An amazing story from the SF Chronicle brought to me attention by Ella Storey. Thanks, Ella! What are your thoughts on this piece and what, if any, is the MA angle?
How Little Sleep Can you Get Away With? Great question!! And the NYTimes has an answer. There is surely lots to learn in this piece and some way to make this an MA piece. Do go beyond the little sleep slot in the planner, and think about some real way to bring this often repeated yet so important topic to the community.
Share, share, and share some more before May 1.
14 comments:
This article about sleep deprivation is not suprising to say the least. Getting 6 hours of sleep or less has never felt right and this article reassures my ideas about sleep. 8 hours a night is what is needed however I think what the article could possibly explore more is how more sleep could be worked into our society rather than tell us exactly how much sleep we need and not give any ideas of how to balance this with school, work, social life etc.
Castro Field Trip:
Yes, the children are in second grade. Yes, there are purveyors of such items in the Castro. But that doesn't mean that the leader of the trip is going to take them by those shops, or start sex ed a few years early. The Castro is an important area of San Francisco due to its history, and children should have the opportunity to learn about it firsthand.
Sleep:
First of all, I find it ironic that I'm writing this at 11:00. Anyways, on to the article. This makes a lot of sense. I do find it interesting that some people's genes allow them to get by with fewer hours of sleep. I am definitely not one of those people. I know we already had an article about sleep deprivation, but maybe next year (wow, that seems like a while from now), the Voice could write an article giving some suggestions on how to catch up.
Just a thought.
Price of perception:
This article is very well written and very interesting. I think it is interesting because of how four prestigious schools have about the same tuition even though each school is different from each other. I understand that supply and demand for colleges will affect their price but I think that society should begin to encourage more colleges to have them cost less to support Americas education rather than making a business out of it.
Castro:
Not only does this article exemplify great investigative journalism, but also the use of contrasting perspectives in order to form a more compelling story. Although the views of the parents who opposed the filed trip to the Castro seemed to be the main focus of this article, the headmaster’s voice was heard loud and clear as well, in order to defend his reasoning behind the controversial walking tour of San Francisco’s predominantly gay district. Another reason why I think I found this story to be so riveting, was because I felt that it was easy to relate to. Although I live in Marin and have attended school here all of my life, I have several friends who attended Town and other elementary schools in San Francisco. From what I hear from friends, it seems that everyone had a pretty similar educational experience. We were all taught about equality, tolerance, and acceptance. Although I feel sexual discrimination has played a relatively absent role in my life, it’s interesting that even in the Bay Area this discrimination is still very much present. I do however understand the parents’ fear that while the topic of sexuality may not even have been incorporated into the tour, the provocative signs/shops/images that fill the streets of the Castro may be inappropriate for second graders. Yes, it is a very sticky issue, and although as a high school student I feel that the field trip was completely reasonable and acceptable, I also wonder how my feelings would change if I were a parent. Although MA is considered by many to be one of the most liberal high schools in the Bay Area, it would be interesting to take a poll and see how many students think that this sort of field trip would be appropriate for second grade students.
Sleep:
I could not have read this article at a more applicable or pertinent time in my high school career. Just yesterday I found myself dozing off in my Spanish class (after having gone to bed at 2:00 in the morning the night before) during a film we were watching only to wake up to my teacher staring at me, and later that night almost hitting the car in front of me while driving home from SAT tutoring, as a result of paying virtually zero attention to the road. As seems to be the case with many of my peers, I just can’t seem to ever get a good night’s sleep. There just aren’t enough hours in the day! While Jones makes it clear in this article that although results from the “sleep investigation” showed that six hours of sleep is simply not enough, she also mentions that our lives are filled with things that can stimulate us and keep us functioning such as “coffee, bright lights, and the social buzz of the office”. I know that this will only help keep me awake for so long, but until I can get my homework under control and manage my time better, it seems that the best option will be to simply continue relying on the coffee and bright lights to get me through the day. At MA, it is not uncommon for students to function off of little sleep. Maybe we could conduct our own investigation to determine the number of hours students sleep and through various questions in an anonymous survey we would establish how the different amounts of sleep affect students positively or negatively throughout the day.
I really like both these pieces. I thought that the piece about the field trip to the castro was ineteresting because it shows nationwide sentiments but on a local level. Even in such a liberal place, I think that people can obviously be uncomfortable around gay people. And it's one thing to be open and accepting, and apparently it's a whole other thing to send your kid on a field trip to the castro. I think it relates to MA because at MA sometimes we struggle to practice what we preach. We love the green movement, but the cars that everyone drives to school have such an effect on the environment. It's one thing to think something, it's another thing to really act on it.
I also liked the sleep article, especially because I'm writing this when I should be sleeping for our relay tomorrow. I also have wondered how much I can get away with, and how much sleep I really need. I particularly liked the end when it said that people who think they can get away with it really can't. i'd always wondered how friends got away with so little sleep, and it makes sense that they were just fooling themselves.
Field trip to the Castro:
After hearing about the problems that arose from this field trip from my mom and brothers, i was really interested to read the article in order to get the full story. Now, after reading this article a few times and hearing all the drama from my family, I have realized that, while the field trip took place in a prominently gay neighbor hood, the parents concerns noted in the article had little to do with homophobia or sheltering their children from gays. The true issue that parents had with the field trip was that, whether gay or straight, their kids might be exposed to sexual images, toys, and shops. While I can sympathize with the parents who didn't want their children exposed to sex at such a young age, I believe they acted rash when contacting the press and immediately taking sides. The Town School had hired a tour guide to take the 2nd graders through the Castro, and I seriously doubt she/he would take the kids on a rout full of sex shops. Also, my mom pointed out, "kids are exposed to so much more then we were at their age. I wouldn't be surprised if they have seen half that stuff on TV or the computer." This is true, kids seem to be exposed to so much more at such a young age. No, that does not excuse a field trip that encounters inappropriate images for second graders, but it does send a message to the community when you keep your kid home from the field trip. I wish that the Moms from this article would have talked to the Town School instead of the press, and I hope that this does not keep Town from exposing their students to important neighborhoods and conversations that are impertinent to a well-rounded education.
Sleep:
As a high schooler, and student at MA, i can't begin to tell you how many times I have heard how important it is to get enough sleep. I hear it from my parents, teachers, and coaches. However, it does not change the fact that, when its 12 and i still have homework to do, I will stay up to get it done. Jones does a good job providing detailed evidence about sleep deprivation, yet, like Everett, i wish she mentioned ways to increase your sleep time. Also, I wonder if the sleep tests they did have any correlation to one's age. Does one age group need more sleep then another? I love the feeling of getting a lot of sleep, but truthfully, It doesn't happen as often as I would hope. Between sports, homework, friends, and family, i think most teens would agree that they don't have a lot of time to fit in that golden 8 hours. Personally, I wish that adults would stop lecturing on how much sleep we need, and instead, start advising us on how to get that sleep.
Price Perception:
It is common for the price of college tuition to be way above normal spending for a highschool and grammer school education. and I do believe that the colleges have a very justified reason for this magnificant price. Although, I also believe that colleges can find a way to lower these tuitions and recieve the same amount of income. The "popular" colleges already do a lot of fund raising, and advertising, but i believe this level can be raised, and this colossal amount of tuition can be lowered
Sleep:
This year compared to most my sleep level has decreased incredibly. Along with the fact that sports take up most of the daylight and sometimes extend into the night hours, I live in Sonoma-an hour away- from where my life is centered. Because of this each day i go to sleep later and later, and am forced to wake up earlier and earlier to complete my homework. This cycle isn't the best. Soon enough the daily sleep is 5 hrs or less, and it is impossible to preform my best at school or in sports. Only being a freshman i assume that the cycle worsens as a softmore, junior or senior.
I was recently given an idea by a fellow classmate about the homework load effecting our sleep. It would be fasinating for the voice to write an editorial concerning this
Castro Field Trip:
I really enjoyed reading this article. After attending Hamlin and being a part of a Town School Family i found it interesting to see this controversy in my own community. While I do understand the parents' concerns with their children being exposed to sexual images in store windows, I think that contacting the press was a very immature thing to do. If they had such a strong opinion against the field trip they should have just kept their children home that day and moved on. I think it is an important thing to educate children and I do not believe that they should be sheltered from such a part of the San Francisco Community. Because Town is one of the feeder schools to MA I am curious about MA's parents' opinion on the this controversy and whether they would support their children on this field trip at 7 and 8 years of age.
How little sleep can you get away with?
I didn't think this article was all that interesting. I thought that the results of the study were fairly expected. I thought that the beginning of the article was stronger and as it went on it became more boring. I think that in terms of the Marin Academy community, the teachers and administration have started to make more of an effort to bring up the issue of sleep, like in the assignment book, having a seminar speaker about sleep for the sophomores, and trying to minimize the homework, but there still are definite sleep deprivation issues for many high school students. I would have liked it if the article gave suggestions about sleep. For example if going to bed late and waking up early is better than going to sleep early and waking up earlier.
Castro Article:
I thought the piece was very well written as it did a great job showing an equal representation of both sides of the argument, with statements and reactions from both sides. The only negative result I believe could have occurred if the tour did not avoid the sex shops, but when it was clarified the student tour was organized to go around those I thought there was no issue with the field trip. Castro has some of SF's most important history in it, and just because of some stuff in it, kids should not be barred from going there. And the option was obviously given to any parents who wanted their students remain home during the trip, so I do not believe the parents have a right to complain. Like the person said, this was not a educational trip on sexuality, but on history and culture. An issue like this would not come up at MA where homosexual culture is not held in a negative light, and that some school field trips do go to Castro.
Sleep Article:
This article brings up the issue that is argued back and forth between student and teacher, but it is a country wide issue. It has been proven for a while, that about eight hours of sleep is healthy. But the national average is 6.9, and that is not just for students. The article is presenting the exact proof for what we have known for years, which is the longer you deprive yourself of sleep, the worse your body reacts. They do say that if you are around the six to seven hour sleep range, you are able to function through the day, but you are still far behind anyone getting eight hours or more in mental activity. When dealing with students, you often hear they have too much homework to get more sleep, but that is not the only issue. Students overload themselves with sports, after-school activities, social lives, and once all those are done with, homework. If our generation is going to start sleeping enough, it needs to start now while our bodies can still adapt. The MA student body could not hurt itself doing a few less things, and putting sleep a little higher on the priority list. I am not going to argue we have too much homework, because it is completely different person by person, I for example never have more than an hour or two of homework a night, but I still struggle to get eight hours on weekdays, because I have the mentality that if I go to bed before 11, I am wasting time, but I like most of my generation need to realize that is not a waste of time, it is saving me time in the long run.
People need sleep. It is frightening to think of how badly our brains perform when we don’t get enough sleep and how infrequently I probably do get 8 full hours. Something I find interesting is that sometimes when I go to bed earlier (to try and get more sleep) I feel more tired in the morning. As high school students we are all so pressured to take part in such a variety of activities that sleep becomes a luxury instead of a necessity. I really do not know how to fix this without adding nap time into our schedules, which I don’t actually think would fix anything… so until somebody does, I guess we are all surviving on too little sleep. I agree with Ella’s point of adults need to stop telling us that we need sleep and instead either let us sleep (by giving us less to do) or tell us how better to use our time so that we can sleep. My club coach is a perfect example of this. He is always lecturing us on the importance of getting enough sleep before tournaments. Whenever he does this though he keeps us late after practice which in turn causes everyone to get home later and eventually get in bed later.
Castro Field Trip:
This article is very interesting and I can see why there is a controversy around this field trip. Although I am in support of the field trip because I think it's a good chance to learn about diversity and about San Francisco, I do understand why parents were upset about this. Eight is such a young age to be exposed to all this. However, I feel that the benefits to this field trip far outweigh the issues. Living in certain affluent areas of the Bay Area, it is easy to grow up sheltered and in a "bubble." This field trip exposes kids at a young age and gives them a chance to learn outside of the classroom in a culturally rich neighborhood. People at MA often reference being trapped in the "MA bubble." Well here is an example of an elementary school trying to expand that bubble and broaden the kids' perspectives. If we don't allow this to happen then the so-called "bubble" will always exist and never be challenged.
Sleep:
I found this piece very well-written and relevant. I probably average on around seven hours a night on weeknights. I always thought that was pretty good but after reading this article I am starting to better understand how essential sleep is. It is really so much better to go to sleep at a reasonable hour than to spend that time cramming for a test the next day. Although I always hear this, I never really listen. However after reading about the functions on the test I am much more inclined to take that advice. I think a good way to bring this to the community would be to reiterate the importance of not procrastinating on homework and the importance of sleep. Statistics are very convincing so sharing those with the community could change some people's sleep patterns.
I think this article has a good point - some areas of San Francisco can be a little weird and definitely not appropriate for 8 year old kids. While I understand the concern of the parents, who think that taking them to the Castro might eventually normalize sex toy shops or could eventually spend time there wandering around and making it a permanent place to hang out, I think that this trip is important for Bay Area kids to go on. Learning about Milk and the history of the persecuted gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender who were killed during WWII is far better to learn. The positive outcome of the carefully thought-out route outweighs the possibility for kids to be exposed to strip clubs and adult-themed shops. The MA community also faces this problem, yet not quite to the same degree of severity. I understand that there are some “inappropriate shops” for high schoolers, but at this point in our life, I think that teachers and parents just have to give students the benefit of the doubt that kids won’t go into there. While there will always be inappropriate things around, there can usually be positive outcomes.
Sleep is vital in helping your brain development, work day, physical excercise, and attention and reactions, and getting only 5 hours of sleep every night can severly impair your reaction time (what about driving a car on only hours of sleep?!). It’s normal in our culture these days to think it’s acceptable to function on little to no sleep due to constant stimulation from electronics. I think that people would be so much more productive if they got more sleep. My suggestion to getting more sleep is cutting down TV time, charging your electronics during the night or while going to bed in a separate room so that you’re not tempted to use them. Some kids think that just because they don’t do any sports, that they can get away with the smallest amount of sleep, yet they don’t realize the short term effects (all of the above), plus the long term effects like not growing enough, gaining weight, memory loss, and others.
I understand why parents would be uncomfortable with their kids going through the Castro. It’s a lot for a little kid to handle. Although at the end of the article one mother expressed that there was no anti-gay sentiment, I doubt it’s true. It’s hard to believe that all the parents who didn’t approve for reasons completely unrelated to the Castro being a gay friendly area. I think that if MA were to have a school wide field trip to the Castro there might be a few parents who didn’t approve, but overall it wouldn’t be an issue at all.
Although MA is trying to incorporate these new sleep studies by telling kids to get more sleep and by putting things like a sleep tally in our planner, we really haven’t done anything significant. I don’t think we need to, though. It’s part of life to be able to manage time and get the right amount of sleep. Now that all these studies are coming out saying we need more sleep than we get, we need to become smarter time managers. I do think that it would be cool to move the entire school day a half our later or something, but I think that we can all get the right amount of sleep if we try, without changing the schedule.
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