College kids’ lack of sleep can cause problems

napping

College students are sleepy. 

The effects are detrimental. 

Students and alumni interviewed this week in Washington, D.C. said that college life provides too many distractions to get the recommended amount of sleep per night.

According to the Public Library of Science, a lack of sleep leads to stress, anxiety, psycho-pathological issues and depression.

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A person falls asleep in public. Experts say college students’ lack of sleep could hurt their performance and even their mental health. (Courtesy of THINKGlobalSchool on Creative Commons.)

Among college students, many of whom voluntarily deprive themselves of sleep, these problems prove to be especially harmful.

“I kept wanting to go out to the dining hall and sit in the lounge,” said Stacy Miles, now 24. “The freedom, like, we have a lot of off time.”

The independence and social life associated with college, as well as the influence of technology, has proven to negatively affect this generation of college students. According to a National Center for Biotechnology Information study, internet surfing is the most impactful factor affecting quality of sleep.

Students and alumni interviewed at American University got an average of 6.2 hours of sleep per night during the school year, according to calculations done by this reporter.

It’s not enough.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, adults aged 18 to 60 should be getting 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night.

But, every person interviewed had commitments outside of course work, such as jobs, internships, fraternities/sororities, clubs and volunteering.

Jake Misouki, 27, works up to 20 hours a week, has internships, volunteers and is the treasurer for his fraternity.

So how can college students obtain the recommended amount of sleep despite their busy schedules?

The easiest way for students to achieve 8 full hours of sleep per night is to maintain a sleep schedule. A study by Scientific Reports shows that irregularities in light exposure and sleep patterns hinders academic performance and the circadian rhythm. The bright lights from technology such as laptops, phones, and televisions alter how the mind perceives day and night.

Eros Bouley-Swed, an 18-year-old college student, said that he would have difficulty focusing in class due to fatigue. He also spends about 3-4 hours a day on technology.

According to a study conducted by the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 90% of Americans use technology within the last hour prior to bedtime, many of whom leave their ringers on. A dependence on technology by college students results in greater disturbances while sleeping and executive functioning problems.

This demographic of sleep deprived students must alter their reliance on technology to achieve the recommended amount of sleep. Many students are unaware of the consequences of their sleeping habits.

The culture of all-nighters and intense study sessions creates an environment in which students continuously sacrifice their mental health.

“I would crash study,” Miles said.

Climate change ‘urgent’ issue for Gen Z voters in 2020

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Generation Z–those born between 1997 and 2012–voters interviewed this month in Washington, D.C. said climate change is the single biggest issue that will decide their votes in the 2020 election.

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Climate activists spoke at American University on June 20. (Photo by Natalia Cano)

The older members of Generation Z cast 4.5 million ballots in the 2018 midterm election, representing 4% of all votes, according to the Pew Research Center. By 2020, their impact could be even more powerful, when they are projected to comprise 10% of eligible voters.

“It’s time to wake up,” Ryan Cullen Barto, 20, said of younger generations facing the 2020 election.

These young voices see the upcoming election as an opportunity for change, and climate change is something they see as urgent.

Nadia Nazar, the 17-year-old co-founder of thisiszerohour.org, is very passionate about encouraging Gen Z to use their power to vote next year. She wants a great president, but also someone who will be a leader on climate change, and she believes young people need to understand what’s at stake.

“You’re voting for your life and for the sake of this country,” said Nazar, who lives in Baltimore. It “is important for our generation.”

Citizens Climate Lobby, a grassroots environmental organization, tweeted Thursday morning, the day after the first Democratic Presidential primary debate, that: “Last night’s disappointing treatment of at the underscores the need for a separate debate on the issue.”

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A grassroots environmental organization wants a separate debate dedicated to climate change. (Photo courtesy of Twitter)

Meanwhile, younger citizens who still will be too young to cast a ballot next year say when they can vote, climate change is their main and overarching concern.

Not being able to vote next year, Annelise Bittenbender, 16, from Leesburg, Virginia, worries that her voice won’t be heard.

“I think it could potentially make or break the rest of what’s going to go on in the world,” Bittenbender said of climate change.

“This election could potentially make or break our earth so me not being able to vote stresses me out ’cause I just wanna try to help as much as I can but not actually having a say is difficult,” Bittenbender continued.

The scientific community agrees overwhelmingly “climate change is real,” according to one statement on the NASA website.

Among those statements, the American Geophysical Union wrote: “Human‐induced climate change requires urgent action. Humanity is the major influence on the global climate change observed over the past 50 years. Rapid societal responses can significantly lessen negative outcomes.”

Generation Z’s youngest members may not be able to vote next year, but they already are organizing and fighting to be heard about climate change.

Ethan Vandivier, 13, already is an advisory board member for Young Voice for the Planet. He spoke on a panel at American University on June 20, noting that the next election is going to determine not just leadership, but will frame debates and policy solutions for climate change.

“For new people who are trying to get involved, voting is very important,” Vandivier said. “That’s how you start. That’s where you start.”

Advocate: College admissions scandal will set back progress for students who use accommodations

The 2019 college admissions scandal has reinforced feelings of unfairness towards accommodations received by students with learning disabilities, and is likely to make it more difficult for students to receive the help they need, according to a member of the board of the Learning Disability Association of New York.

As a learning disability activist, Kathryn Cappella, who sits on the board, emphasized the decades-old debate about the fairness of modifications for those who need them, and how the scandal only added to the negative views about people with disabilities and the modifications they receive. The recent scandal did not introduce the complexity surrounding testing accommodations.

Celebrities including Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman are ensnared in an admissions scandal that saw some students admitted to elite universities by lying about disabilities–among other infractions–to get extra time on the SAT and other college admissions tests, according to reports in The New York Times.

Students who have diagnosed neurological conditions often receive academic accommodations such as extended time on tests, a private testing room, or other changes based on the individual needs for each student. Twenty percent of children in the United States have one of these neurological conditions, which include dylexia, dysgraphia and ADHD, according to the National Center for Learning Disabilities.

Since news of the college scandal broke in Spring 2019, College Board, which administers the SAT, has emphasized its policies for students with accommodations, which some have seen as more restrictive and potentially exclusionary.

In an email from College Board to this reporter who inquired about the re-emphasis on accommodations policies, a link to a page explaining how to get accommodations was included. On this page, it explains that students need to complete a Student Eligibility Form and send in an official diagnosis of a learning disability. In some cases, a student may need a school verification.

Its website reads: “We want to know what the student’s disability is, how it is impacting them, and why they need the specific accommodation that they are requesting.”

“School verifications occur when a student receives and uses the accommodation for at least four school months,” according to the College Board’s website.

Many students, however, are not diagnosed with the learning disability until after that date has passed.

For people who require accommodations, they are a necessary part of their success on tests like the SAT. Some feel that people without disabilities don’t understand how tough it is for those diagnosed with an issue to complete tests without them.

Trent Powell, 17, of Bethesda, Maryland, receives accommodations for both ADHD and anxiety.

“The only reason why there’s extra time is because we have those obstacles to go over,” Powell said. “If I took the SAT without my extended time, I would have only gotten like five questions out of the 15 math questions.”

For students without disabilities, testing accommodations are seen as an unfair advantage.

In a 2008 study called “Perceptions of People with Disabilities: When is Accommodation Fair?” by Ramona L. Paetzold, students’ reactions to a dyslexic competitor receiving accommodations were in relation to the outcome of the contest. In other words, if receiving extra time won the competition after being given modifications, would the other competitors find that fair?

The results of the test proved the answer to be no. Despite believing the confederate had a disorder that would put her at a major disadvantage under normal conditions, students found it unfair to adjust these conditions. They believe that adjusting a test to fit an individual’s needs gives students with who need accommodations unearned benefits.

Maria Gramajo, 20, of San Rafael, California, though not believing this herself, understands how these people may feel. She recognizes the outward appearance of accommodations being advantages, but is quick to respond with a viewpoint similar to Powell’s.

Accommodations are “meant to create an equal playing field, not to put anyone in any sort of advantage,” Gramajo said.

Students with disabilities who qualify for academic accommodations say it provides equity. (Infographic by Gillian Blum)

This debate closely resembles the famous distinction between equity and equality. The image above helps to explain this distinction: Child A, a child with two hands, and Child B, a child with just one, have four cookies.

Equality is giving both children two cookies. At first glance, this option seems fair. Both children get the same number of cookies. However, since Child B only has one hand, she can only hold one cookie. In the end, Child A has an advantage since she can hold both of her cookies. Equity, however, would be giving both children two cookies, but also giving Child B a basket to hold her cookies. By giving Child B a basket, she and Child A both have the same number of cookies.

Paetzold’s study shows that most “Child As” would prefer equality, since it gives them exactly what they need, and is equal to everyone. Powell and Gramajo, on the other hand, find equity a better solution for these students – everyone gets what they need.

This debate is both ongoing, and ever-evolving. As Cappella emphasized, the 2019 scandal did not change society’s treatment of students with learning disabilities, but added to the pre-existing unfair view of accommodations held by many.

As students face more active shooter drills, anxiety on the rise

Students interviewed this month in Washington, D.C. said they are frustrated and anxious about the almost daily occurrence of active shooter drills, which have been on the rise at public schools over the last two decades.

Meanwhile, researchers are divided over whether the drills actually add to teenagers’ anxiety or are needed to help students understand how to cope with the threat of a shooter at school.

Eric Perless, 20, a student at American University, recalled his experience with lockdown drills as a teenager.

“We would have active shooter drill lockdowns once every two months,” Perless said. “It was scary especially since sometimes they didn’t tell us it was a drill so it was definitely traumatizing.”

In remembrance of Columbine’s deadly shooting of 1999, students nationally protest school gun violence on April 20, 2018. (Photo by Michael Fleshman courtesy of Creative Commons)

Colton Browder, 18, a student at the University of North Carolina, also recalled active shooter drills at his high school.

“Our lockdown drills at our school were horrible procedures,” Browder said. “I remember thinking that the lockdown drills weren’t even helpful to prepare you for an actual active shooter.”

In Washington, D.C., school leaders have a School Emergency Response Plan and Management Guide, signed in 2009. It says that drills are “essential to practice” to familiarize school personnel, staff and students with what they would do in case of a natural disaster or “manmade” threat.

School shootings in America have become almost a common occurrence and so have active shooter drills.

In a 2018 master’s thesis from California State University, researchers wrote: “The research found that participants, on average, are moderately anxious about the possibility of an active shooter situation at school and their internships.”

Other research from the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry written by Dewey Cornell, a professor at the University of Virginia, stated that: “Massive public attention to school shootings has created the misperception that schools are dangerous places, even though crime statistics show that schools are one of the safest places in the United States.”

Ana Ferrer, 19, a student at the University of Puerto Rico, had a school shooting threat at her school and was scared to attend school because of this.

“It made me feel uncomfortable to know I couldn’t go to my own university,” Ferrer said.

Brittani Riddle, a staff member at American University, said she’s never been in an active shooter drill, but she understands the fear and the potential impact of drills on mental health.

“I think it may unfortunately cause a sense of fear, but it also teaches people to be mindful that things can happen because unfortunately this is the world that we live in,” Riddle said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 7.4 percent of high school students in 2011 reported being threatened or harmed with a weapon on school grounds. Those day-to-day events are what Cornell writes that school safety should prioritize.

“School safety should focus on the everyday problems of bullying and fighting,” Cornell wrote in the 2015 study.

 

 

With protests on the rise this year, district residents split on political effect

girl at bus stop

Washington, D.C. residents offered divided views on protests that are on the rise this year and what effect they are having on the country.

Interviews conducted this week in the district showed many people were split on the issue of protests, that range from major demonstrations like the March for Our Lives to smaller marches by restaurant workers.

Luke Baker, 19, has definitely noticed the spike in protests around the district, saying he thinks the men and women want “an overhaul.”

“That’s beautiful,” said Baker, who lives in Texas and was working at American University this summer.

“If we didn’t protest,” Baker said, society would “be a hellscape or a utopia.”

Not everyone agrees.

Keiran Bly, 28, believes that protesting is a poor way of solving problems. Bly said to make change people should run for political office.

Bly said he wished for protest fatigue, but didn’t believe that the people protesting would tire out any time soon.

The most recent figures from a nonpartisan crowd counting group show Bly may be right.

The amount of protests in 2018 has already surpassed the total number of protests in 2017, according to Crowd Counting Consortium, a public interest group founded by two political science professors.

The CCC estimated that in 2017 there was over 8,700 protests nationwide. Through May 2018–the most recent numbers available–the number of protests already had reached 9,710.

Not everyone plans on attending protests.

Rishi Mittal, 17, fears attending marches or rallies nearly a year after a self-described neo-Nazi allegedly plowed his car into a group of counter-protesters killing Heather Heyer. Mittal said he worries about “another Charlottesville” and said he prefers to watch at home on television.

Josh Ledyart, 21, hasn’t been to a protest in the last year due to a lack of free time, but he said he is supportive.

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Samantha Danzinger, 20, thinks protests may be adding to the feeling of partisan divide. Photo by Kendall Gilvar.

“The protests put a lot of pressure on unpopular policies,” said Ledyart, who believes the spike in protests was caused by the Trump administration’s policies that showed what he calls a “lack of respect for humanity.”

Pamela Oliver, a sociology professor at the University of Wisconsin, attributed the rise to a “protest wave” that she said is common when one political party is out of power.

“I do think the people opposed to President Trump and the Republican policies feel both especially outraged and highly motivated to protest,” said Oliver, who is an expert in collective action and social movements.

Oliver also said in an email interview that the current round of protests had “a strong partisan element.” Oliver also cited large amounts of protests by Democrats during the George W. Bush administration and that less Democrats protested during Barack Obama’s tenure in office.

“Another thing that happens is that people who are not protesters get tired of the disruption after a while and start becoming more supportive of repressive measures to force protests down,” Oliver said by email.

 

 

Public split on schools’ role in sex ed as feds fuel abstinence-only policies

woman on street

Ashley Adams remembers sitting on the couch with her grandmother watching “Starstruck” on The Disney Channel.

Sterling Knight, Adams’ childhood crush, appeared on the screen.

“I brought up the word ‘sex,'” said Adams, now 17. “That turned…woah.”

Adams remembers her grandmother having “the sex talk” with her that night, but for many young adults, media–especially the Internet–acts as the first engagement with the topic, especially when many schools fail to teach comprehensive sexual education.

Michelle Baffour, 17, says the internet is a “dangerous place to learn about sex” and that “children should learn about sex from a reliable source.”

Many district area residents this week offered split opinions on whether public school, funded by the government, should be that “reliable source” that teaches young people about sexual education and health.

Andrew Melmed, 30, says children should learn about sex on their own or “through church” but emphasized that it is not the government’s role to dictate sex education.

Virginia Suardi, 22, disagrees.

Suardi thinks the government should facilitate comprehensive sex education and that federally funded abstinence-only programs are negative because “it’s obvious teenagers are not going to stop having sex.”

Abstinence-only sex education emphasizes that sex outside of marriage has damaging psychological and physical effects. It does not focus on contraceptive health and does not stress the importance of protection from sexually transmitted diseases. Abstinence-only education has the primary goal of preventing all sexual endeavors before they start.

However, research published in September 2017 in the Journal of Adolescent Health shows that children enrolled in abstinence-only programs are just as likely to have sex in high school and may have higher pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection rates.

According to the 2019 Fiscal Year Budget, abstinence-only sexual education is reaching more American teenagers today in public schools with a $75 million push from the Trump administration.

That is troubling for many parents in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area like Sarah Juram, 55, who says abstinence-only education is “ridiculous.”

“Students aren’t going to practice abstinence, and pretending like they are is damaging,” Juram said.

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Sarah Juram, 55, believes public schools should offer comprehensive sexual education. Photo by Ben Morse.

Maya Carlsen, 17, feels there are taboos surrounding sex in American culture. And she believes sex education policies in schools, even when offered, are sexist.

Young women are taught to “close their legs,” said Adams, but young boys are not taught the same.

Sex education classes in school are modeled after what she says is America’s detrimental sex culture.

A dad will tell their son to go do it,” Adams said. “But a girl will be called a slut. And schools don’t stray far from that idea.”  

 

 

 

 

Social media can influence self esteem

biology student checks phone

Students shared on Wednesday their views on social media and its effects on mental health and self esteem at American University in Washington, D.C., with many saying they see the negative effects but refuse to give up their phone.

It is very unlikely to find a millennial who isn’t glued to their cell phone, scanning their screen. Social media is used by many millennials in order to stay updated, develop a voice, or create content, and research shows that it can have both positive effects and negative ramifications.

However, many students feel that the advanced network causes their self esteem to take a hit, even though it can help them stay connected to friends and family who may be far away. 

Many students studying or working at American University this summer expressed their thoughts on how social media affects their confidence.

Justine Coleman, 20, is like many others interviewed who said they compare themselves to others on social media platforms.

“Sometimes it can get a little in your head,” said Coleman, a journalism and mass communications student at George Washington University. “People just put out the happiest versions of themselves.”

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Maryam Yamadi, 22, a biology graduate student at American University, checks her phone while studying on Thursday, June 21. Photo by Jordan Anderson.

According to the National Psychologist, around 81 percent of the U.S. population has at least one social media account.

Using social media is a part of many peoples’ daily routines.

Hannah Kim, 19, a film and media arts major, said that she uses it “really often, almost maybe every hour of the day. Just to check.”

Kim added that “a lot of the younger kids now are growing up a bit too fast and they’re taking inspiration from social media.”

As teenagers develop and undergo changes, they may feel insecure as they observe their friends or celebrities on social media.

“That’s all they’ve grown up with,” Coleman said.

Social media has advanced with Generation Z as they age which affects their mindset. It’s difficult for the younger generation to separate reality from idealism.

“They have grown up with social media, so it’s always been embedded in the culture,” Amanda Luthy, 21, a film and media arts major commented.

However, many of the students overcome the feeling of being pressured.

“There’s a whole team of people behind them producing this content,” Luthy stated on the topic of social media influencers. “It’s not always genuinely that person them self.”

Many students also express how common it is to have a social media cleanse. “Taking some time out is a good way to cope with it,” Coleman said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The celebrity effect? Some say it’s important but research says influence comes from closer to home

Students at American University this week provided various perspectives of celebrities’ power in the media, explaining the influence their advocacy has on multiple issues including mental illness and the criminal justice system.

Amanda Luthy, 20, who is a senior, said she looks up to director Ava DuVernay. Luthy described DuVernay as a person who embodies female empowerment and is a role model for women of color, and Luthy said she is drawn to a message of her increasing diversity for people in media.

Lamar Smith, a teaching assistant in the Discover the World of Communication summer program, said he looks up to famous athletes including Chris Paul, who made Smith aware of Hurricane Harvey and police brutality. 

Amanda Luthy discusses her views on celebrities. Photo by Myra Strickland.

“It enlightens you,” Smith said about learning about current events through celebrity involvement.

Although interviews on campus revealed the importance of celebrity advocacy for some teenagers, research shows that’s not always the case, with many turning to people they know rather than those they see on the screen.

“Young adults are less likely to trust the celebrity endorsement of a candidate or issue, and are more likely to trust the endorsement of someone they know,” according to Valerie R. O’Regan of The Department of Political Science at California State University. That work titled “The Celebrity Influence: Do People Really Care What They Think” was published in June 2014.

Sejung Marina Choi and Nora J. Rifon showed in their work that “personalities, lifestyles, appearances, and behaviors” are influenced the most rather than political views or social stances.

“Favorable responses to celebrity endorsements might occur only when consumers perceive the images or meanings the celebrities represent and convey as desirable,” the authors wrote in a 2007 Journal of Popular Culture article. 

 

 

 

Why Berkeley?

Sproul Hall, home to many protests at the University of California Berkeley. Is now the undergraduate administration office. Photo by Jolie Ebadi

BERKELEY, Calif. — When visiting the campus of the University of California, Berkeley  one sees and hears a diverse and passionate culture.

The famous green-arch entrance at Sather Gate stands for new beginnings. Some are drawn here for academics or the eclectic laid-back city, but what else causes people to stay?

Viry Cabral, a 19-year-old local, said “Berkeley is a cool place to work in because it is interesting and diverse.” She attends community college in nearby San Pablo.

In informal interviews across campus, some students said that although the university is more affordable than a private college, there are underlying issues socially.

One described a racial dispute in the library; others were concerned about the recent housing crisis and lack of  affordable space for students.

Maritza Geronimo, a UCLA student, was visiting the campus for a symposium directed at research and scholarships. She said she didn’t think the campus was “welcoming for people of color,” but knows this is something students are working on. ( To read more about Racial issues at Berkeley, go to http://www.dailycal.org/2016/10/23/student-groups-block-sather-gate-latest-protest-relocation/ ) Her colleague, Christian Vasquez, also from UCLA, said he’s enjoying “a different culture than I am used to back home in Westwood. There are more food options for expressing ethnic communities in Berkeley, and more opportunity for all social classes financially and politically.”

Several students said they saw a renewed political activism and welcoming spirit and a general encouragement for artistic expression. One student’s favorite artistic piece was a car covered in chains that she saw around town often.  

Nicole Blake, associate director of the undergraduate admissions office, said the school has “an eye for diversity, not just how people look, but where they come from, making it very inviting for students and staff,” which is why she has stayed for 12 years.

“I would want other people to know that I know how young people feel,” she said. “I think they believe it’s about the GPA and the rigor, but I would say to them: Berkeley is for you.”

Some colleges make SAT optional

Admissions officers at test-optional colleges and universities are relying on new ways to review a student’s academic ability without looking at their standardized tests scores.

“By allowing students to apply as test-optional, they are indeed giving the student a choice on how they present themselves to an admissions committee,” said Jeremy Lowe, who is the associate director of admissions at American University, a test-optional school in Washington, D.C.

Test-optional schools–those where students are not required to submit their SAT or ACT scores in their applications–are also on the rise. Test-flexible schools apply a holistic review of a student that is more personalized and takes other aspects of a students academic success into account.

Standardized tests used by colleges and universities. Photo by Alberto G.

https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/about/benefits, standardized tests can reflect a student’s strengths and weaknesses. Standardized testing is used to eliminate possible discrimination of students who may be limited by a weaker school system. These tests also have the job of measuring a student’s readiness for college.

For years, tests have been a standard for college applicants during the admissions process, however in a PBS report, colleges and universities are starting to put less emphasis on test scores as they are not reliable in predicting academic success.

“I know some people who did very badly on it and they ended up going to college and getting very good grades,” said Kevin Thibodeaux, 25, of the SAT.

As of the summer of 2017 more than 950 schools are test flexible or test optional.