School & District Management Report Roundup

Sleep and Achievement

By Marva Hinton — August 23, 2016 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Do differences in sleep cycles between boys and girls help explain the gender performance gap? That’s the theory behind a paper released this summer by the Institute for the Study of Labor, a private, independent research institute based in Germany.

The study is believed to be the first study to find a connection between later school start times and improved academic performance by boys relative to girls.

Researchers from the University of California, Davis, studied data from a group of secondary schools in Eastern Europe where students alternate school start times each month. For example, one month middle school students would start class at 7:30 a.m., and high school classes would begin at 1:30 p.m. Then the following month they would switch start times. During each rotation, students had the same teachers and took their courses in the same order.

The researchers looked at all the students’ grades from month to month and compared their performance in the afternoon versus the morning from 2008 to 2014.

They found that, while girls outperform boys overall, the gender gap is narrower during the afternoon classes than it is during the morning classes. The work builds on previous studies, which found that girls deal with sleep deprivation more successfully than boys and are more likely to be early risers, while boys’ circadian rhythms make them more likely to stay up later and wake later in the morning.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the August 24, 2016 edition of Education Week as Sleep and Achievement

Events

School Climate & Safety Webinar Engaging Every Student: How to Address Absenteeism and Build Belonging
Gain valuable insights and practical solutions to address absenteeism and build a more welcoming and supportive school environment.
Student Well-Being K-12 Essentials Forum Social-Emotional Learning 2025: Examining Priorities and Practices
Join this free virtual event to learn about SEL strategies, skills, and to hear from experts on the use and expansion of SEL programs.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Inside PLCs: Proven Strategies from K-12 Leaders
Join an expert panel to explore strategies for building collaborative PLCs, overcoming common challenges, and using data effectively.
Content provided by Otus

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School & District Management Opinion Your School Needs a Teacher-Mentorship Program
We all know how critical the first few years of teaching are. Here's how to set teachers up for success.
Pamela Slifer
4 min read
Mentorship development of young teachers. School leaders make the teaching profession more sustainable by developing a robust mentoring program in their school.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week via Canva
School & District Management School Leaders Rush to Manage Deportation Fears
School and district leaders describe a chaotic time amid changes to federal immigration policies.
9 min read
A line of school children with obscured faces board a school bus on their way to school.
E+/Getty
School & District Management Quiz Quiz Yourself: How Much Do You Know About The Superintendent Persona?
The superintendent plays a crucial role in purchasing decisions. Test your knowledge of this key buyer persona and see how your results stack up with your peers.
School & District Management Opinion School Modernization Funds Are in Jeopardy. Here's What to Do
Upgrades to ground-source heat pumps keep students learning in hot weather and rack up energy savings, write two former school leaders.
Brenda Cassellius & Jonathan Klein
5 min read
Thermometer under a hot sun. Hot summer day. High Summer temperatures.
iStock/Getty