Teens aren’t getting enough sleep, and homework isn’t helping

By COLLEEN FONTANA
UNLEASHED STAFF
I pause in my attempts to study for a test to reach out and clutch my hot tea mug against my cold hands.
Coughing, I drink, hoping to subdue the rasps in my throat as I look up at the clock, glad that it is not yet midnight. I choose a new song on my iPod and pick up my notecards — “mitochondria” and “prokaryotic cells” — to flip through for the tomorrow’s test. I would be in bed already, but a volleyball game in Wenatchee didn’t get me home until 11 p.m., and other subjects prolonged what looks like a sleepless night.
Swallowing the cherry-flavored cough drop in my mouth, I read through my highlighted notes, trying hard to make sense of the masses of information. For me, and many of my fellow International Bacclaureate classmates, this is just another night of the 180 days that make up our school year.
Apparently, every teacher thinks he is the only one giving out homework. The policy we should have a half hour of homework a night from each class is laughable, and I think teachers enjoy it being so.
They thrive on our groans and complaints; our cries seem only to fuel big assignments and hard tests. It wouldn’t amount to much of a problem if school were the only thing on our agendas as teenagers. However, we like to be involved in everything, and that is no exaggeration. Sports, dance, music, clubs, youth groups, jobs; these are just a few things we have to occupy our time. Sure, we bring the busy-ness upon ourselves, but as though to dispute our want to get involved, teachers give us a project or two.
The school workload affects us in subtle ways, but they are ways which build up and amount to something more. Losing out on sleep makes us less able to function in activities for days afterward. Stressing over tests and projects adds to the tiredness and creates frustration. Such frustration makes us slightly difficult to live with, and as result, we earn the stereotypical name of “difficult teenager.”
And we’re not alone. According to the Better Sleep Council, a stress and sleep survey found that 65 precent of Americans are losing sleep due to stress. Long days and late nights enable us to finish our work, but how much are we actually getting out of school when we get only a few hours of sleep each night?
Lack of sleep leads to poor performance in class and often results in our falling asleep during particularly long lectures. According to the American Sleep Disorders Association, the average teen needs about nine and a half hours of sleep each night.
I consider myself well-rested if I get five.
Maybe it’s the culture of this generation that keeps us from getting the sleep we need. Distractions including iPods, MySpace and Xboxes, as well as the ever-so-addicting “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Dancing With the Stars” can lead us to procrastination on chores we should be doing, also resulting in late nights.
However, the amount of schoolwork we get doesn’t help matters. In talking to fellow students at Davis HIgh School, I came to the conclusion that the average IB student will spend three to five hours on homework every night. Now, add to that our numerous activities as well a bit of a social life which we need to stay sane, and it’s no wonder we get as irritable as we do when our lives get hectic.
I don’t want forgiveness for the mood swings of teenagers. I just want some understanding. Our generation is hardworking and persevering. We are opinionated and goal-oriented and extremely involved, and, yes, we still need lots of sleep.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, though, 85 percent of teens do not get enough sleep at night. In response to these statistics, I believe it is the responsibility of our parents and especially our teachers, to help ensure we get the rest we need to be fully functional every day.
After all, you wouldn’t want “America’s future” to sleep right through it!

— Colleen Fontana is a member of the Yakima Herald-Republic’s Unleashed team. She attends Davis High School.