Saint Mary’s University

Senior High School Department

THE EFFECTS OF SLEEP HABITS IN THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF THE

SENIOR HIGH STUDENTS IN SAINT MARY’S UNIVERSITY

A Research Paper

Presented to

The Senior High School Department

Saint Mary’s University

Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya

In Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirement for the Grade 11

By

Castañeda, Lucy Monett F.

Dela Cruz, James Joel N.

Francisco, Andrea May A.

Murillo, Jan Mari G.

Valdez, Arianne M.

May 2018
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Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

RATIONALE

Students have always been one of the top priority of our government. They

serve as the pioneers of every countries’ future. In our growing country, the standards of

job qualifications are steadfastly going high and as students, it is a must to cope with the

society’s academic requirements so it is important to know any means that affects

student’s academic performance.

Sleep is defined as a condition of body and mind such as that which typically

recurs for several hours every night, in which the nervous system is relatively inactive,

the eyes closed, the postural muscles relaxed, and consciousness practically suspended.

Sleep is food for the brain. During sleep, important body functions and brain activity

occur. It is also vital to our well-being, as important as the air we breathe, the water we

drink and the food we eat. And without it, managing eating habits, stress and brain

performance as a teen can be affected.

Sleep deprivation is common amongst university students whom live in a

culture that promotes reduced sleep, due to the burden of academic work and social

pursuits. The reasons for poor sleep hygiene include alcohol and caffeine intake,

stimulants, and technology, which prevent students achieving sufficient sleep time and

quality. A cross-sectional survey found that 71% of students did not achieve the

recommended 8 hour of sleep, with 60% classified as poor sleepers. An average of

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5.7 hour sleep has been reported for students studying architecture, and sleepless nights

due to academic work throughout the night—defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as

an all-nighter—occurred, on average, 2.7 days a month (Patrick, 2018).

Insufficient sleep among adolescents may not only contribute to lower grades

and a lack of motivation, but may also increase the odds of serious levels of emotional

and behavioral disturbances, including ADHD, according to a research abstract that will

be presented on Monday at SLEEP 2008, the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated

Professional Sleep Societies (APSS).

So, in this study, the researchers desired to show the perceived effects of Sleep

in the academic performance of senior high school students and the respondents are Saint

Mary’s University senior high school students.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to determine the effects of sleep in the academic performance of

the Senior High School students in Saint Mary’s University. It specifically seeks to

answer the following questions:

1. What are the profile of the respondents in terms of the following:

a. Sex

b. Average

c. Academic standing

2. How can sleep affect their:

a. Academic Performance
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b. Personal

3. What are the factors affecting sleep?

a. Schedule

b. Current activities

c. Health Issues

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The importance of this study lies on its possible contributions for the attainment

of quality education and for the improvement of educational programs which may be

necessary to improve the academic performance of the students.

This research work would be a great help to the following concerned groups. The

result of this study would be beneficial to the following:

Students. Finding of this study will help the students to perform well in their

academic performances.

Teachers. Finding of this study will help the teachers to teach easily for the

students can cope up with any activity or requirements the teacher will give.

Parents. This study will serve as a guide for the parents to give their children

proper sleep to help them in their performances at school.

Researchers. The researchers could further investigate and gather useful

information that can be essential to future endeavors and study itself. This can also

increase the likelihood of becoming successful researchers in the future.

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Future Researchers. This study will provide interest and starting point for the

future researchers as springboard for their own investigation. This can serve as their

reference who would conduct similar studies.

SCOPE AND LIMITATION

This study focuses on the effect of the sleep in the academic performance of

students. The respondents of this study will be the Senior High Students for Saint Mary’s

University, Bayombong Campus; both Grade 11 and Grade 12. The study will center

floating surveys to the choses respondents.

The study is limited only to the students’ profile which include their age, sex and

some questions about their sleep schedule.

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CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK/CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

This shows the flow of the study to come up with the desired outcome..

INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT

Profile Variables of Evaluation of the

Gathering of Data
the Senior High survey sheets from
through Survey,
School Students in the Senior High
analyzing and
Saint Mary’s School Students.
correlating of data.
University.

Figure 1. Research Paradigm of the study

The samples of the study are the Senior High School Students of Saint Mary’s

School. Their profile variables includes Sex (Male or Female) and academic standing.

This information hopes to show and identify the effect of sleep in the academic

performance of students which will be focused only to selected strands of Senior High

School students of Saint Mary’s University. The results were recorded, analyzed and

tabulated according to the different classifications. After analyzing and interpreting the

gathered data, the evaluation of the effect of sleep to the behavior of the students was

feasible, therefore the problems in this study were answered.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Academic Performance- The extent to which students, teacher or institution has

achieved their short or long term educational goals.

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Sleep- it is a condition of a body and mind which the nervous system is relatively

inactive, the eyes are shut, the muscles are relaxed and the consciousness is suspended.

Chapter 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

How sleep affects the performance have been studied by many researchers and in

many different fields such as human science, medicine, psychology, education, and

business. This chapter presents a selection of literature and studies that has a bearing on

present study. Most literature gathers presents information on each aspect, sleep and

performance. In the first section of the literature review, definitions and general effects of

sleep are reviewed. The second section discusses the influences of sleep on academic

performance.

Sleep

It has been reported that the history of sleep research can be traced back to the

19th century (Pelayo & Guilleminault, 2009). Sleep is a vital necessity for people to live

a healthy lifestyle in which they can function well and think properly. It helps with

memory consolidation, learning, decision-making, and critical thinking (Gilbert &

Weaver, 2010). According to the National Sleep Foundation’s Sleep in America Poll,

U.S. adults sleep about seven hours every night, which has decreased by approximately

two hours per night since the 19th century (National Sleep Foundation, 2005). Sleep has

become an important issue and sleep-related variables (e.g. sleep deficiency, sleep

quality, sleep habits) have been shown to influence performance of workers and students
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(Lack, 1986; Mulgrew et al., 2007; National Sleep Foundation, 2008; Pilcher & Huffcutt,

1996; Rosekind et al., 2010). Sleep deprivation is a term meaning loss of sleep.

Drummond and McKenna (2009) stated that “sleep deprivation in humans can be broadly

classified into three categories: total sleep deprivation, partial sleep deprivation, and sleep

fragmentation (p. 249).” In the past studies, sleep deprivation was measured by type:

long-term total sleep deprivation 6 (continually awake for more than 45 hours), short-

term total sleep deprivation (continually awake for up to 45 hours), and partial sleep

deprivation (sleeping less than 5 hours in a 24- hour period) (Pilcher & Huffcutt, 1996).

Simpson and Dinges (2007) reviewed a number of comprehensive studies that examined

the effects of sleep deprivation on the human immune system.

They found that the levels of important immune-related chemical substances in

blood plasma were different at bed times and wake-up times. In a previous experimental

study, participants were continually awake for 64 hours and blood tests were taken at the

15th hours, 39th hours (short-term total sleep deprivation), and 63rd hours (long-term

total sleep deprivation). The results of this study showed levels of immune-related

chemical substances increased in the participants’ blood plasma during both of the

deprivation periods (Dinges et al., 1994). These irregular changes in the system affected

both behavioral functions (e.g., sleepiness, fatigue, and attention lapses) and

physiological functions (e.g., inflammation). Simpson and Dinges (2007) recognized that

sleep deprivation has been linked to obesity, diabetes mellitus, hypertension,

cardiovascular disease, stroke, and death.

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In addition, based on their review, they reported that adults should sleep between

seven and eight hours every night. The effects of sleep deprivation manifest in both

health and performance. Pilcher and Huffcutt (1996) performed a meta-analysis on the

effects of

sleep deprivation on performance reported in 19 studies published from 1984 to 1992

using 143 study coefficients and 1,932 subjects.

As an independent variable, sleep deprivation was measured by type: long-term

total sleep deprivation, short-term total sleep deprivation, and partial sleep deprivation.

The researchers broke down performance into three dependent variables: 7 cognitive

performance, motor performance, and mood. They concluded that: 1) partial sleep

deprivation had negative effects on mood, 2) the overall effect of partial sleep deprivation

on performance was more obvious than that of long-term total sleep deprivation and

short-term total sleep deprivation, and 3) further research was needed to investigate the

effects of partial sleep deprivation on performance. Finally, they discussed the

measurements of mood and performance (e.g., changed circadian rhythm and decreased

interest and attention).

Sleep and Academic Performance

According to Gilbert and Weaver (2010) by failing to obtain an efficient amount

of sleep each night, there is an increased possibility of there being one or more adverse

effects on the individual’s cognitive capabilities. The actual ability to store information is

not completely hindered when a person is suffering from total sleep deprivation;
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however, when a person is suffering from a lack of sleep, they may tend to lose the

ability to filter information; therefore, storing more irrelevant information into their

working memory, leaving less room for that which is relevant, making it appear that the

memory itself is being hindered.

Sleep loss has been shown to be inversely proportional to academic performance;

when one fails to receive an adequate amount of sleep on a nightly basis, the literature

states that an individual’s skills in learning capacity, such as memory, attention and

problem solving skills are effected the most. Sleep deprivation can also lead to daytime

sleepiness. When these factors are all being faced, students are likely to achieve lower

test scores and lower grade point averages; however, it has been shown that cognitive

function is not hindered as drastically when the individuals are working in groups as

when working alone.

An individual’s physical and mental health and abilities have been shown to have

direct correlation with sleep deprivation. Research has shown that people who suffer

from sleep deprivation, are more likely to have issues with their cognitive abilities, such

as memory and problem solving skills when the individual also suffers from

hypertension, but the relationship does not end there. There are lot of empirical research

that was conducted by McCubbin, Peach, Moore & Pilcher (2012) such as study

Decreased Cognitive/CNS Function in Young Adults at Risk for Hypertension: The

Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Memory, Problem Solving, and Critical Thinking 16

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Effects of Sleep Deprivation have also shown that individuals who do not have

hypertension are more likely to develop this issue when constantly depriving themselves

of sleep (McCubbin et.al., 2012).

According to the study of Klumpers et. al. (2015) the brain is most effectively

influenced by the different chemicals that are naturally released by the body, but it is very

possible to disorient the brain by not releasing, or releasing too much of, a certain

chemical. Despite the increase of activity in the brain, individuals still suffer from

decreased cognitive performance.

Synthesis

Sleep is an important biological necessity that all people need to maintain a

healthy lifestyle. It helps people work at an optimum level and is critical for brain

functioning, helping with all the cognitive functions such as memory, learning, decision

making, and critical thinking. This makes sleep extremely important for academic

performance. Researcher’s state that sleep deprivation is one of the main reasons students

receive low academic scores aside from stress which contributes to sleep deprivation.

These findings will be of much help to the present study for it inform students and

possibly individuals in the work force of the importance of receiving the recommended 7-

8 hours of sleep each night and what the possible negative effects are when sleep is

neglected. If individuals are to function at full functional capacity, it is imperative they

receive the optimum amount of sleep on a continuous basis. If we can find a relationship
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between healthy sleep habits and academic success, we may be able to encourage

students to seek out healthier sleep habits by using academic success as motivation.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Dinges, D. F., et. al. (1994). Leukocytosis and natural killer cell function parallel

neurobehavioral fatigue induced by 64 hours of sleep deprivation. The Journal of

Clinical Investigation, 93, 1930-1939.

Drummond, S. P. A., & McKenna, B. S. (2009). Sleep deprivation and brain function. USA:

Elsevier.

Gilbert, A. T. & Weaver, C. H. (1961). An inventory for measuring depression. Archives of

General Psychiatry, 4, 561-571.

Iowa State University. (2013). “The effects of sleep on performance of undergraduate

students working in the hospitality industry as compared to those who are not

working in the industry.” Retrieved from:

https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4067&context=etd
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Mulgrew, A. T., et. al. (2007). The impact of obstructive sleep apnea and daytime

sleepiness on work limitation. Sleep Medicine, 9, 42-53.

National Sleep Foundation. (2005). The 2005 Sleep in America poll. United States of

America: Washington, DC.

National Sleep Foundation. (2008). The 2008 Sleep in America poll. United States of

America: Washington, DC.

Lack, L., Miller, W. & Turner, D. (1988). A survey of sleeping difficulties in an Australian

population. Community Health Studies, 12, 200-207.

Pelayo, R. & Guilleminault, C. (2009). History of sleep research. United States of

America: Elsevier.

Pilcher, J. & Huffcutt, A. (1996). Effects of sleep deprivation on performance: A meta-

analysis. Sleep, 19, 318-326.

Rosekind, M. R, et. al. (2010). The cost of poor sleep: Workplace productivity loss and

associated costs. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 52,

91-98.

Simpson, N. & Dinges, D. F. (2007). Sleep and inflammation. Nutrition Reviews, 65, 224-

252.
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Teroso, A. (n.d.) The effect of sleep deprivation on academic performance. Retrieved

from:https://www.google.com.ph/url?

sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://web.csulb.edu/~atesoro/effects_of_sleep.pdf

CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

This chapter contains the design of the study, methods and instruments that the

researchers used to gather and analyze data.

RESEARCH DESIGN

To answer the questions in this study, the researchers used quantitative-

qualitative research design; specifically, descriptive survey, and correlational research

design in this study, the descriptive survey method was used to determine the profile, the

different hours of sleep, the general average of each of the respondents, and other school
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related variables (type of school, School moved up from (JHS), academic strand).

Correlational research design was used to determine to determine the relationship

between sleep and academic performance.

RESEARCH ENVIROMENT
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Figure 2. Map of Saint Mary’s University

Saint Mary’s University is a private educational institution located at Bayombong, Nueva

Vizcaya. SMU is a catholic learning institution which is founded by missionaries of the

Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. It is known in the region as an

outstanding school because of the quality of education it offers. It is one of the 30 fully
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autonomous universities in the country labeled by CHED. Lately, it earned its level III

reaccreditation from the Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools Colleges and

Universities (PAASCU). SMU covers elementary, secondary and tertiary levels.

RESEARCH RESPONDENTS

The total number of respondents in this study is 375 .All 375 of the respondents

are Grade-11 Senior high school students that came from Saint Mary’s University. The

375 respondents was composed of 15 students per classroom from all strands, which

consists of; STEM, ABM, GAS, HE, ICT, TVL, ARTS & DESIGN, And HUMMS.

RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

A questionnaire was formulated for the personal profile of the respondents and

readily available questions were used to measure their subjective sleep quality assessing

sleep latency, sleep duration, sleep disturbances, and day-time dysfunction.

Personal Profile. The Personal Profile part of the questionnaire was used to

collect key demographic information about the respondents. It is divided according to

their profile (age, sex, health issues) and school-related variables (general average,

academic track).
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Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was

developed by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh. It is a self-report questionnaire

that assess sleep quality over a 1-month time interval.

DATA GATHERING PROCEDURE

The following steps were used the researchers in conducting their study.

Formulation of Questionnaires

Approval of the questionnaires by the research adviser

Distribution of questionnaires to the selected respondents

Collecting of the Data

Analysis and Interpretation of the Data gathered

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Figure 3. Paradigm of the Data Gathering Procedure

Figure 3 shows how the researchers will gather data by conducting survey. Here,

the data gathering procedures will start from formulation of questionnaires. The

researchers adopted the questionnaires from the study of The Effects of Sleep

Deprivation on the Academic Performance of the students (Tesoro, n.d.). After the

questionnaires will be modified, it will followed by the approval of the questionnaires by

the research adviser, where the research adviser will check the questionnaires if it is

related to the topic. After the questionnaires will be approved, it will be distributed and

answered by the respondents. This questionnaire determined the Effect of Sleep on the

Academic Performance and will be use as a basis of the study. The researchers will

conduct a survey questionnaire to the randomly selected respondents from the different

strands of Grade 11, which are the Senior High School students of Saint Mary’s

University. The respondents will be given a time to answer the questionnaires. After

conducting the survey questionnaires to the selected respondents, the researchers will

collect and analyze the data gathered based from the answers of the respondents and will

be interpreted using the appropriate tool for the purpose of the study.

SAMPLING

Purposeful Random Sampling was used for choosing the participants in the study.

This method was employed to identify a population of interest and developing a

organized way of selecting senior high school students that is not based on advance

knowledge of how the outcomes would appear.

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The researchers used this type of sampling technique to randomized sampling

scheme, even when identifying a small sample, that can increase credibility and it’s not

encourage representativeness or the ability to generalize.

DATA ANALYSIS

All the data collected were analyzed using the IBM SPSS version 21, specifically

frequency distribution, mean, median and Standard Deviation, Chi-square test of

independence. Frequency distribution was used to describe the profile of the respondents.

Mean, Median and Standard Deviation was used to compute the perception and academic

performance of senior High Students of Saint Mary’s University. Chi-square test of

independence was administered to see the difference in career related variables when

grouped by the demographic profile and school related variables. Lastly. The responses in

the qualitative question and focus discussion which are covered in the tools’ subscales

were used as supporting statements to the data. On the other hand, the responses that are

unique from the subscales were selected and were discussed separately.

RESEARCH TOOL

Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was

developed by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh. It is a self-report questionnaire

that assess sleep quality over a 1-month interval. It also includes questions during the

school weeks.
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Instructions: The following questions relate to your usual sleep habits during the past

month only. Your answers should indicate the most accurate reply for the majority of

days and nights in the past month. Please answer all questions.

1. When have you usually gone to bed?

________________
2. How long (in minutes) has it taken you to fall asleep each night?
________________
3. What time have you usually gotten up in the morning?
________________
4. A. How many hours of actual sleep did you get at night?
________________

B. How many hours were you in bed?

________________
________________________________________________________________________

Very Good Fairly Good Fairly Bad Very Bad

5. During the past month,

how would you rate your
sleep quality overall?
________________________________________________________________________

Not during the Less than once Once or twice Three or more
past month a week a week times a week
6. During the past
month, how often
have you had trouble
engaging in social
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activities at
school?
________________________________________________________________________

No problem Only a very Somewhat of A very

at all slight problem a problem big problem
7. During the past month,
how much of a problem
has it been for you to
keep up enough
enthusiasm
to get things done?
________________________________________________________________________

Instructions:   Please check (✔) the appropriate response.

8. How often during the school week (Monday- Friday):

a. Do you feel tired when waking up?

____Never/almost never ____Once/twice a week

____3-5 days a week ____Almost every day

b. Do you feel daytime sleepiness?

____Never/almost never ____Once/twice a week

____3-5 days a week ____Almost every day

c. Do you feel excessive sleepiness during independent study time?

____Never/almost never ____Once/twice a week

____3-5 days a week ____Almost every day

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d. Do you feel excessive sleepiness during class time?

____Never/almost never ____Once/twice a week

____3-5 days a week ____Almost every day

________________________________________________________________________

The purpose of this survey is to test how sleep affects academic performance. It is

expected that the results will help get an understanding on the sleeping habits of the

Grade 11 Senior High School students and whether the lack of sleep negatively affects

academic performance.

References:

Zeek, M., Savoie, M. et al. (2015) Sleep Duration and Academic Performance Among

Student Pharmacists. Retrieved from:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4571043/

Teroso, A. (n.d.) The effect of sleep deprivation on academic performance. Retrieved

from:https://www.google.com.ph/url?

sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://web.csulb.edu/~atesoro/effects_of_sleep.pdf
 Saint Mary’s University
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