Muir Woods Academy, Inc.

A Leader In Me School
(Formerly Nueva Vizcaya Bright Child School, Inc.) Accredited by FranklinCovey Philippines

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

In today’s globalized and fast-paced world, a good night sleep is always a good idea.

Unfortunately, students face inadequate sleep due to deadlines, back to back exams and projects.

Anxiety, bipolar disorders, stress, and depression can also prevent students achieving sufficient

sleep time. Students having little regard for sleep could lead to serious health risks. Most

students know that depriving themselves from sleep is bad, but nonetheless they’re willing to

sacrifice it. Besides pulling all-nighters, many students generally don’t know what it means to

have a good sleeping routine.

Sleep is a highly complex state that arises from an interaction between multiple brain

regions, neurotransmitter pathways, and hormones, none of which is exclusive to the generation

of sleep. This complexity makes sleep very vulnerable to disruption. Small changes in brain

function can have a big effect on sleep, and disrupted sleep leads to many health problems.

On average, we spend about 30% of our lives asleep. While sleep requirements vary

slightly from person to person, children and teens needs more than 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night

to function at their best. And despite the notion that our sleep needs decrease with age, most

older people still need at least 8 hours of sleep. 

 Muir Woods Academy, Inc. A Leader In Me School
(Formerly Nueva Vizcaya Bright Child School, Inc.) Accredited by FranklinCovey Philippines

It’s not just the number of hours you spend asleep that’s important, it’s the quality of

those hours. If you give yourself plenty of time for sleep but still have trouble waking up in the

morning or staying alert all day, you may not be spending enough time in the different stages of

sleep. Each stage of sleep in your sleep cycle offers different benefits. However, deep sleep and

REM sleep are particularly important. Deep sleep is the time when the body repairs itself and

builds up energy for the day ahead important. REM sleep is the stage where dreaming typically

occurs and has faster heart rate and breathing. You can ensure you get more deep sleep by

avoiding alcohol, nicotine, and being woken during the night by noise or light. While improving

your overall sleep will increase REM sleep.

Sleep is an important part of our daily routine. It is more than just a biological need. The

lack of an adequate amount of sleep can disrupt a person’s quality of life. Students who don’t put

sleep high up in their priorities aren’t actually doing themselves any favors.

B. Statement of the Problem

This study focuses the correlation of sleep with that of student’s cognitive and physical

performance in school. Specifically, the objectives of this study are the following:

1. To determine if inadequate sleep leads to decreased alertness inside the classroom.

2. To determine if sufficient sleep can help students have better grades.

3. To determine if sleep deprivation affects student’s comprehension.

 Muir Woods Academy, Inc. A Leader In Me School
(Formerly Nueva Vizcaya Bright Child School, Inc.) Accredited by FranklinCovey Philippines

4. To determine if enough sleep can sharpen attention level.

5. To determine which is better: staying up late to study or studying early and get enough

sleep.

C. Significance of the Study

Consistently getting quality sleep will improve student's mental, emotional, and physical

performance. It improves their immune system, balances hormones, boosts metabolism, and

improves brain function. The main reason sleep is so important for a student's success in school

is because this is the time when their brain is "cleaning" itself. Just like every other cell in our

body, our brain cells are eating, reproducing, and making waste products. When we are awake,

our brain is super active with learning, thinking, and controlling our entire body - and this creates

a lot of brain garbage. During sleep, our body uses this time to remove all that waste and allows

us to repeat the learning processes day after day.

Inadequate sleep decreases general alertness and impairs attention, resulting in slowed

cognitive processing. Lack of adequate sleep also interferes with the function of brain structures

critical to cognitive processes. The most notably impacted structure is the prefrontal cortex,

which executes higher brain functions including language, working memory, logical reasoning,

and creativity. Sleep is important for memory consolidation and learning. Sleep deprivation

results in sleepiness and impaired neurocognitive and psychomotor performance. Recent reviews
 Muir Woods Academy, Inc. A Leader In Me School
(Formerly Nueva Vizcaya Bright Child School, Inc.) Accredited by FranklinCovey Philippines

have indicated an important relationship between sleep patterns with learning abilities and

consequent academic performance. Academic commitments and lifestyle can impact sleep habits

and result in sleep deprivation. The continuous academic demand of students may result in

irregular sleep/wake patterns and poor sleep quality, which may in turn negatively impact school

performance.

D. Statement of the Hypothesis

1. To determine if inadequate sleep leads to decreased alertness inside the classroom

Ho1: Inadequate sleep doesn’t lead to decreased alertness inside the classroom.

Ha1: Inadequate sleep leads to decreased alertness inside the classroom.

2. To determine if sufficient sleep can help students have better grades

Ho1: Sufficient sleep cannot help students have better grades.

Ho2: Sufficient sleep can help students have better grades.

3. To determine if sleep deprivation among students affects their comprehension.

Ho2: Sleep deprivation among students does not affect their comprehension.

Ha2: Sleep deprivation among students does affect their comprehension.

 Muir Woods Academy, Inc. A Leader In Me School
(Formerly Nueva Vizcaya Bright Child School, Inc.) Accredited by FranklinCovey Philippines

4. To determine if enough sleep can sharpen the attention level

Ho3: Enough sleep cannot sharpen the attention level.

Ha3: Enough sleep can sharpen the attention level.

5. To determine which is better: staying up late to study or studying early and get enough sleep

Ho4: Staying up late to study is better than studying early and get enough sleep

Ha4: Studying early and get enough sleep is better than staying up late to study
Muir Woods Academy, Inc. A Leader In Me School
(Formerly Nueva Vizcaya Bright Child School, Inc.) Accredited by FranklinCovey Philippines