Here’s what sleepy Hong Kong students should worry about first
- Lack of sleep affects memory and attention span, which could impact classroom learning and grades in the long run
I am writing in response to the letter from Hazel Fong, “If lack of sleep damages health, are Hong Kong students paying too high a price for good grades?” (February 18).
As Hong Kong students, we have no choice but to pay a heavy price in terms of sleep deprivation in our quest for good grades. As Ms Fong mentions, we not only have to attend tutorial classes to boost our exam-taking skills, but also need to spend a lot of time revising the notes from both school and the tutorial classes, and solving past question papers to prepare for the Diploma of Secondary Education. All of us want to make sure we get into university and have a secure future. As we work harder towards this goal, we sacrifice our sleep.
However, I do not think students need to fear long-term health effects from the lack of sleep as much as the negative effect on memorisation skills and learning caused by sleep deprivation. Although we always have a huge amount of lessons that needs to be revised, and homework may prevent us from going to bed early, once the exams are over, we can make sure we catch up on our sleep and get enough rest. It is the detrimental effect on our attention in class, and memorisation and cognitive skills, that is of greater concern.
Jason Ng, Tseung Kwan O