Uzbek State World Language University, Faculty of English Philology, 2nd-year student

The Role of Sleep in Academic Performance

Choriyeva Oynur

Uzbek State World Languages University, Faculty of English Philology

2nd-year Student

Abstract

This article examines the important role of sleep in academic performance. It demonstrates how adequate and quality sleep can enhance memory, improve focus and concentration, and support cognitive functions such as problem-solving and critical thinking. It also highlights that insufficient sleep can reduce memory recall, decrease attention, worsen academic performance, lower grades, and reduce productivity. The purpose of this article is to emphasize the importance of obtaining sufficient, regular, and high-quality sleep for effective studying.

Keywords: sleep, academic performance, memory, attention, cognitive functions, reading, productivity, student health, effective studying, overall quality of life

Introduction

Sleep plays a vital role in student health and academic success. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health, adequate sleep is essential for physical health, mental clarity, and overall quality of life, especially for young people. During Student Sleep Health Week, the Indian Board of Education provides resources and recommendations on the relationship between deep sleep and success.

The CDC emphasizes that sleep is crucial for memory consolidation, learning, and cognitive functioning. Students who do not get enough sleep struggle with concentration, problem-solving, and remembering information. This can negatively affect their academic results, lower their grades, and reduce productivity.

Leslie L. Crow, a licensed professional counselor and specialist in BIE’s Student Behavioral Health Program, notes that sleep significantly impacts students’ academic and athletic performance.

“Healthy sleep habits greatly affect the mental and physical health of children and adults,” Crow states. “Sleep influences our emotions, stress management, and overall well-being.”

Main Body

Sleep is essential for cognitive functions as well as overall physical and mental health. According to the CDC, insufficient sleep is associated with increased risks of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic health conditions. For students, lack of sleep can lead to reduced energy levels and greater susceptibility to illness, preventing full participation in academic and extracurricular activities.

The two most common consequences of insufficient sleep are decreased focus and impaired memory. These effects are not only harmful individually but also compound each other. Lack of focus results in incomplete information retention, which is further compounded by inadequate neural connections formed during learning.

Insufficient sleep can reduce both short-term and long-term memory. Short-term memory retains information briefly, such as remembering someone’s name upon meeting them or recalling the last few words on a fast-changing PowerPoint slide. Long-term memory involves retaining information for hours, days, months, or longer, such as remembering due dates or recalling past events. Students struggling with sleep-related stress over classes may benefit from seeking tutoring to improve mastery of the subject.

Leslie L. Crow emphasizes the importance of understanding recommended sleep durations for different age groups. According to the National Sleep Foundation, teenagers need 8 to 10 hours of sleep per night, while younger school-aged children require approximately 9 to 11 hours within 24 hours. Crow notes that many behavioral and mental health issues, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, depression, and difficulties in emotional regulation, may be partially or entirely caused by sleep disorders.

To address these challenges, the CDC recommends maintaining a consistent sleep schedule, even on weekends, to regulate internal biological clocks. Additionally, creating a sleep-friendly environment—keeping the bedroom dark, quiet, and cool—can significantly enhance sleep quality.

Crow also provides practical tips to improve sleep:

Go to bed and wake up at approximately the same time every day.

Maintain a consistent bedtime routine.

Use the bed only for sleep.

Spend time outdoors to get sunlight and engage in physical activity.

Avoid screen time before bedtime.

Model healthy sleep habits for students.

Consult a medical professional if sleep problems persist.

By prioritizing sleep, students can improve academic performance, enhance physical and mental well-being, and establish habits that contribute to long-term success. Student Sleep Health Week serves as a vital reminder that adequate sleep is not a luxury—it is a necessity.

Conclusion

There are multiple ways to measure the relationship between sleep and academic performance. Much of the earlier research focused on sleep duration and sleep quality, with mixed results. These measures have limitations—sleep duration is usually self-reported, and sleep quality is subjective. Recently, novel measures of sleep have emerged. The timing and consistency of sleep may have the greatest impact on academic performance.

References

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352721815000157⁠�

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1087079216000228⁠�

South Eastern European Journal of Public Health, April 2025

Idaho State University College of Business, Business Administration, 921 South 8th Ave, Pocatello, ID 83209

—————————————————————————————-

as another soul dies

dense fog, trash night

animals plotting in the

sewer

i didn’t have a murder/suicide

right after giving birth on my

bingo card

humans, the world’s most

dangerous animal

and here i thought opposable

thumbs elevated us

it actually only made it easier

to hold and shoot a gun

watch the money during the war

someone is always getting rich

as another soul dies

a woman asked me tonight why

i don’t have any children

i laughed, told her i never had

a death wish that strong that i

needed to have someone else

do it

she’s still trying to figure

that one out

been raining for almost 24

straight hours

these are the nights on the farm

i would listen to it hit the metal

roof

and then wonder which room

will need a bucket

——————————————————————————-

in a lonesome alley

a howling wind

caught out in

a pouring rain

a homeless man

told me once

pour a tall glass

of whiskey and

saw off a shotgun

and see which

hits your lips

first

he died of cancer

in a lonesome

alley years ago

it was the

whiskey

my friend

the whiskey

————————————————————

life is a video game

somewhere in the distance

i can hear my father saying

he went to vietnam to die

of course, he grew up poor

now, a generation with the

bravery of being out of range

life is a video game

just the weapons naturally

have human consequences

the innocent always die first

almost biblical it feels

why the stupid have to start

wars in the first place is a

completely different poem

this is about the ignorance

the unwillingness to

understand culture

to want the entire world

to bend the knee to the rich

and this is where some fuck

will remind me he nearly died

for my free speech

and i will thank him for that

and then explain the hypocrisy

of him wanting to take it away

———————————————————-

a little extra cash

bent spoon daydreams

the holy ghost needs

a little extra cash

light up a cigarette

under a no smoking

sign

listen to an old black

man play the saxophone

like jazz was just beginning

thumb through the pages

of on the road like you

have already lived it

a lady asks you to step

outside

she locks the door behind

you

they take cancer seriously

around here i guess

up two blocks is an

old bookstore

place where you found

old gregory corso books

for less than a dollar

place is now a clothing

boutique

light another cigarette

time passes all of us by

at least once

—————————————————————-

that clings to you better

one of those nights

where you hope to

fuck the pain away

depravity, a long

lost soul that clings

to you better than

any invisible friend

ever did

they never tell you

if you hate yourself

long enough, you’ll

never remember to

love anyone else

this is where the

dramatic music

comes in and our

hero disappoints

all of us yet again

dying alone is a

process that takes

way longer than

it appears on

television

a tall glass of

scotch

drunken showers

at three in the

morning is my

latest trick to

steal a few

hours of sleep

old enough that

the dreams are

now just waves

and flowers

meant for

a grave

J.J. Campbell (1976 – ?) is old enough to know where the bodies are buried. The three- time Best of The Net nominee and two-time Pushcart Prize nominee lives with his disabled mother in Ohio. He’s been widely published over the years, most recently at Yellow Mama, The Rye Whiskey Review, Night Owl Narrative, Disturb the Universe Magazine and The Beatnik Cowboy. His latest book, to live your dreams, published by Whiskey City Press, is available on Amazon.com. for more info on the book, go here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/245883678-to-live-your-dreams.

Poetry Daylight 

On this sunny day 

filled with blue skies array,

made of ink and white clouds of paper 

The words come closer,

To the gentle timepiece of words 

A poem where goodness rests

And Angels blest,

In a place of golden heartbeats

In a great embrace where peace beats

Shines many colors of the rainbow.

Flight of Bones

The spell of the red flowers
in the nursery seeds planted
in World War Two Japan
in the afternoon shadow
of the Japanese Alps
in the personality shade
of a troubled family
a berating mother
sending the child to spy
on the playboy father
sexual obsession and fear
sitting side by side by
the smooth white river
stones, flowers speaking

of the war lingering
in the blackout factory
thinking of hanging
herself throwing herself
in front of a train
a shrink called her
a genius helped her
gain recognition
planning her escape
from self-obliteration
from endless revolving
in the infinity nets
the absoluteness
of reality
and unreality
a proliferation
of talking pumpkins
only to be reduced
to nothingness.

Yayoi Kusama grew up in a small mountain town west of Tokyo in a wealthy, high society family, owners of successful wholesale seed nurseries. As a child she had asthma and a partial hearing loss, and she suffered from hallucinations and periods of depersonalization. Her domineering mother forced her to spy on her father and his geishas, ripped up her artwork and tried to marry her off.

Infinity Nets

Out in the purple fields
of flowering spring
the blossoms sprung
tiny individual faces
opened pistil mouths
to her, to the child
the violets spoke
chasing her back
to her mother’s house
of anger, fighting
and a pencil, paper
the art supplies
her father gave
her only escape.

Her spirit floated
from her little body
wandering the border
between life and death
a thin curtain of gray
like a personal cloud
shadowing the  girl
the young woman
bent over body
drawing, sketching
painting, creating
in a wild fever
born of desperation
reproducing endlessly
on the conveyor belt
to infinity, net
cast over her
life, art
her creed.

Paintbrush in hand
imagination overdrive
obsessions crawling
mind and body
working herself
away from madness
on an endless highway
of fear and visions
fleeing hallucinations
seeking obliteration
following the flowers
following red thread
on the path
to freedom
allowing her
to live.

Yayoi’s art has been called feminist. It’s been labeled pathological art brut, or outsider art. She doesn’t think it fits any category. She mixes East with West, realism with surrealism, hallucinations with humor and pathos. Her work is eclectic and electric and eccentric. It is her own, unique. 

The Scandal Queen of Japan

“Ultimately, behind the impulse to fight is the simple fact that men have penises.”

Soft-sculpture figures
by the boatload
the couch load
the chair load
furniture obsessions
macaroni mannequins
overcoming fear
machine-made
naked polka dots
all the way
to her studio
across the street
her permanent residence
a psychiatric ward.

If it were not for art
I would have killed myself
a long time ago
before global fame
before legions of fans
her alter-ego pumpkin
black spots on a pier
of plastic and I’m here
but nothing
in Tokyo infinity
in mirrored rooms
dancing lights fly up
to the super-reality
to the unclothed universe
all together
in the altogether
the dissolution of self
via immersive obsessions
repetitions and intrusions
transporting us too
to another cosmos.

In the midst of the mid-century avant-garde art revolution, Kusama’s large scale paintings of nets and polka dots caught on. Critics called her work obsessional, austere, disturbing, and a tour de force. She expanded her work to include political theater, fashion design, and body art. Her clothes were sold in Bloomingdale’s, and she appeared on The Tonight Show. But in Japan she was a national disgrace and her family shamed.

Fire Burning in the Abyss

The Manhattan suicide addict
starving, suffering
the vertigo of nothingness
crawling into cold hands
no heat, no bed, no money
the downtown den of resistance
a shimmering veil across reality
fate like a chorus of violets
launching her like a moonshot
into the bright eye of acclaim
crowds at galleries, museums
drawn to her strange beauty
blending personal revelations
bare-faced self-promotions
branding the self as product
art as fiery weapon:
Go live your shining life.

Back home in Japan
the castle of shed tears
a studio down the street
from the stark white room
at the soft sculpt loony bin
in the moon dot aftermath
of obliteration
of eternity
the world’s
most successful
living artist
transcending
female Asian identity
art genres and cataloging
unnecessary boundaries
barriers and structures
dancing swarms of fireflies
fly up and out
of this universe
showing the route
to full happiness
to spending
everyday
every day
embracing red flowers.

Yayoi believed that Japan had ostracized her for her mental illness. But she returned there after 17 years in the U.S, famous and successful and so ill she chose to live in an open ward of a Tokyo mental hospital for her own safety. In the 2000s, she collaborated with several brands to share her style including polka dot Cokes and pumpkin-like BMW Minis. She continues to create at age 97 and traveling retrospectives of her work still draw massive crowds.

Night, winter

Night, winter

Cold stubble burns;

A gash of wound 

Is bitterness 

And a stealthy weather,

Which unfurls marks of hope,

As winter is just another season.

Ananya S Guha

Shillong

India

HONESTY KNOWS NO NATIONALITY                                                                         

Muslimbek Abdurakhimov                                                                        

Computer Engineering Specialist       

                                                                           

Annotatsiya

Mazkur hikoyada kundalik hayotda uchraydigan oddiy savdo jarayoni orqali halollik, mas’uliyat va insoniylik kabi fazilatlar yoritiladi. Muallif Rossiyada tahsil olayotgan paytida quloqchin sotib olish jarayonida yuzaga kelgan kichik muammo haqida hikoya qiladi. Sotuvchining vijdonli munosabati, xaridor oldidagi mas’uliyati va halolligi voqea orqali ta’sirchan tarzda ochib beriladi. Asar insoniy qadriyatlarning millat va hudud tanlamasligini ko‘rsatadi.

Kalit so‘zlar: halollik, savdo madaniyati, mas’uliyat, insoniylik, sotuvchi va xaridor munosabati, ishonch.

Аннотация В данном рассказе через простой случай из повседневной жизни раскрываются такие человеческие качества, как честность, ответственность и порядочность. Автор описывает ситуацию, произошедшую во время покупки наушников в период обучения в России. Несмотря на возникшую небольшую неисправность товара, продавец проявляет честность и ответственность перед покупателем. Рассказ показывает, что такие человеческие ценности, как честность и добросовестность, не зависят от национальности и границ.Ключевые слова: честность, культура торговли, ответственность, человечность, отношения продавца и покупателя, доверие.

Annotation This story highlights values such as honesty, responsibility, and humanity through a simple situation from everyday life. The author describes an incident that occurred while purchasing headphones during his studies in Russia. Despite a minor defect in the product, the seller demonstrates honesty and responsibility toward the customer. The story emphasizes that human values such as honesty and integrity go beyond nationality and borders.

Keywords: honesty, trade culture, responsibility, humanity, seller–customer relations, trust.

Story

I study in Russia. Recently, I bought a pair of headphones. Since the distance was quite far, I asked the seller to deliver them to the place where I live (my rented apartment). He agreed and brought the headphones. I received the product, but the delivery person did not give me even 15 minutes to check it. Therefore, I had to test the headphones later. After he left, I tried them. Unfortunately, the volume control buttons did not work, although the rest of the headphones worked perfectly. I thought, “Never mind,” and decided not to tell the seller about it. After some time, unexpectedly, the seller himself contacted me on Telegram. He asked how the headphones were working. At that moment, I told him the truth — that the volume control buttons were not functioning.

The seller immediately called me and sincerely apologized. He then refunded the full price of the headphones. What surprised me the most was that he also told me to keep the headphones as a gift. Although I am still young, I have visited several countries. In those places, I have also faced various problems while shopping. In many cases, sellers would turn off their phones or simply ignore messages.

This incident proved something to me once again: honesty and conscience do not depend on nationality. Once again, I was impressed by the honesty of the Russian people.

About the Author

Muslimbek Abdukarimov is a computer engineering specialist with a higher education. He works in the field of modern technology. His writings reflect real-life events, human values, and meaningful situations from everyday life.

The Lake of Stars

By: Adham Boghdady – Egypt

Here…

Where the valleys stretch out to meet the horizon,

The mountains rose up to speak their eternal words,

And that lake slumbered peacefully,

Gazing with its wide smile

Upwards toward the sky—

The sky, which became a roof of serene blue,

Sent its color to the lake,

So its waves shivered in ecstasy,

And it burst into happy, hearty laughter.

***

At night,

The sky drew its curtain,

And the stars said:

“O Lake,

Let your surface now shine with pearls,

Be a brilliant mantle

That captivates the minds!”

***

The stillness of the valleys called out to me,

“Come to the lands that found their meaning in silence,

Where the water touches the lips of the stone,

In the Lake of Secrets.”

Fleeing the clamor of life…

I left behind the noise of the cities

And went to an invaluable clarity.

In the mirror of the water,

I saw a splendor

That time had not yet visited.

I swam like a soul wandering without a body,

Hovering around water made of silk.

It is the night of the inspiration of feeling,

At the Lake…

Where the voice of secrets unites with the pearls of the stars forever.