Though times have changed, falling asleep in class is still quite common among teenagers.
Why do students sometimes fall asleep in class? An obvious (显而易见的) reason is lack (缺少) of sleep. However, there are also causes for getting too little sleep.
Homework is a daily meal for most students, one that can take three to four hours per night. A teenager who wants to be able to take part in any activity besides homework must stay up late to fit everything in. Club activities, sports, computer — game playing, and TV viewing, for example, all lead to teens having less time for both homework and sleep. Sometimes teens lack sleep because of after—school jobs that are taken on to earn extra money for college, family cost, or simply for clothes.
Physical problems are another reason that can cause students to fall asleep in class. For example, insomnia (失眠), which may keep a student up at night, causing exhaustion (疲惫不堪) during class hours, is a serious problem that may require medical attention. Medical research also supports the idea that each person has a body clock that helps to decide his or her sleep pattern. Unluckily, these body clocks do not always work according to school timetables.
The effects of falling asleep in class can be quite serious. First of all, sleeping in class is not a good way to show your respect to teachers. In addition, it is highly possible that other students may make jokes about those who sleep in class. However, the most harmful effect of sleeping in class is missing important points. In the long run, sleepers may end up with failing classes.
Since teens are probably not going to deal with the problem, falling asleep in class will probably remain an all—too—common situation. It will continue until more teens find a way to balance their personal and social lives with school and work, while still finding enough time to sleep.
