Sleep Deprivation and the Student Experience

I surfed on over to CNN last night just to see what was going on. Although I often remark to my students that visiting news sites simply exposes me to the fact that the world is not always a nice place (something that the idealist in me would like to avoid, but that the realist has learned to place into some sort of context), I do it anyway in a search for "the answer", whatever that may be at the time.

On this particular visit, I read with great interest an entry in Anderson Cooper's 360 Blog. The post was by Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN Medical Correspondent, and he talked about his direct experience with sleep deprivation due to career and fatherhood. You can read his post here Dr. Gupta vividly described his experiences in a flight simulator under a state of sleep deprivation--a condition not entirely foreign to students, especially during this time of year. For those who are removed from realities of life in academe, it's almost spring break time (residents of Daytona Beach, lock up your children!). Prior to blasting off for some R & R, students must endure the pressures of finals, end of term projects, and the nagging questions surrounding the next term or academic year. In essence, it's time to make choices...and not necessarily under the best of circumstances.

I can't help but think that high-pressure, high stakes situations make it harder for people to work successfully with their technological tools. It would come as no surprise to me if, upon examining help desk logs and anecdotal information about the experiences of computer-using students, one could discern a significant up-tick in problems as students attempt to complete work ranging from final papers to Visual Basic projects. Add to this that a significant number of students now take classes online, and it would seem to present a situation in which technology could "fail" or "fight against" users at just the time when they need it most. Certainly, the ramifications are not a dire as driving or flying a plane when half asleep, but the frustration level must certainly affect perceptions about the transparency of technology and its role as a helpful tool. Time for research.