Here鈥檚 a new angle on the teacher-quality issue: According to a study by researchers at Ball State University, many teachers may not be getting enough sleep at night to be fully effective in the classroom.
Some 43 percent of teachers surveyed said they slept an average of six hours or less per night, according to , while half admitted to missing work or making errors due to a 鈥渟erious lack of sleep.鈥� Nearly one-fourth said their teaching skills are 鈥渟ignificantly diminished鈥� due to lack of sleep.
The study, which is currently under review by the Journal of School Health, examined the survey responses of 109 teachers in one Indiana district. It is considered 鈥減reliminary and descriptive,鈥� said Denise Amschler, a professor of physiology and health sciences and co-author of the study.
While the study doesn鈥檛 correlate teachers鈥� reported sleep problems with instructional quality or student performance, the researchers speculated that the potential effects on schools could be significant, based on what is known about job performance and lack of sleep.
鈥淪leepy teachers are at higher risk of providing insufficient supervision and inferior classroom instruction,鈥� Amschler said in a press release.
Job-Related Stress
In a phone interview, Amschler noted that, based on her own and previous research, it appears teachers get less sleep than many other professional groups. In general, she said, about one-third of adults are reported to get an average of six or fewer hours of sleep per night.
Amschler believes that teachers鈥� sleep problems likely derive from the unique stresses of the job, including non-fixed hours, continuous grading and planning responsibilities, and concerns about students.
The study also notes that nearly 45 percent of the respondents said they also work part-time jobs in addition to teaching.
Amschler said that teachers with sleep issues tend to fall into two categories: 1) those who are overcommitted with work and family obligations and don鈥檛 get to bed until after midnight; and 2) those who go to bed at a reasonable time but can鈥檛 fall asleep because of worry or stress about school.
In an 鈥渙pen-ended鈥� section of the survey, she said, many teachers acknowledged that they were concerned about the effects of sleep deprivation on their job performance.
Asked about recommendations for addressing the problem, Amschler said she鈥檇 like to see schools include teachers鈥� sleep needs in wellness policies.
鈥淭eachers tend to suffer in silence,鈥� she noted. 鈥淭hey need to know that there鈥檚 no shame in getting enough sleep.鈥�
