent viewed tests as a primary stressor, while 33 percent put the pressure to get good grades in that category. Less than 1 percent of the students said homework was not a stressor.

* Reductions in health: In their open-ended answers, many students said their homework load led to sleep deprivation and other health problems. The researchers asked students whether they experienced health issues such as headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss and stomach problems.

* Less time for friends, family and extracurricular pursuits: Both the survey data and student responses indicate that spending too much time on homework meant that students were “not meeting their developmental needs or cultivating other critical life skills,” according to the researchers. Students were more likely to drop activities, not see friends or family, and not pursue hobbies they enjoy.

A balancing act

The results offer empirical evidence that many students struggle to find balance between homework, extracurricular activities and social time, the researchers said. Many students felt forced or obligated to choose homework over developing other talents or skills.

Also, there was no relationship between the time spent on homework and how much the student enjoyed it. The research quoted students as saying they often do homework they see as “pointless” or “mindless” in order to keep their grades up.

“This kind of busy work, by its very nature, discourages learning and instead promotes doing homework simply to get points,” Pope said.

She said the research calls into question the value of assigning large amounts of homework in high-performing schools. Homework should not be simply assigned as a routine practice, she said.

“Rather, any homework assigned should have a purpose and benefit, and it should be designed to cultivate learning and development,” wrote Pope.

High-performing paradox

In places where students attend high-performing schools, too much homework can reduce their time to foster skills in the area of personal responsibility, the researchers concluded. “Young people are spending more time alone,” they wrote, “which means less time for family and fewer opportunities to engage in their communities.”

Student perspectives

The researchers say that while their open-ended or “self-reporting” methodology to gauge student concerns about homework may have limitations – some might regard it as an opportunity for “typical adolescent complaining” – it was important to learn firsthand what the students believe.

The paper was co-authored by Mollie Galloway from Lewis and Clark College and Jerusha Conner from Villanova University.

Media Contacts

Denise Pope, Stanford Graduate School of Education: (650) 725-7412, [email protected] Clifton B. Parker, Stanford News Service: (650) 725-0224, [email protected]

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The Impact of Sleep and Mental Health on Working Memory and Academic Performance: A Longitudinal Study

Abeer f. almarzouki.

1 Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia

Rahaf L. Mandili

2 Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia

Joud Salloom

Lujain k. kamal, omimah alharthi, samah alharthi, nusaiba khayyat, alaa m. baglagel, associated data.

Data available upon request due to ethical restrictions.

Sleep and mental health can affect cognition and academic performance. The present study aimed to investigate the relationships between sleep, mental health, working memory, and academic performance. We collected demographic data from university students during the non-academic summer period and the academic term. We also measured academic performance (GPA), sleep (PSQI), depression (PHQ-9), anxiety (GAD-7), and disordered social media use (SMDS). Working memory was assessed by the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB). We assessed 83 students (42.2% male) with a mean age of 21 years. Compared to the non-academic summer period, students had significantly worse sleep and distress scores in the academic term. Anxiety, depression, and distress scores were significantly correlated with worse sleep quality. Despite worse mental health and sleep in the academic term, working memory improved compared to the non-academic summer period and was also correlated with a higher GPA. However, a higher GPA was significantly associated with longer sleep latency, increased sleep disturbances, and increased use of sleep medication. Students experiencing poor sleep suffered from poor mental health, although they maintained high GPA and working memory scores. Cognitive resilience, including higher working memory, may mask poor sleep quality and mental health among university students.

1. Introduction

The university years can be a challenging life stage for students [ 1 ]. Many students struggle to juggle academic demands and study–life balance [ 2 ], in addition to worries about securing a job in a competitive market [ 3 ]. Such difficulties are particularly true in challenging specialties such as medical or health-based fields [ 4 ]. Hence, this population of young people is at a risk of developing mental challenges during their university years [ 5 ]. These concerns have driven a global interest among health, research, and academic professionals in the investigation of such challenges in the hope of minimizing the impact of these stressors on student well-being [ 6 , 7 ].

Sleep is one factor that has deteriorated in recent years, especially in this age group and largely due to changes in behavioral and social factors [ 8 ]. University students typically shift to irregular sleep patterns as a result of academic schedules and deadlines [ 9 ]. Adequate sleep is a vital component of human beings’ survival and plays a key role in an individual’s physical and mental health [ 10 ]. In addition, sleep has a crucial effect on optimal cognitive functioning, including attention, working memory and perception [ 11 ]. Working memory is a type of memory that holds task-relevant information while the brain performs other mental tasks [ 12 ]. We focused specifically on working memory because it is a vital cognitive function in the process of learning [ 13 ]. Working memory is a strong predictor of academic performance, stronger than IQ level [ 14 ]. Students with working memory defects are more prone to academic failure [ 15 ]. Furthermore, working memory is vulnerable to sleep disruption [ 16 ].

Furthermore, sleep has an essential role in emotional regulation and mental health [ 17 ]. Previous research has demonstrated that sleep disturbances may lead to psychiatric disorders such as depression, anxiety, and psychological distress even among previously healthy individuals [ 18 ].

Numerous studies worldwide have explored the relationship between academic performance and sleep. Findings from these studies generally support a positive association between better sleep quality and higher academic performance [ 19 , 20 , 21 ], although some studies suggest that this association could be negative [ 22 , 23 , 24 ] or does not exist [ 25 ]. These discrepancies could be explained by incomplete investigation of the relevant factors which potentially influence the relationship between sleep and academic performance, such as mental health [ 26 ]. Furthermore, many of these studies relied solely on grade point average (GPA) or exam scores, reported by the students, as a measure of academic ability. Finally, most of these studies had a single cross-sectional design that assessed only a single record of participant behaviors, primarily during the academic term, which limits our understanding of how participant performance and behavior changes in response to attending university.

In the current study, we aimed to account for affective factors, namely depression, anxiety and stress that may impact academic performance. In addition, we provided an objective measure of cognitive ability, not just a behavioral academic outcome (GPA). Investigating these two measures, mental wellbeing and an objective measure of cognitive ability, will provide a better perspective on the relationship between sleep and academic performance, specifically in a longitudinal study design.

2. Methodology

2.1. ethical statement.

The institutional review board at King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH) provided ethical approval after reviewing the proposal for this study. All participants agreed to be a part of the study after reading the information sheet and signing the consent form. The right of withdrawal at any point in the study was clearly explained to each participant, and all participant responses were anonymized.

2.2. Participants

We recruited the study participants by posting messages on social media (i.e., WhatsApp) that briefly explained the study. Participants were screened according to the study inclusion and exclusion criteria. We included male and female university students aged 18 years and older but not those who were in their final year of study. We excluded participants who had previously been diagnosed with chronic medical or physiological conditions. No compensation of any kind was given to the participants. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the total number of participants enrolled was 83. All participants signed electronic consent forms and were informed of the right to withdraw at any time during the study period. Prior to the start of the study, the researchers explained to the participants the study procedure (see image below), the purpose of the assessment tools used, and how they would be utilized. The researchers received confirmation from the participants that they understood what had been explained to them before filling out the questionnaire and participating in the study procedures and before taking the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB).

2.3. Study Design

The present study was a longitudinal study designed to obtain and analyze data from university students in the non-academic summer period and during the academic term. All participants were enrolled at King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The first data collection phase took place in the middle of the summer vacation (June 2021), and the second phase was in the middle of the first academic semester (November 2021). Working memory was assessed by CANTAB. Sleep, anxiety, depression, distress scores, social media use were measured by validated scales via digital questionnaires ( Figure 1 ). All students were English-speaking and studying an English-based curriculum, and all questionnaires were given in English. Participants met with researchers in a quiet environment on the KAU campus. All participants received the same instructions and were trained on the device and the use of CANTAB. All participants subsequently took part in a practice CANTAB trial before the actual CANTAB trials began.

Study Design.

2.4. Data Collection Methods

2.4.1. demographic data and academic performance.

Demographic data included the following: age, gender, marital status, specialty and academic year, smoking, consumption of caffeinated drinks, and confirmed physical or psychological illness. Participants were also asked to provide their GPA scores as a measure of academic performance both at end of the summer period and the academic term in which they were interviewed.

2.4.2. Sleep Assessment

Participants were asked to complete four questionnaires including the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) for the assessment of sleep quality [ 27 ]. The PSQI measures seven components of sleep: 1. subjective sleep quality; 2. sleep latency (i.e., how long an individual takes to fall asleep); 3. sleep duration; 4. actual hours asleep; 5. sleep disturbances (i.e., having trouble sleeping); 6. use of sleeping medication, and 7. daytime dysfunction. Each sleep component was scored from 0 (no difficulty) to 3 (severe difficulty). The component scores were added together to provide an overall score (range: from 0 to 21). Higher scores indicate worse sleep quality. Scores greater than 5 indicate poor sleeping quality, as previously reported in the literature [ 27 ].

2.4.3. Mental Health Assessments

Mental well-being was assessed with the following instruments: patient health questionnaire (PHQ)-9 for depression [ 28 ], general anxiety disorder (GAD)-7 for anxiety [ 29 ], Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (KPDS) for stress [ 30 ], Social Media Disorder Scale (SMD) for social media use [ 31 ].

2.4.4. Working Memory Assessment

Working memory was assessed with CANTAB Cognitive Research Software Cambridge Cognition, n.d. All tests using CANTAB were standardized, computerized, and presented on a touch screen and have been widely used in numerous studies [ 32 ]. The spatial working memory (SWM) task was selected to assess working memory and required approximately 4 min to complete. Briefly, a number of boxes was displayed on the screen. Participants selected boxes and used their own strategy of elimination to find the yellow “token” in one of the boxes and to use the tokens to fill up an empty column on the right side of the screen. The test difficulty increased based on the number of boxes and could reach a maximum of 12 boxes. The token color and position inside the boxes changed from trial to trial to discourage the use of stereotyped search strategies. Working memory in the present study was measured by two fundamental factors: strategies and error measures. Strategies refer to the methods an individual can use to solve a CANTAB challenge, whereas error refers to the number of lost trials.

2.4.5. Data Analysis

This analysis was conducted in two parts. First, the bivariate Pearson correlations represent the high-level associations between variables pertaining to sleep, working memory and mental well-being. These bivariate correlations do not control for one another, and may therefore be confounded by one another. This is why regression modeling was subsequently used to control for all measures. Multiple regression modeling investigated the association between GPA and the partial effects of all other variables (sleep, cworking memory, and mental well-being) while controlling for one another.

Scores were calculated for each of seven PSQI domains including sleep quality, latency, duration, efficiency, disturbances, the use of medications for sleep, and daytime dysfunction. Individual scores were added together to obtain a total PSQI score. Participants with scores of 5 or higher were considered poor sleepers [ 27 ]. In addition to sleep, we recorded SWM scores in terms of strategy scores (lower is better, for each trial containing 6, 6–8, or 6–12 tokens) and the total number of errors (for trials containing 4, 6, 8, 4–8, or 12 tokens).

For statistical modeling, each PSQI domain was coded as either adequate (0–1) or problematic (2–3), as were total scores (0–10 vs. 11–21). At the time of each visit, linear regression modeling was used to identify associations between GPA, sleep problems, and working memory, while controlling for anxiety, depression, and psychological distress. Level of education did not significantly contribute to the model and was not included as a covariate. We used multiple regression analysis to identify the partial associations between variables, in particular the potential overlap between measures (e.g., depression and anxiety). Multicollinearity among measures was tested by calculating the variance inflation factor (VIF) to ensure that all predictor variables could be modeled together and found that multicollinearity was negligible. We ensured a normal distribution of model residuals using QQ-plots. Statistical modeling was completed using R version 3.6.2.

3.1. Participant Demographics and Sleep Characteristics

The sample included 83 participants (42.2% male) with a mean age of 21.82 years (SD = 1.59) at the time of the first visit. Sample demographics, sleep quality, and psychological scales are shown in Table 1 . Two-tailed paired sample t -tests were used to compare these variables. Most participants in our study sample were medical students, n = 51 (61%). Global sleep scores were greater than 5 (poor sleepers) in 53 participants (64%) during the summer period, with the number increasing in the academic term to 64 participants (77%). There were significant differences between the two time points in overall PSQI scores, with worse scores at the academic term time point. These differences were also found in sleep duration, the need for medication, and daytime dysfunction. Significantly more psychological distress at the academic term time point was observed.

Participant demographics and characteristics at each time point. * signifies p < 0.05.

3.2. Working Memory Scores

Participant SWM scores are shown in Table 2 . Two-tailed paired sample t -tests were used to compare SWM scores. Strategy scores for each type of trial were significantly lower in the academic term compared to the summer period. However, the total number of errors did not differ between these time points for any type of trial.

Participant spatial working memory scores at each time point. * signifies p < 0.05.

3.3. Mental Health Correlations with Sleep and Working Memory

We used Pearson correlation coefficients to assess which of the measures assessed showed significant associations before testing whether these correlations persist while controlling for other variables using linear regression. In the summer period, worse sleep quality overall was significantly correlated with worse symptoms of depression (r = 0.498), anxiety (r = 0.360), and distress (r = 0.433). These symptoms were specifically correlated with worse sleep quality, longer latency, more disturbances, and increased daytime dysfunction ( Table 3 ). In addition, worse working memory strategy was correlated with increased sleep disturbances (6–12-token trials, r = 0.252), while more disordered social media use was significantly correlated with worse working memory strategy (6–12-token trials, r = 0.258) and more working memory errors (4–8-token trials, r = 0.249).

Correlations between psychological scales, social media use, working memory, and PSQI components. Asterisks (*) indicate significance ( p < 0.05).

In the academic term, worse sleep overall was significantly correlated with increased symptoms of depression (r = 0.264), anxiety (r = 0.322), and distress (r = 0.400). These symptoms were all correlated with increases in sleep disturbances and worse daytime dysfunction. In addition, anxiety symptoms were correlated with longer sleep latency, and psychological distress was correlated with worse sleep quality. Worse SWM strategy was significantly correlated with having to take more medication for sleeping (6–12-token trials, r = −0.293), while more total SWM errors were significantly correlated with more problems with sleep duration (4–8 tokens, r = 0.246).

3.4. Association of Academic Performance with Sleep, Mental Well-Being, and Working Memory

Linear regression analysis was used to assess the association between academic performance (measured as GPA) at end of the non-academic summer period and during the academic term, and partial effects of sleep quality as measured by PSQI (both the total and each of its components), distress, anxiety, and depression symptoms, as well as SWM strategy and total errors. The assessments were carried out once during the summer period and once during the academic term, and the findings are shown in Table 4 . Briefly, GPA was not significantly associated with any sleep measures, psychological scales, or working memory in the summer period. In the academic term, higher GPA was significantly associated with longer sleep latency, more sleep disturbances, and fewer working memory errors ( Figure 2 ). Moreover, in the academic term, a higher GPA was significantly correlated with better working memory strategy (6–12-token trials, r = −0.220) and fewer total errors (4–8-token trials, r = −0.247).

Significant associations between GPA and each component of PSQI (latency and disturbances) and working memory at academic term.

Association between sleep quality measures and GPA in the summer period and the academic term. Terms denoted with an asterisk (*) are significant ( p < 0.05).

4. Discussion

The effect of sleep quality on academic performance has been previously investigated. Only a few studies, however, have examined the influence of mental well-being and working memory on this relationship, specifically, since working memory and mental health are well-known predictors of academic performance [ 33 , 34 ]. Therefore, our study aimed to expand the scope of previous investigations by using objective measures and a longitudinal design.

Our study revealed several interesting findings. First, we found that total sleep score, sleep duration, daytime dysfunction, and use of sleep medication worsened during the academic term compared to the non-academic summer period. Second, stress scores were significantly higher during the academic term, although other scores of mental health, such as depression and anxiety, numerically worsened as well. Third, despite worse sleep and mental health in the academic term, working memory scores improved in the academic term compared to the summer period, and working memory scores in the academic term were significantly correlated with a higher GPA. Moreover, longer sleep latency and increased sleep disturbances were also correlated with a high GPA in both the summer period and the academic term.

4.1. Sleep Habits among University Students

Most participants in our study were poor sleepers: 64% and 77% in the summer period and the academic term, respectively. This finding is consistent with recent reports of the increasing prevalence of poor sleep and a bid for better sleep hygiene practices among younger generations [ 35 ]. In addition, our findings show similar concordance with other national studies of sleep habits [ 24 , 25 ] along with international findings, including those in China [ 36 ] and Morocco [ 37 ]. Moreover, our study provides additional validation of previously reported results, as it assessed student sleep quality during two different time periods: the non-academic summer period and the academic term.

In the academic term, we found that students slept for a shorter duration, used more medication, and experienced more sleep disturbances and daytime dysfunction compared to that in the summer period. Sleep scores were better during non-academic term as students follow a more relaxed timeline, and although many of them may be still participating in community volunteering, research activities or elective rotations, students do not have set university exams or have to adhere to strict deadlines during the summer.

Such findings may be attributed to numerous stressors associated with academic life, such as the need to meet study deadlines, study intensively to achieve high grades, and keep up with social and family obligations [ 38 ]. Lifestyle behaviors affecting sleep patterns such as consumption of caffeinated or energy drinks [ 19 ] and excessive use of smartphones or social media platforms [ 23 ] may have contributed as well. Both behaviors (i.e., caffeine consumption and social media use) were also evident in our study population. These specific patterns in sleep disturbances may also signify increased anxiety, which has been previously described [ 37 ] among this age group, and may explain the increased use of sleep medication. Most importantly, this finding provides evidence that whichever lifestyle behaviors impair sleep hygiene, academic pressure further worsens such behaviors, which in turn negatively affect sleep quality.

4.2. Sleep Habits and Their Relationship to Academic Performance

The effect of sleep on the consolidation of memory is well known [ 37 ]. Previous work has demonstrated that a sleep-dependent neurophysiological process plays an essential role in the consolidation of various types of learning [ 39 ]. Similarly, disturbed sleep is associated with an overall decline in various aspects of cognition, which affects learning ability [ 40 ]. Previous studies have demonstrated a strong correlation between poor sleep quality and impaired academic performance [ 41 , 42 , 43 ]. Surprisingly, in our study, we found that students with a poorer sleep quality score (i.e., sleep latency and sleep disturbances) had a higher GPA during the academic term, whereas no relationship between sleep quality and GPA was observed in the summer period. The association between prolonged sleep latency and higher GPA could suggest that students were spending more time studying before falling asleep, which may explain the higher academic performance despite a pattern of deprived sleep. Similarly, a higher score for sleep disturbance associated with higher GPA could indicate that students with higher scores may worry more about their studies, hence their sleep is disturbed compared to low-achieving students. Interestingly, our study replicates the finding of another study conducted at the same university as the present study, which found that the prevalence of poor sleep quality among medical students was as high as 70.4%, especially among students with an excellent GPA [ 23 ]. A similar association between poor sleep and better academic performance was also documented among medical students in Saudi Arabia [ 24 ]. Furthermore, increasing evidence from the recent literature has suggested that good sleep and better academic performance do not always follow a linear pattern [ 44 , 45 ], although methodological differences in data collection and analysis may explain the discrepancy between conflicting results. It may be necessary to expand the simple model of a direct relationship between sleep quality and academic performance and explore other factors that potentially shape this relationship [ 26 ].

4.3. Working Memory, Academic Performance, and Sleep

Working memory, as justified in the introduction, is strongly linked to academic performance and equally vulnerable to sleep disruption. Furthermore, working memory is also a measure of executive function, not just memory, as it requires higher-order cognitive processing, e.g., retention and manipulation of information [ 12 ]. Spatial working memory specifically was previously investigated as more suspectable to sleep disruption then other forms of memory such as verbal working memory and declarative memory that are less affected by restricted sleep [ 46 ]. Working memory strategy scores were significantly lower (i.e., reflecting better working memory) during the academic term compared to the summer period. The improved cognitive functioning was evident despite worse sleep quality and mental health among our study sample in the academic term. Sleep is known to influence cognitive functions, including working memory [ 47 ], and previous work has found that sleep disturbances negatively impact working memory performance [ 47 ]. It should be noted, however, that the proposed impact of sleep quality on working memory is subject to individual differences, including age [ 48 ] and mood [ 49 ]. Working memory strategy scores improved from the summer period to the academic term, and the scores were correlated with GPA scores such that higher GPA was associated with better working memory performance, as reflected by a smaller number of errors and better strategy scores in the relevant task. Our findings of higher working memory scores, despite poor-quality sleep, may indicate that a student adopted a goal-oriented mindset during the academic term that focused on academic improvement and neglected well-being and physical needs, including sleep. This finding could be particularly evident in our sample, as the majority of the sample included students in highly competitive fields (i.e., medical students). Of particular interest is the fact that GPA did not reflect underlying global working memory (in the summer period) so much as the working memory state in a student can reach its maximum during the academic term.

4.4. Mental Health, Sleep, and Academic Performance

Younger generations in particular are increasingly exposed to stressors that have proven to negatively affect mental well-being [ 50 ]. This growing number of individuals suffering from the stress-induced effects of modern life may be the result of several factors, some of which include the increased use of social media [ 51 ] and peer relationships [ 52 ]. Increased stress among university students puts them at risk of developing mood disorders such as depression, which can not only negatively affect their capacity to learn, but also disrupt their sleep [ 35 ]. The student participants in the present study experienced mild anxiety, mild depression, and distress in both the non-academic summer period and the academic term. However, their distress scores significantly increased during the academic term. It has been previously reported that academic stressors predict depression, anxiety, and the number of sleep hours in students [ 53 ]. Hopelessness and anxiety have also been found to be mediators of academic stress and depressive symptoms [ 36 ]. Controlling these mental health mediators may help prevent academic-related stress and thereby improve wellbeing and sleep among university students [ 36 ].

In our study, we found poor sleep quality to be significantly correlated with poor mental health, and this correlation was evident in both the non-academic summer period and the academic term, specifically with regard to global sleep scores, but also sleep disturbances and daytime dysfunction. Previous work has demonstrated that sleep quality is correlated with mental health both locally and worldwide [ 25 , 54 , 55 ]. In our study, we also found that different sleep characteristics related to different mental health measures, thus potentially indicating different impact of sleep on mental health or vice versa but which cannot be inferred from an observational study like ours. Interestingly, it was previously reported that not only are sleep disorders prevalent among psychiatric disorders but also may by themselves increase the risk of such disorders developing later in life [ 56 ]. Taken together, these observations place great responsibility on academic institutions to raise awareness among university students on the importance of sleep hygiene, not only on physical but also mental health in the long term. Although we found that high GPA was correlated with poor sleep, and that poor sleep was further correlated with poor mental health, we did not find a direct association between psychological measures and GPA. These results do not accord with studies reporting that students with poor mental health have poor academic performance [ 57 , 58 , 59 ]. It is possible that high-achieving students, such as medical or health science students, may have traits that make them more resilient which may mask any underlying mental suffering. To confirm this supposition, e additional study with different populations would be required. In the same line of this finding, a study by Bemath et al. (2020) explored working memory in relation to psychological resilience among 38 healthy individuals. The study found that working memory indirectly fosters resilience-enabling behaviors [ 60 ]. Given that those students in our study with high GPA had a stronger working memory, it could be that such students are also capable of being more mentally resilient. That said, this is an important point to highlight, as such students are usually at high risk of developing burnout and possibly worse mental health outcomes, yet they may be overlooked because they are performing well academically [ 61 ].

4.5. Limitations

In the present study, we used a validated and self-reported measure to record sleep quality. This approach has limitations compared to more objective measures of sleep, such as polysomnography. Moreover, most of our participants were medical or health science students who may face higher levels of stress compared to other specialties and may be at higher risk of burnout in the future. This study only assessed spatial working memory. Other facets of cognition, including other forms of memory, may be either more or less associated with sleep, mental health, and academic performance. Finally, we focused on strategy scores as an outcome for spatial working memory performance with healthy volunters, and such a test is more likely to improve by practice effects when used repeatedly as in this study.

5. Conclusions

The findings from this study identify multiple factors that can potentially guide preventive and interventional programs to support the physical and mental health of university students. Despite the popular conception of the positive effect of sleep on academic performance, our results showed that high-achieving students were able to maintain a good GPA, which was correlated with better working memory, despite poor sleep quality. Academic institutions should direct resources to better educate, monitor, and support the students’ physical and mental health in the face of academic challenges, including those who are able to maintain good academic performance.

Acknowledgments

The research team would like to thank Khalid G. Almramh and Shatha H. Alharbi for their help in participant Recruittemnt.

Funding Statement

This research received no external funding.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, A.F.A., R.L.M., J.S., L.K.K., O.A., S.A., N.K. and A.M.B.; Formal analysis, A.F.A.; Funding acquisition, A.F.A., R.L.M., J.S., L.K.K., O.A., S.A., N.K. and A.M.B.; Investigation, R.L.M., J.S., L.K.K., O.A., S.A., N.K. and A.M.B.; Methodology, A.F.A.; Project administration, A.F.A., R.L.M. and J.S.; Resources, A.F.A., R.L.M., J.S., L.K.K., O.A., S.A., N.K. and A.M.B.; Software, A.F.A. and O.A.; Supervision, A.F.A.; Validation, A.F.A.; Visualization, A.F.A.; Writing—original draft, A.F.A., R.L.M., J.S., L.K.K., O.A., S.A., N.K. and A.M.B.; Writing—review and editing, A.F.A. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Institutional Review Board Statement

The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the institutional review board at King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH) (Reference No. 273-21, 27 April 2021).

Informed Consent Statement

Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

Data Availability Statement

Conflicts of interest.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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The Effects Homework Can Have On Teens’ Sleeping Habits

Jess Amabile '24 and February 25, 2021

Ever wonder why you feel like you never get enough sleep? Here’s a pretty good reason: large amounts of homework can be detrimental to a teen’s sleeping habits, even more so with high schoolers.

There have been many studies recently about the damage homework has to students’ health, mainly concerning lack of sleep in teenagers.  According to an article published by US News called “The Importance of Sleep for Teen Mental Health” , it states that “ surveys show that less than 9 percent of teens get enough sleep”.  This fact is devastating, especially considering the fact that teenagers take up about thirteen percent of the country’s population.  

Also mentioned in “The Importance of Sleep for Teen Mental Health” , “ about forty-one million Americans get six or fewer hours of sleep per night”.  If teenagers see their parents not getting enough sleep, it can convince them that there are things more important than sleep, such as something almost every teenager in America has to deal with–homework.

Homework is pretty stressful for teens, especially if they have other things to do.  Many teens have long hours at school, which limits the time for them to do their insane amount of homework, attend extra-curricular activities, eat, do whatever they need to around the house, and sleep.  And usually, sleeping is the last thing on the list of things to do before school the next day. Another article, “What’s preventing adequate teen sleep” , states that, “Homework is possibly the biggest factor that keeps teens from getting enough sleep…The sheer quantity of homework absorbs hours that should be dedicated to sleep”.  Students generally have so much homework that they don’t have enough time to do everything else they need to do that day.  So, sleeping is often the first thing teens eliminate from their schedule.  

According to Oxford Learning , homework can have other negative effects on students. In their article, Oxford Learning remarks, “56 percent of students considered homework a primary source of stress. Too much homework can result in lack of sleep, headaches, exhaustion, and weight loss”. 

 Similarly, Stanford Medicine News Center reports that the founder of the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic stated, “‘I think high school is the real danger spot in terms of sleep deprivation,’ said William Dement, MD, Ph.D.”.  Sleep deprivation is a real problem for high school students, and Stanford Medicine News Center continues on this topic by commenting, “Sleep deprivation increases the likelihood teens will suffer myriad negative consequences, including an inability to concentrate, poor grades, drowsy-driving incidents, anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicide and even suicide attempts. It’s a problem that knows no economic boundaries”. If students are constantly battling sleep deprivation, how can they concentrate on schoolwork, or even be able to perform everyday tasks?  This shows that homework greatly affects students in both mental and physical ways. If something is supposed to continue a lesson that was learned in school, why is it negatively affecting students’ lives?

Ask yourself: is homework really worth the extremely negative effects?

“What’s preventing adequate teen sleep”

http://sleepeducation.org/news/2017/07/26/what-is-preventing-adequate-teen-sleep

“The Importance of Sleep for Teen Mental Health”

https://health.usnews.com/health-care/for-better/articles/2018-07-02/the-importance-of-sleep-for-teen-mental-health

Oxford Learning

https://www.oxfordlearning.com/how-does-homework-affect-students/#:~:text=How%20Does%20Homework%20Affect%20Students,headaches%2C%20exhaustion%20and%20weight%20loss.

Stanford Medicine News Center

https://med.stanford.edu/news.html

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More than two hours of homework may be counterproductive, research suggests.

A Stanford education researcher found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter.   "Our findings on the effects of homework challenge the traditional assumption that homework is inherently good," wrote Denise Pope , a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and a co-author of a study published in the Journal of Experimental Education .   The researchers used survey data to examine perceptions about homework, student well-being and behavioral engagement in a sample of 4,317 students from 10 high-performing high schools in upper-middle-class California communities. Along with the survey data, Pope and her colleagues used open-ended answers to explore the students' views on homework.   Median household income exceeded $90,000 in these communities, and 93 percent of the students went on to college, either two-year or four-year.   Students in these schools average about 3.1 hours of homework each night.   "The findings address how current homework practices in privileged, high-performing schools sustain students' advantage in competitive climates yet hinder learning, full engagement and well-being," Pope wrote.   Pope and her colleagues found that too much homework can diminish its effectiveness and even be counterproductive. They cite prior research indicating that homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night, and that 90 minutes to two and a half hours is optimal for high school.   Their study found that too much homework is associated with:   • Greater stress : 56 percent of the students considered homework a primary source of stress, according to the survey data. Forty-three percent viewed tests as a primary stressor, while 33 percent put the pressure to get good grades in that category. Less than 1 percent of the students said homework was not a stressor.   • Reductions in health : In their open-ended answers, many students said their homework load led to sleep deprivation and other health problems. The researchers asked students whether they experienced health issues such as headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss and stomach problems.   • Less time for friends, family and extracurricular pursuits : Both the survey data and student responses indicate that spending too much time on homework meant that students were "not meeting their developmental needs or cultivating other critical life skills," according to the researchers. Students were more likely to drop activities, not see friends or family, and not pursue hobbies they enjoy.   A balancing act   The results offer empirical evidence that many students struggle to find balance between homework, extracurricular activities and social time, the researchers said. Many students felt forced or obligated to choose homework over developing other talents or skills.   Also, there was no relationship between the time spent on homework and how much the student enjoyed it. The research quoted students as saying they often do homework they see as "pointless" or "mindless" in order to keep their grades up.   "This kind of busy work, by its very nature, discourages learning and instead promotes doing homework simply to get points," said Pope, who is also a co-founder of Challenge Success , a nonprofit organization affiliated with the GSE that conducts research and works with schools and parents to improve students' educational experiences..   Pope said the research calls into question the value of assigning large amounts of homework in high-performing schools. Homework should not be simply assigned as a routine practice, she said.   "Rather, any homework assigned should have a purpose and benefit, and it should be designed to cultivate learning and development," wrote Pope.   High-performing paradox   In places where students attend high-performing schools, too much homework can reduce their time to foster skills in the area of personal responsibility, the researchers concluded. "Young people are spending more time alone," they wrote, "which means less time for family and fewer opportunities to engage in their communities."   Student perspectives   The researchers say that while their open-ended or "self-reporting" methodology to gauge student concerns about homework may have limitations – some might regard it as an opportunity for "typical adolescent complaining" – it was important to learn firsthand what the students believe.   The paper was co-authored by Mollie Galloway from Lewis and Clark College and Jerusha Conner from Villanova University.

Clifton B. Parker is a writer at the Stanford News Service .

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August 16, 2021

Is it time to get rid of homework? Mental health experts weigh in

by Sara M Moniuszko

It's no secret that kids hate homework. And as students grapple with an ongoing pandemic that has had a wide-range of mental health impacts, is it time schools start listening to their pleas over workloads?

Some teachers are turning to social media to take a stand against homework .

Tiktok user @misguided.teacher says he doesn't assign it because the "whole premise of homework is flawed."

For starters, he says he can't grade work on "even playing fields" when students' home environments can be vastly different.

"Even students who go home to a peaceful house, do they really want to spend their time on busy work? Because typically that's what a lot of homework is, it's busy work," he says in the video that has garnered 1.6 million likes. "You only get one year to be 7, you only got one year to be 10, you only get one year to be 16, 18."

Mental health experts agree heavy work loads have the potential do more harm than good for students, especially when taking into account the impacts of the pandemic. But they also say the answer may not be to eliminate homework altogether.

Emmy Kang, mental health counselor at Humantold, says studies have shown heavy workloads can be "detrimental" for students and cause a "big impact on their mental, physical and emotional health."

"More than half of students say that homework is their primary source of stress, and we know what stress can do on our bodies," she says, adding that staying up late to finish assignments also leads to disrupted sleep and exhaustion.

Cynthia Catchings, a licensed clinical social worker and therapist at Talkspace, says heavy workloads can also cause serious mental health problems in the long run, like anxiety and depression.

And for all the distress homework causes, it's not as useful as many may think, says Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, a psychologist and CEO of Omega Recovery treatment center.

"The research shows that there's really limited benefit of homework for elementary age students, that really the school work should be contained in the classroom," he says.

For older students, Kang says homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night.

"Most students, especially at these high-achieving schools, they're doing a minimum of three hours, and it's taking away time from their friends from their families, their extracurricular activities. And these are all very important things for a person's mental and emotional health."

Catchings, who also taught third to 12th graders for 12 years, says she's seen the positive effects of a no homework policy while working with students abroad.

"Not having homework was something that I always admired from the French students (and) the French schools, because that was helping the students to really have the time off and really disconnect from school ," she says.

The answer may not be to eliminate homework completely, but to be more mindful of the type of work students go home with, suggests Kang, who was a high-school teacher for 10 years.

"I don't think (we) should scrap homework, I think we should scrap meaningless, purposeless busy work-type homework. That's something that needs to be scrapped entirely," she says, encouraging teachers to be thoughtful and consider the amount of time it would take for students to complete assignments.

The pandemic made the conversation around homework more crucial

Mindfulness surrounding homework is especially important in the context of the last two years. Many students will be struggling with mental health issues that were brought on or worsened by the pandemic, making heavy workloads even harder to balance.

"COVID was just a disaster in terms of the lack of structure. Everything just deteriorated," Kardaras says, pointing to an increase in cognitive issues and decrease in attention spans among students. "School acts as an anchor for a lot of children, as a stabilizing force, and that disappeared."

But even if students transition back to the structure of in-person classes, Kardaras suspects students may still struggle after two school years of shifted schedules and disrupted sleeping habits.

"We've seen adults struggling to go back to in-person work environments from remote work environments. That effect is amplified with children because children have less resources to be able to cope with those transitions than adults do," he explains.

'Get organized' ahead of back-to-school

In order to make the transition back to in-person school easier, Kang encourages students to "get good sleep, exercise regularly (and) eat a healthy diet."

To help manage workloads, she suggests students "get organized."

"There's so much mental clutter up there when you're disorganized... sitting down and planning out their study schedules can really help manage their time," she says.

Breaking assignments up can also make things easier to tackle.

"I know that heavy workloads can be stressful, but if you sit down and you break down that studying into smaller chunks, they're much more manageable."

If workloads are still too much, Kang encourages students to advocate for themselves.

"They should tell their teachers when a homework assignment just took too much time or if it was too difficult for them to do on their own," she says. "It's good to speak up and ask those questions. Respectfully, of course, because these are your teachers. But still, I think sometimes teachers themselves need this feedback from their students."

©2021 USA Today Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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Put this information right at your fingertips with my book, It’s Never Too Late To Sleep Train

Craig Canapari, MD

Proven advice for better sleep in kids and parents

Homework vs. Sleep: A Cause of Stress in Teens (And Younger Kids)

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Craig Canapari M.D.

Homework stresses kids out; there is no way around this fact. The combination of heavy homework loads and early school start times is a major cause of sleep deprivation and consequent stress in teens, but this can be a problem even in younger kids.

When I started looking into the evidence,  I was surprised to find that there is not much evidence that homework before high school benefits children.  I really love this article by Justin Coulson, a parenting expert and psychologist, detailing why he bans his school age children from doing homework , concluding from the evidence that homework does more harm than good. A recent study showed that some elementary school children had three times the recommended homework load . In spite of this, homework has started appearing even in kindergarten and the first great in spite of recommendations to the contrary. This has become a source of great stress to families.

Sleep deprivation in teenagers is an epidemic here in the US, with up to 90% of teenagers not getting enough sleep on school nights . The most important factor causing this is school start times that are too early for teenagers, who are hardwired to go to bed later and get up later compared with younger children (or grown-ups, for that matter). I’ve discussed this at length on my blog .

Another factor which can cause sleep deprivation is homework. Some studies suggest that the amount of homework which teenagers receive has stayed constant over time. I don’t pretend to be an educational expert, but I frequently see children and teenagers who have hours and hours of homework every night. This seems most common in teenagers who are striving to get into competitive colleges. This is piled on top of multiple extracurricular activities– sports, clubs, music lessons, and public service. Of course, the patients and families I see in clinic tend to be the people with the greatest difficulties with sleep. So I decided to look into this issue a bit more.

How common is excessive homework, anyway?

The recommendation of the National Education Association is that children received no more than ten minutes of homework per grade level. So a high school senior would max out at two hours of homework per night. An analysis published by the Brookings Institute concluded that there has been little change in the amount of homework assigned between 1984 and 2012 . About 15% of juniors and seniors did have greater than two hours of homework per night. Interestingly, the author also referenced a study which showed that about 15% of parents were concerned about excessive homework as well. This would suggest that the problem of excessive homework is occurring only in about one in six teenagers.

There is a perception that homework loads are excessive. This certainly may be the case in some communities or in high pressure schools. Teenagers certainly think that they have too much homework; here is a well researched piece written by a teenager  who questions the utility of large amounts of homework.

Some generalities emerge from the educational research :

• Older students get more homework than younger students
• Race may play a role, with Asian students doing more homework
• Less experienced teachers assign more homework
• Math classes are the classes most likely to assign homework

How beneficial is homework?

The US is a relatively homework intense country, but does not score as well as countries where homework is less common. In high school age kids, homework does have benefits. However, 70 minutes total seems to be the sweet spot in terms of benefits ; homework in excess of this amount is associated with decreasing test scores.

Homework clearly can have benefits– development of good organizational habits, review of materials, and improving skills such as reading and critical thinking. Homework should be assigned, however, with the goal of helping children learning, not because the teacher or school has decided that a certain amount should be assigned nightly, or because some parents want their children to get more  homework. Alfie Kohn, an educational leader and a big critic of homework. published a great article on rethinking homework . Here’s another thoughtful perspective on homework by a history teacher named Glen Whitman.

When To Worry About Excessive Homework

Obviously, I am not an educational expert. My review of this topic suggests that most children do not have an undue burden of homework. Thus, the best way to help teenagers get more sleep is to start school later . However, there are a subset of teenagers who may have an excessive amount of homework. I would define that is over two hours of homework a night, or an amount of homework that keeps children up late at night with regularity, especially given that getting enough sleep is critical for learning. No child should have to regularly decide between homework and sleep.  These factors can contribute to excessive homework:

• Unreasonable amounts of assigned homework (10 minutes/grade level)
• Excessive extracurricular activities leading to a late homework start time
• Learning problems such as ADHD or dyslexia, especially if they have not yet been diagnosed.

Some final advice:

• Teenagers:  If you cannot get your homework done at night without staying up past ten or eleven on school nights, please talk to your parents about this. They can help you. Also, recognize that there are diminishing returns; I got the worst grade I ever got in college on a biochemistry exam after pulling my one and only all-nighter. Going to sleep earlier on the night before a test might be more beneficial than sacrificing sleep to study.
• Parents: Be conscious of how late your teens are staying up and how much time they are spending on their homework. If it seems excessive, please review your child’s schedule with him or her, and have a frank conversation with your child’s teachers.
• Educators:  Ask your students how long they are spending on homework. If they seem sleepy in class, talk about this issue with them and  their parents. Try to make sure that the culture of your school is such that homework is assigned for clear educational benefits, and not simply for the sake of doing so.

I would love to hear your perspectives on these issues. Of course, to paraphrase “Bones” McCoy , “I’m a sleep doctor, not a teacher.” However, if I was asking my patients to do a nightly treatment that required an hour or more of their time, I would have to be absolutely sure that it was helpful. I’m not convinced that homework meets that standard.  Do I have this issue all wrong? Let me know in the comments.  Is the homework load excessive in your town? I would love to hear.

You May Also Be Interested In...

• Lack of Sleep is A Cause of Childhood Obesity
• Busting Sleep Myths: From Wake Windows to Sleepy…
• Finally! A Podcast All About Kids' Sleep Issues

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How Does Homework Affect Students Sleep?

Published: June 21st, 2023

Exploring how homework affects students' sleep is an essential part of understanding the overall health and academic performance of our youth. The correlation between heavy workload from assignments and sleep deprivation has been a subject of multiple studies, with compelling findings.

Understanding the correlation between homework and teenage stress

Exploring the impact on quality sleep due to excessive homework, how late-night study impacts the circadian rhythm, the link between disturbed sleep patterns and academic performance, unpacking research findings linking heavy homework load with mental health issues, implications for future educational policies regarding home-based tasks, evaluating pros & cons related to assigning extensive workloads at elementary levels, suggesting alternatives for effective learning without compromising children's wellbeing, alfie kohn's perspective on education system practices, proposing changes toward balanced school schedules, assessing potential benefits shifting school start times based upon nsf recommendations, effective time management strategies, the impact of sleep deprivation on students, does homework affect sleep schedules, what percentage of students lose sleep due to homework, why does school cause sleep deprivation, why is sleep more important than homework.

This blog post delves into the impact that excessive homework can have on high school students' quality sleep, and how it might disrupt their natural circadian rhythm or sleep cycle. We will also explore its implications on mental health issues among younger kids who are often encouraged to go to bed earlier but struggle due to late-night study sessions.

The role of American education system practices in contributing to student's lack of adequate rest will be examined along with Alfie Kohn’s perspective about current education policies. Additionally, we'll discuss early school start times as another potential burden leading towards disturbed sleeping patterns.

Finally, we aim at proposing some changes for more balanced school schedules and providing tips for effectively managing time amidst academic responsibilities and extracurricular activities without being sleep deprived.

The Impact of Homework on Teenage Stress and Sleep

Homework is a major source of stress for teenagers, affecting their sleep patterns. According to studies, about 75% of high school students report grades and homework as significant stressors. This anxiety can lead to sleep deprivation, with over 50% of students reporting insufficient rest.

A heavy workload not only affects academic performance but also disrupts the normal sleep cycle. The pressure to excel academically leads many students into a vicious cycle where they stay up late completing tasks, wake up early for school, and end up being sleep deprived.

This lack of rest impairs cognitive functions like memory retention and problem-solving skills - both crucial for academic success. Furthermore, inadequate sleep may lead to ailments such as reduced immunity or persistent tiredness.

Sleep experts recommend that younger kids should go to bed earlier than teens because their biological clock naturally prompts them to feel sleepy around 8-9 PM. However, this becomes challenging when burdened with loads of assignments which extend their screen time significantly beyond recommended limits.

The blue light emitted by electronic devices used for studying suppresses melatonin production - a hormone that regulates our body's internal clock determining when we feel sleepy or awake (National Sleep Foundation). Consequently, these factors combined make falling asleep more difficult leading towards disrupted sleeping patterns ultimately affecting overall well-being including mental health status alongside academic performance negatively.

In conclusion, there needs to be an urgent reevaluation of how much work is assigned outside class hours considering potential adverse effects upon student's health, especially concerning adequate rest necessary for optimal functioning throughout day-to-day activities, whether within academia or other extracurricular responsibilities undertaken during leisure periods post-school schedules.

Analyzing Sleep Patterns Among Stressed Students

High schoolers are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of sleep deprivation due to the demands of juggling academics and extracurriculars. The pressure of balancing academics with extracurricular activities can lead to late nights and early mornings, leaving them feeling perpetually tired and impacting their academic performance.

The human body operates on a 24-hour internal clock known as the circadian rhythm. This biological process regulates our sleep-wake cycle, among other things. When students stay up late studying or completing homework, they disrupt this natural rhythm which can result in a range of health issues including chronic fatigue and weakened immunity.

Screen time is another factor that exacerbates this issue. Many students use electronic devices for research or writing assignments before bed, exposing themselves to blue light which further interferes with their circadian rhythms.

Regular slumber is a must for cognitive functions, such as memory consolidation and problem-solving aptitude - fundamental aspects of learning. Multiple studies have shown that when these patterns are disturbed due to excessive homework or late-night study sessions, it can negatively affect academic performance.

• Poor Concentration: Lack of adequate rest makes focusing on tasks more difficult, leading to decreased productivity during study hours.
• Inability To Retain Information: During deep stages of sleep, information from short-term memory gets transferred into long-term storage enabling better recall later; deprived individuals miss out on this critical process.
• Deteriorating Mental Health: Chronic lack of rest has been linked with increased levels of anxiety and depression amongst teenagers, impacting overall wellbeing and indirectly affecting grades too.

A report by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) suggests there's an urgent need for schools to address these concerns seriously, considering the potential repercussions over students' physical and mental health alongside scholastic achievements. Making sure they get enough quality rest each night is essential for optimal functioning throughout the day, both inside and outside the classroom environments.

Investigating Time Spent on Homework and Its Effects on Mental Health

The amount of time spent on homework and studying significantly affects students' mental health. Multiple studies have shown that an excessive workload can lead to depression, stress, and sleep deprivation .

A comprehensive study involving 2386 adolescents assessed various aspects, including self-rated health, overweight status, and depression symptoms, alongside time spent on homework/studying. The researchers used ten different multiple linear regression models to test the association with the global Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale score. This approach allowed them to analyze how each aspect correlates with the others.

The results were revealing: there was a clear correlation between increased hours dedicated to home-based tasks and higher levels of depressive tendencies among high school students . These effects weren't limited only to academic performance but extended into their personal lives as well, affecting relationships, participation rates in extracurricular activities , and more.

This data suggests that we need a more balanced approach when it comes to assigning workloads at schools. Instead of piling up assignments indiscriminately, educators should aim for an optimal balance where learning is enhanced rather than hindered by excessive amounts of homework.

In light of this information, some countries are already taking steps towards reducing screen time requirements, especially during after-school hours. This allows younger kids to go to bed earlier, improving their sleep cycle quality significantly, which ultimately leads to better cognitive functioning the next day at school or other engagements they might have outside the academic context, like part-time jobs or family duties.

To sum up, a healthy balance between academic and other life obligations is essential to avoid potential repercussions in all aspects of a student's life. Neglecting to strike a balance between academic and other responsibilities can have severe repercussions, not only in terms of grades but also emotionally, socially, and mentally. Therefore, it is imperative to address this issue promptly and effectively with all stakeholders involved in the education sector worldwide today, tomorrow, and onwards too.

Excessive Workload Strain from Assignments in Younger Kids

The ongoing discussion about the implications of homework for younger students has drawn attention from educators, parents, and researchers. While assignments can reinforce what students learn during school hours, evidence supporting benefits from home-based tasks remains scarce before high-school levels. This is concerning considering the potential adverse effects an excessive workload can have on young minds.

On one hand, homework can instill discipline and help develop good study habits. On the other hand, too much of it could lead to sleep deprivation among younger kids who should ideally be going to bed earlier. The AAP suggests that 6-12 year olds should have 9-12 hours of rest, however this can be hard to attain when they are inundated with assignments.

Besides affecting their sleep cycle, overburdening them with academic responsibilities also leaves little room for extracurricular activities which play a crucial role in their overall development. It may even result in screen time replacing physical activity as children turn towards digital platforms to complete their assignments.

Rather than piling up work indiscriminately, schools could consider adopting strategies aimed at enhancing learning while ensuring the well-being of students. For instance, project-based learning could be an effective alternative where students actively explore real-world problems and challenges, thereby gaining deeper knowledge.

In addition to this approach would be limiting daily homework duration per grade level or introducing "homework-free" days during weekends or holidays providing ample rest periods essential for growth development amongst younger kids.

This shift not only ensures that our future generations aren't sleep deprived due to unnecessary academic pressure but also fosters a love for lifelong learning - something far more valuable than mere grades obtained through rote memorization.

American Education's Role In Student Sleep Deprivation

It's common for students in the US to be sleep deprived , not just because of academic pressures but also due to extracurricular activities . Late nights and early mornings disrupt a healthy sleep cycle , affecting student wellbeing.

Educational critic Alfie Kohn argues that the American education system emphasizes homework without considering its impact on student wellbeing. Many tasks assigned do not enhance learning but rather contribute towards stress and sleep deprivation among students. You can read more about his thoughts in his article titled " The Truth About Homework: Needless Assignments Persist Because of Widespread Misconceptions About Learning. "

Kohn suggests a shift towards assigning work aimed at enhancing learning rather than piling it up indiscriminately. Schools should recognize the importance of adequate rest for optimal functioning.

• Reduce homework loads: Lightening the load could help alleviate some of the pressure students feel, allowing them time to relax and get enough sleep each night.
• Consider late start times: Multiple studies suggest that starting school later in the morning could have numerous benefits including improved attendance rates and higher alertness, reducing instances of depressive tendencies significantly. (National Sleep Foundation (NSF))
• Promote good sleep hygiene: Schools can educate students about good sleep habits such as maintaining consistent bedtimes and wake-up times, limiting screen time before bedtime, and creating quiet, dark sleeping environments.

The key takeaway here is balance - between academics, extracurricular activities, family responsibilities, and personal downtime - which includes getting sufficient restful sleep every night.

Early School Start Times - An Additional Burden

Many adolescents in the US are finding that having to get up at sunrise is more of an encumbrance than a blessing. Parents and educators alike have reported that these early start times are inhibiting productivity throughout daytime schedules.

The National Sleep Foundation (NSF), an organization dedicated to improving health and well-being through sleep education and advocacy, suggests shifting school timings as one possible solution. This adjustment could result in improved attendance rates along with higher alertness among students during class hours.

The NSF study indicated that adjusting the school start time from 7:30 AM to 8:30 AM produced tangible improvements in student performance. The extra hour allowed teenagers' natural sleep cycle to align better with their academic schedule leading them to feel less sleep deprived.

• Better Attendance: Schools noted fewer tardies and absences after implementing later start times.
• Increase In Grades: Students showed improvement in core subjects like Math and English.
• Mental Health Benefits: A decrease was observed in instances of depressive tendencies significantly among students.

This shift not only helped improve academic outcomes but also had positive effects on mental health as teens were able to get adequate rest without having to sacrifice extracurricular activities or family duties.

The idea of starting schools later isn't new; however, its implementation has been slow due largely because changing such ingrained societal norms takes time. But if we want our younger kids performing optimally while avoiding unnecessary strain caused by excessive workload or screen time then we need to rethink how we structure our day-to-day lives. Research has demonstrated that inadequate rest can detrimentally affect our health and wellness, so it is essential to ensure we are getting enough sleep by retiring earlier and limiting screen time before bed.

Balancing Academic Responsibilities With Other Duties

As a student, you're expected to juggle academic responsibilities with other duties. Yet, it can be a challenge to effectively manage such a hectic schedule. Homework alone can take up to four hours a day, and that's not counting extracurricular activities or part-time jobs. So, how can you manage your time effectively amidst these multifarious responsibilities?

The key to managing your diverse obligations lies in effective time management strategies . Here are some tips that could help:

• Prioritize tasks: Not all assignments are created equal. Some require more effort and attention than others. Prioritizing your work can help you focus on what's most important first.
• Create a schedule: Having a set routine for studying can make it easier to stick to your commitments and avoid procrastination.
• Leverage technology: There are numerous apps available designed specifically for helping students manage their workload efficiently.
• Avoid multitasking: Multitasking often leads to mistakes and decreased productivity. Rather than attempting to juggle multiple tasks, give your full attention to one task until it is finished before progressing onto the next.

Sleep deprivation among high school students is a serious issue that needs urgent addressing. Multiple studies reveal that the majority of teenagers receive only six to eight hours of sleep per night despite needing more for optimal functioning. This lack of sleep not only affects academic performance but also overall health and wellbeing.

In addition, extracurricular activities and screen time can also affect younger kids' sleep cycle. The American education system has been criticized for promoting this unhealthy trend by assigning excessive amounts of homework without considering individual capacities or needs.

To combat this problem, parents need support from schools in ensuring children go to bed earlier while limiting their exposure to electronic devices during evening hours. This can significantly improve the quality of rest received each night, reducing instances of depressive tendencies associated with inadequate slumber patterns amongst adolescents today.

FAQs in Relation to How Does Homework Affect Students Sleep

Yes, excessive homework can lead to late-night studying, causing students to have inadequate sleep.

Around 56% of students reported losing sleep over schoolwork according to a Stanford study .

Schools may contribute to students' sleep deprivation through early start times and heavy academic loads.

Sleep is crucial for cognitive functions , including memory consolidation which aids in learning; overworking could hinder these processes.

Is Homework Ruining Your Sleep?

Excessive homework can negatively impact students' mental and physical health, leading to stress and lack of sleep.

Teachers can help by coordinating assignment deadlines and exploring alternatives like home-based tasks for younger children.

It's important for educators to recognize the effects of heavy academic loads on student productivity and well-being.

According to a study by the National Sleep Foundation, teenagers need 8-10 hours of sleep per night to function at their best.

Don't let homework rob you of your Z's - prioritize your health and well-being!

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When Is Homework Stressful? Its Effects on Students’ Mental Health

Are you wondering when is homework stressful? Well, homework is a vital constituent in keeping students attentive to the course covered in a class. By applying the lessons, students learned in class, they can gain a mastery of the material by reflecting on it in greater detail and applying what they learned through homework. 

However, students get advantages from homework, as it improves soft skills like organisation and time management which are important after high school. However, the additional work usually causes anxiety for both the parents and the child. As their load of homework accumulates, some students may find themselves growing more and more bored.

Students may take assistance online and ask someone to do my online homework . As there are many platforms available for the students such as Chegg, Scholarly Help, and Quizlet offering academic services that can assist students in completing their homework on time. 

Negative impact of homework

There are the following reasons why is homework stressful and leads to depression for students and affect their mental health. As they work hard on their assignments for alarmingly long periods, students’ mental health is repeatedly put at risk. Here are some serious arguments against too much homework.

No uniqueness

Homework should be intended to encourage children to express themselves more creatively. Teachers must assign kids intriguing assignments that highlight their uniqueness. similar to writing an essay on a topic they enjoy.

Moreover, the key is encouraging the child instead of criticizing him for writing a poor essay so that he can express himself more creatively.

Lack of sleep

One of the most prevalent adverse effects of schoolwork is lack of sleep. The average student only gets about 5 hours of sleep per night since they stay up late to complete their homework, even though the body needs at least 7 hours of sleep every day. Lack of sleep has an impact on both mental and physical health.

No pleasure

Students learn more effectively while they are having fun. They typically learn things more quickly when their minds are not clouded by fear. However, the fear factor that most teachers introduce into homework causes kids to turn to unethical means of completing their assignments.

Excessive homework

The lack of coordination between teachers in the existing educational system is a concern. As a result, teachers frequently end up assigning children far more work than they can handle. In such circumstances, children turn to cheat on their schoolwork by either copying their friends’ work or using online resources that assist with homework.

Anxiety level

Homework stress can increase anxiety levels and that could hurt the blood pressure norms in young people . Do you know? Around 3.5% of young people in the USA have high blood pressure. So why is homework stressful for children when homework is meant to be enjoyable and something they look forward to doing? It is simple to reject this claim by asserting that schoolwork is never enjoyable, yet with some careful consideration and preparation, homework may become pleasurable.

No time for personal matters

Students that have an excessive amount of homework miss out on personal time. They can’t get enough enjoyment. There is little time left over for hobbies, interpersonal interaction with colleagues, and other activities. 

However, many students dislike doing their assignments since they don’t have enough time. As they grow to detest it, they can stop learning. In any case, it has a significant negative impact on their mental health.

Children are no different than everyone else in need of a break. Weekends with no homework should be considered by schools so that kids have time to unwind and prepare for the coming week. Without a break, doing homework all week long might be stressful.

How do parents help kids with homework?

Encouraging children’s well-being and health begins with parents being involved in their children’s lives. By taking part in their homework routine, you can see any issues your child may be having and offer them the necessary support.

Set up a routine

Your student will develop and maintain good study habits if you have a clear and organized homework regimen. If there is still a lot of schoolwork to finish, try putting a time limit. Students must obtain regular, good sleep every single night.

Observe carefully

The student is ultimately responsible for their homework. Because of this, parents should only focus on ensuring that their children are on track with their assignments and leave it to the teacher to determine what skills the students have and have not learned in class.

Listen to your child

One of the nicest things a parent can do for their kids is to ask open-ended questions and listen to their responses. Many kids are reluctant to acknowledge they are struggling with their homework because they fear being labelled as failures or lazy if they do.

However, every parent wants their child to succeed to the best of their ability, but it’s crucial to be prepared to ease the pressure if your child starts to show signs of being overburdened with homework.

Talk to your teachers

Also, make sure to contact the teacher with any problems regarding your homework by phone or email. Additionally, it demonstrates to your student that you and their teacher are working together to further their education.

Homework with friends

If you are still thinking is homework stressful then It’s better to do homework with buddies because it gives them these advantages. Their stress is reduced by collaborating, interacting, and sharing with peers.

Additionally, students are more relaxed when they work on homework with pals. It makes even having too much homework manageable by ensuring they receive the support they require when working on the assignment. Additionally, it improves their communication abilities.

However, doing homework with friends guarantees that one learns how to communicate well and express themselves. 

Review homework plan

Create a schedule for finishing schoolwork on time with your child. Every few weeks, review the strategy and make any necessary adjustments. Gratefully, more schools are making an effort to control the quantity of homework assigned to children to lessen the stress this produces.

Bottom line

Finally, be aware that homework-related stress is fairly prevalent and is likely to occasionally affect you or your student. Sometimes all you or your kid needs to calm down and get back on track is a brief moment of comfort. So if you are a student and wondering if is homework stressful then you must go through this blog.

While homework is a crucial component of a student’s education, when kids are overwhelmed by the amount of work they have to perform, the advantages of homework can be lost and grades can suffer. Finding a balance that ensures students understand the material covered in class without becoming overburdened is therefore essential.

Zuella Montemayor did her degree in psychology at the University of Toronto. She is interested in mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.

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News | Education

Less homework means children move more and go to bed earlier, study suggests

Reducing the amount of homework children are given could make them more physically active and get more sleep, a new study suggests.

A trial of pupils in China found that cutting homework while also reducing screentime encouraged them to play outdoors and go to bed earlier.

As part of the scheme online gaming companies were forced to limit children to three hours a week, while at the same time teachers were instructed to reduce the amount of homework they set, and tutoring businesses were restricted in the amount of lessons they could run.

Bai Li, a lecturer in behavioural science at Bristol University ’s School for Policy Studies, who led the study, said: “The results are exciting as this type of regulatory intervention across multiple settings has never been tried before.”

Teenagers in China spend more time on homework than anywhere else in the world, at 14 hours a week, according to a report from the OECD. British children do about five hours.

The team from Bristol University analysed data from more than 7,000 primary and secondary school students in 2020 and 2021 from the Guangxi province in southern China.

Primary school pupils could not be set more than 60 minutes of homework a day, and secondary school pupils aged up to 15 not more than 90 minutes. Tutoring companies were banned from offering sessions in school holidays or at weekends, could not set exams for preschool, primary or middle school children, and could not publish rankings.

The team found that the children in the study aged nine to 18 spent on average 45 minutes less each day being sedentary.

Students were also shown to be 20 per cent more likely to meet the overall screen time recommendation of less than two hours daily after the regulations were introduced.

Bai Li said that both in China and the UK, parents often find it difficult to set and impose their own rules on things like screen time.

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She said: “We know that leaving it to parents doesn’t work”, adding that it is easier for parents when they can tell their children that any more screen time would be against the law.

She added: “With these regulatory measures [in China], the onus has shifted to online gaming companies, schools and private tutoring companies to comply. This very different approach appears to be more effective, because it is aimed at improving the environment in which children and adolescents live.”

The results were published in the International Journal of Behavioural Nutrition and Physical Activity.

The researchers told The Times they are exploring whether similar rules could be feasible in the UK, but stressed that the Chinese template would have to be modified.

The effect of total sleep deprivation on working memory: evidence from diffusion model

Affiliations.

• 1 Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou 510631, China.
• 2 Center for Sleep Research, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China.
• PMID: 38181126
• DOI: 10.1093/sleep/zsae006

Study objectives: Working memory is crucial in human daily life and is vulnerable to sleep loss. The current study investigated the impact of sleep deprivation on working memory from the information processing perspective, to explore whether sleep deprivation affects the working memory via impairing information manipulation.

Methods: Thirty-seven healthy adults attended two counterbalanced protocols: a normal sleep night and a total sleep deprivation (TSD). The N-back and the psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) assessed working memory and sustained attention. Response time distribution and drift-diffusion model analyses were applied to explore cognitive process alterations.

Results: TSD increased the loading effect of accuracy, but not the loading effect of response time in the N-back task. TSD reduced the speed of information accumulation, increased the variability of the speed of accumulation, and elevated the decision threshold only in 1-back task. Moreover, the slow responses of PVT and N-back were severely impaired after TSD, mainly due to increased information accumulation variability.

Conclusions: The present study provides a new perspective to investigate behavioral performance by using response time distribution and drift-diffusion models, revealing that sleep deprivation affected multicognitive processes underlying working memory, especially information accumulation processes.

Keywords: drift-diffusion models; sleep deprivation; state instability; sustained attention; working memory.

© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Sleep Research Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: [email protected].

• Attention / physiology
• Memory, Short-Term* / physiology
• Psychomotor Performance / physiology
• Reaction Time / physiology
• Sleep / physiology
• Sleep Deprivation* / complications
• Sleep Deprivation* / psychology

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• Human Interest

Are Solar Storms Dangerous to Humans on Earth? About the Effects, Including Possible Communication Disruption

The "severe" solar storm in effect has the potential to trigger the northern lights, causing a stunning display of colors visible from parts of the U.S.

A rare solar storm is headed towards Earth.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued a rare G4 geomagnetic storm watch, marking the first storm of this magnitude in nearly 20 years.

The storm arrives after days of solar flares that reportedly sent bursts of plasma and magnetic fields towards Earth, prompting a watch that could trigger flashy light displays and communication disruptions as a result of the events that occurred in space.

The NOAA used its Space Weather Scale to communicate the storm's severity with the public. The tool describes current and future environmental disturbances of three types: geomagnetic storms, solar radiation storms and radio blackouts.

The G4 geomagnetic storm in effect is described as "severe," the second strongest magnitude on the scale (just below G5: "extreme"). The scale also details the possible effects at each level, in addition to how the events happen and the intensity of the physical causes.

There are three areas, both on earth and in space, that could see effects from geomagnetic storms: power systems, spacecraft operations and other systems like satellite navigation or radio frequency disruptions.

Among the effects that fall beneath the "other systems" area is aurora borealis visibility, also known as the northern lights. The clarity and viewpoint of the rare colorful sight is dependent upon the storm's category.

Read on to learn more about the 2024 solar storm watch, in addition to its effects on Earth.

What is a geomagnetic storm?

The NOAA describes geomagnetic storms as "a major disturbance of Earth's magnetosphere that occurs when there is a very efficient exchange of energy from the solar wind into the space environment surrounding Earth."

In simple terms, this storm is a disturbance of Earth's upper atmosphere. It is caused in part by solar flares, which NASA describes "an intense burst of radiation coming from the release of magnetic energy associated with sunspots."

This particular storm was also caused by coronal mass ejections (CMEs), or plasma and magnetic fields from the sun's corona moving quickly to Earth due to solar winds. Storms can last several days, but primarily will fall between 12 to 48 hours.

When will the solar storm hit the United States?

NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center issued the solar storm watch the night of May 9. However, the "severe" G4 geomagnetic storm is predicted to buffet the Earth May 10 evening and last through May 12.

A watch alert for a geomagnetic storm of this magnitude hasn't been issued by the agency since January 2005. The alert came after "at least five flares were associated with CMEs that appear to be Earth-directed," per NOAA's report.

Will the solar storm affect us on Earth?

Fortunately, humans have nothing to worry about with the solar storm watch in effect. Despite its strong magnitude, NASA  emphasizes  harmful radiation from solar flares “cannot pass through Earth’s atmosphere to physically affect humans on the ground.”

However, the G4 storm is considered "severe" because it's capable of causing technology issues and potential communication disruptions on Earth. (Note, G5 storms are the max magnitude of these storms and may have different effects as a result.)

Among the possible consequences of a G4 storm are power system complications like "widespread voltage control problems," as noted by NOAA. Plus, "some protective systems will mistakenly trip out key assets from the grid."

Spacecraft operations "may experience surface charging and tracking problems," the agency writes, adding, "corrections may be needed for orientation problems." Other disruptions on Earth's ground can affect satellite and low-frequency radio navigation.

Could the solar storm trigger the Northern Lights?

The Northern Lights could be triggered by the solar storms. While this technically isn't an effect on Earth, humans will reap the benefits of this stunning display from the planet's ground.

However, the visibility of the lights — also known as aurora borealis — depends on several factors, one of them being location on Earth. Several parts of the United States will have a chance at spotting "spectacular displays of aurora."

Typically, the northern lights are best viewed from high northern latitudes during the winter in Alaska, Canada and Scandinavia. This storm is predicted to be visible from Northern California and southern states such as Alabama, per the NOAA scale .

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The huge solar storm is keeping power grid and satellite operators on edge

Geoff Brumfiel

Willem Marx

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of solar flares early Saturday afternoon. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there have been measurable effects and impacts from the geomagnetic storm. Solar Dynamics Observatory hide caption

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of solar flares early Saturday afternoon. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there have been measurable effects and impacts from the geomagnetic storm.

Planet Earth is getting rocked by the biggest solar storm in decades – and the potential effects have those people in charge of power grids, communications systems and satellites on edge.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there have been measurable effects and impacts from the geomagnetic storm that has been visible as aurora across vast swathes of the Northern Hemisphere. So far though, NOAA has seen no reports of major damage.

The Picture Show

Photos: see the northern lights from rare, solar storm.

There has been some degradation and loss to communication systems that rely on high-frequency radio waves, NOAA told NPR, as well as some preliminary indications of irregularities in power systems.

"Simply put, the power grid operators have been busy since yesterday working to keep proper, regulated current flowing without disruption," said Shawn Dahl, service coordinator for the Boulder, Co.-based Space Weather Prediction Center at NOAA.

NOAA Issues First Severe Geomagnetic Storm Watch Since 2005

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"Satellite operators are also busy monitoring spacecraft health due to the S1-S2 storm taking place along with the severe-extreme geomagnetic storm that continues even now," Dahl added, saying some GPS systems have struggled to lock locations and offered incorrect positions.

NOAA's GOES-16 satellite captured a flare erupting occurred around 2 p.m. EDT on May 9, 2024.

As NOAA had warned late Friday, the Earth has been experiencing a G5, or "Extreme," geomagnetic storm . It's the first G5 storm to hit the planet since 2003, when a similar event temporarily knocked out power in part of Sweden and damaged electrical transformers in South Africa.

The NOAA center predicted that this current storm could induce auroras visible as far south as Northern California and Alabama.

Extreme (G5) geomagnetic conditions have been observed! pic.twitter.com/qLsC8GbWus — NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (@NWSSWPC) May 10, 2024

Around the world on social media, posters put up photos of bright auroras visible in Russia , Scandinavia , the United Kingdom and continental Europe . Some reported seeing the aurora as far south as Mallorca, Spain .

The source of the solar storm is a cluster of sunspots on the sun's surface that is 17 times the diameter of the Earth. The spots are filled with tangled magnetic fields that can act as slingshots, throwing huge quantities of charged particles towards our planet. These events, known as coronal mass ejections, become more common during the peak of the Sun's 11-year solar cycle.

A powerful solar storm is bringing northern lights to unusual places

Usually, they miss the Earth, but this time, NOAA says several have headed directly toward our planet, and the agency predicted that several waves of flares will continue to slam into the Earth over the next few days.

While the storm has proven to be large, predicting the effects from such incidents can be difficult, Dahl said.

Shocking problems

The most disruptive solar storm ever recorded came in 1859. Known as the "Carrington Event," it generated shimmering auroras that were visible as far south as Mexico and Hawaii. It also fried telegraph systems throughout Europe and North America.

Stronger activity on the sun could bring more displays of the northern lights in 2024

While this geomagnetic storm will not be as strong, the world has grown more reliant on electronics and electrical systems. Depending on the orientation of the storm's magnetic field, it could induce unexpected electrical currents in long-distance power lines — those currents could cause safety systems to flip, triggering temporary power outages in some areas.

my cat just experienced the aurora borealis, one of the world's most radiant natural phenomena... and she doesn't care pic.twitter.com/Ee74FpWHFm — PJ (@kickthepj) May 10, 2024

The storm is also likely to disrupt the ionosphere, a section of Earth's atmosphere filled with charged particles. Some long-distance radio transmissions use the ionosphere to "bounce" signals around the globe, and those signals will likely be disrupted. The particles may also refract and otherwise scramble signals from the global positioning system, according to Rob Steenburgh, a space scientist with NOAA. Those effects can linger for a few days after the storm.

Like Dahl, Steenburgh said it's unclear just how bad the disruptions will be. While we are more dependent than ever on GPS, there are also more satellites in orbit. Moreover, the anomalies from the storm are constantly shifting through the ionosphere like ripples in a pool. "Outages, with any luck, should not be prolonged," Steenburgh said.

What Causes The Northern Lights? Scientists Finally Know For Sure

The radiation from the storm could have other undesirable effects. At high altitudes, it could damage satellites, while at low altitudes, it's likely to increase atmospheric drag, causing some satellites to sink toward the Earth.

The changes to orbits wreak havoc, warns Tuija Pulkkinen, chair of the department of climate and space sciences at the University of Michigan. Since the last solar maximum, companies such as SpaceX have launched thousands of satellites into low Earth orbit. Those satellites will now see their orbits unexpectedly changed.

"There's a lot of companies that haven't seen these kind of space weather effects before," she says.

The International Space Station lies within Earth's magnetosphere, so its astronauts should be mostly protected, Steenburgh says.

In a statement, NASA said that astronauts would not take additional measures to protect themselves. "NASA completed a thorough analysis of recent space weather activity and determined it posed no risk to the crew aboard the International Space Station and no additional precautionary measures are needed," the agency said late Friday.

People visit St Mary's lighthouse in Whitley Bay to see the aurora borealis on Friday in Whitley Bay, England. Ian Forsyth/Getty Images hide caption

People visit St Mary's lighthouse in Whitley Bay to see the aurora borealis on Friday in Whitley Bay, England.

While this storm will undoubtedly keep satellite operators and utilities busy over the next few days, individuals don't really need to do much to get ready.

"As far as what the general public should be doing, hopefully they're not having to do anything," Dahl said. "Weather permitting, they may be visible again tonight." He advised that the largest problem could be a brief blackout, so keeping some flashlights and a radio handy might prove helpful.

I took these photos near Ranfurly in Central Otago, New Zealand. Anyone can use them please spread far and wide. :-) https://t.co/NUWpLiqY2S — Dr Andrew Dickson reform/ACC (@AndrewDickson13) May 10, 2024

And don't forget to go outside and look up, adds Steenburgh. This event's aurora is visible much further south than usual.

A faint aurora can be detected by a modern cell phone camera, he adds, so even if you can't see it with your eyes, try taking a photo of the sky.

The aurora "is really the gift from space weather," he says.

• space weather
• solar flares
• solar storm