W 061 F

Consider the following facts: (1) Antisocial behaviour is on the increase in recent years in the early hours, (2) Eight o'clock classes at JPTE English Department are gradually disappearing and being replaced by late afternoon lectures or seminars. Could these two facts be connected? Until recently most people would have made fun of the question itself. Now, it seems, we have to think again, taking into account the results of my recently completed survey, which dramatically demonstrated the effects of getting up early on university students' behaviour and intellectual performance.

A central issue behind antisocial behaviour due to getting up early concerns the importance of the amount of sleep each individual needs to be able to cope with the challenge of a new day. Established scientific opinion tends to claim that the vast majority of us need eight hours of sleep every day. But over the past few decades the life rythm of city dwellers and especially intellectuals developed to be so complex and accelerated that a 24-hour day is hardly enough to fulfill all one's needs. One widely popular solution to the problem is to reduce daily sleep to a minimum level. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that a person lacking his biologically required rest is highly irritateable when woken up by the unwelcome sharp sound of the alarm clock in the morning.

Students lacking in concentration seem to have difficulty following the lessons at university. A certain amount of time is needed to regain ones senses after sleep and become wide awake, which is in direct ratio to the amount of relaxing night rest. The less one sleeps the more difficult it is to wake up in the morning and the narrower the concentration span becomes. So although alarming, it is not particularly surprising, that since students have been given the possibility to decide on their own schedules, they tend to prefer the mid-morning and early or even late afternoon classes to early morning ones. As a result of this phenomenon, late afternoon and evening classes followed by lengthy weekday parties are likely to further restrict the time devoted to sleeping. Concerning the intellectual performance of notorious early birds, my theory, namely that an early rise would result in lower quality work, was only partly confirmed by my investigations. However an early rise is often closely associated with a reduced amount of sleep, its side-effects can easily be avoided by early bed-going, which would mean fresh brain and intensive intellectual performance despite early hours, assumed some of my interviewees, whose frequent references to health and weight consciousness suggest that early morning excercises, such as jogging or swimming may contribute to being able to succesfuly overcome the physically natural state of morning dumbness.

Can early classes be the possible causes of poor performance in case of certain courses? A conclusion can only be drawn after thorough consideration, but in my opinion it is an excuse widely resorted to by students not exceptionally keen on high quality performance in class.