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Teacher: Good afternoon. So we’re fast approaching exam season and I can already see a lot of tired
faces here in front of me. Well, today we are lucky enough to have Professor Manson from
the University of Denton talk to us about how sleep can help us pass those all-important
exams. So without any further ado, I’d like you to give a big round of applause and stay wide
awake for Professor Denton.
Professor: Good afternoon. Looking around this room now takes me back to when I was your age and
life seemed to be a never-ending chain of exams and assignments. At that time, organisation
was not my forte and too often I found myself up all hours of the night before an exam
cramming every last piece of information I could in an attempt to remember something. Does
that sound familiar to any of you? Can I just see a show of hands how many of you this term
have had no more than 3 or 4 hours’ sleep before an exam? OK, so that’s a clear majority
and it has to be said that last-minute revision can do wonders for the short-term memory, but
what is, in fact, even more beneficial is a good night’s sleep.
So, I’d like to explain to you now, especially you all-night crammers, the link between sleep
and memory and how a good night’s kip can improve your exam results. Now, could
everyone take a minute to work out, on average, how many hours’ sleep they get every
night. Can I see a show of hands for more than 10 hours? OK, none of you, how about
between 8 and 10 hours? A handful of you. OK, so what about between 6 and 8 hours?
Right, that’s a popular option. And any of you fewer than 6 hours? Mmm ... OK, so you’re
the guys we most need to worry about.
According to the National Sleep Foundation in Washington, newborn babies need anything
between 14 and 17 hours’ sleep and this amount gradually decreases the older we get until
as adults we need around 7 or 8 hours sleep, but ... you’ll be interested to know that the 14
to 17 age group should be aiming for 8 to 10 hours’ sleep a night. So you can already see
that most of us are not getting enough sleep, and this is something we need to think about.
Sleep is essential. The human body simply can’t survive without it. End of story. While we’re
asleep, the body checks that all our vital functions such as growth, circulatory systems and
our immune system are in good working order. And while we’re snoring away, our brains are
very active restructuring information we’ve collected during the day and consolidating
memories.
So let me explain memory consolidation. Memory consolidation is what happens when
information is moved from our short-term memory to our long-term memory with the help of a
major part of the brain called the hippocampus. This is it folks ... this is the BIG moment
when all of those facts and figures that you have crammed into your short-term memory are
processed and consolidated in your long-term memory.
However, as you’re probably aware, we don’t always remember everything. One reason we
remember certain things better than others relates to the environment or conditions we were
in when we originally made the memories. What experts have discovered is, the more
emotions that are activated when we make a memory, the more likely we are to consolidate
that memory. So, for example, the more interesting or fun you find a biology lesson, the
more chance there is of you remembering information from it ... OK, teachers? And not only
that ... we actually need to review information again and again after certain periods of time
to help the consolidation process, which is why well-planned exam revision timetables are far more effective in the long term than short-term cramming the night before.
And one reason why it's important to get enough hours of sleep is that this process of
consolidation happens during certain stages of sleep. So you’re probably aware that there
are different stages of sleep. The initial stages of sleep are a much lighter type of sleep and
it's not until we reach the later stages of deep sleep, what we call ‘slow wave sleep’ because
the brain waves are much slower, that we consolidate our memories. These slow waves help
move the information we have collected and stored in the hippocampus to our long-term
memory.
So what we have here is enough evidence to conclude that the best way to help you pass
your exams is to learn the information in a fun, interesting way, review it regularly, and most
importantly, get plenty of good-quality sleep.
And before you all drift off into a peaceful slumber, I’d like you to ask any questions you
might have.
Teacher: Thank you, Professor. OK, any questions?
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approaching = menjelang
cramming = menghafalkan
all-night crammers = hafalan semalaman (sistem kebut semalam)
kip = tidur
average = rata-rata
growth = pertumbuhan
circulatory system = sistem peredaran darah
immune system = kekebalan tubuh
order = urutan
snoring away = mendengkur
long-term = jangka panjang
conclude = menyimpulkan
drift off into a peaceful slumber = tertidur pulas
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