Balancing test prep timetables, deadlines, and academic study can generate stress for students. This stress, in return, filters into a student’s daily life, from diet to the ability to sleep at night – criteria that are fundamental to high academic performance and test results.
According to a report by the Association for Young People’s Health An Overview Of Research On Key Issues In Student Health), one of these challenges is the lack of healthy sleep behaviours. The report documents that a quarter of high school students have difficulty in getting adequate quality sleep at night.
Having sufficient levels of quality sleep on a regular basis is important to help cognitive functions such as remembering and recalling information as well as aiding and improving critical thinking. Another way that lack of sleep hinders student academic progress is its adverse effect on problem solving, creative thinking and the ability to develop new ideas.
During the sleeping process, the brain is able to facilitate stronger connections between cells. This is vital to make certain that learned information is successfully transmitted from short term memory to long-term memory so that it can be recalled at a later time.
Adequate quality sleep for students, especially around exam time, is crucial if they are to focus properly on mastering academic course content. This fact points to one of the more significant reasons as to why cramming academic material the night before a test is less likely to be effective to produce higher test scores.
In addition to this, the negative effects of lack of quality sleep also extends beyond impeding cognitive abilities, as a tired body is also more prone to falling susceptible to colds, flu and other illnesses. When ill, students often miss out on lessons which just compounds the learning problem.
How to encourage healthy sleep patterns
The University of Liverpool’s student support services webpage offers a number of ways that are known to improve the conditions that promote a good night’s rest.
- Put in place a healthy bedtime routine that begins with some quiet time (try to avoid mental stimulation activities).
- Exercise earlier in the day and not just before your bedtime.
- Go to bed around the same time to help the body adjust to a new routine.
- Avoid eating heavy carb-laden meals before going to bed.
- Ensure the sleeping environment is conducive to sleep – the room should be comfortably warm and light should be kept to an absolute minimum.
These healthy habits, coupled SAT Tutoring, helps mitigate stress. A-List Education offers high-quality SAT tutoring programmes aimed at helping SAT students excel academically in the university-admissions test. To find out more on how a student can benefit from the instruction of a professional tutor, get in touch with a customer representative who will be happy to go over the benefits of these services.
