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#Post#: 117--------------------------------------------------
How about a Break?
By: Rrashid Date: February 15, 2013, 7:26 pm
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How about a Break?
Rifath Rashid ‘14
Among students at competitive High Schools, like Herricks, the
common mentality is that the more you study, the better you’ll
do on a test. It seems obvious, more studying leads to more
information being covered, which results in better preparation
for an exam. However, the psychology of the brain isn’t a
simple matter to discuss, and many other factors play
significant roles in terms of academic performance.
A common mistake that many people make, especially before big
tests like midterms and finals, is straight studying for a long
period of time. Many students feel pressured to do so because
on top of finishing other homework, extracurricular activities,
and hanging out with friends, they simply just don’t have time
for breaks. However, a myriad studies have shown that
segmenting one’s work schedule and filling it with breaks
between periods of work is not only healthy for an individual ,
but also helps to dramatically improve productivity.
A study held in 2011 by a University of Illinois psychology
professor, Dr. Alejandro Lleras, shows that taking breaks
during periods of work, whether they are short or long, can have
dramatic effects on an individual’s productivity. The
underlying problem of performing long tasks is that the amount
of attention that one can devote to a certain task gradually
depreciates as time elapses. In her experiment, Lleras tested
this theory by having different groups perform the simple task
of memorizing four digits and noting if one of the four digits
appeared on a computer screen.
The two main groups in Lleras’s experiment included the control
and experimental groups. Members of the control group performed
the 50-minute task without breaks. Members of the experimental
group were allowed to have a brief break before the 50-minute
task and a brief break after the task. Lleras and colleagues
remarkably concluded that the attention span of the experimental
group seemed to remain constant throughout the task time, noting
that, “It was amazing that performance seemed to be unimpaired
by time, while for the other groups performance was so clearly
dropping off.”
This phenomenon can also be explained through the psychological
concepts of the primacy and recency effects, which describe the
improvement of memory for things that were studied or memorized
at the beginning and end of given time-period. According to
these two observed effects, the longer you study for a given
amount of time, the lesser percentage of information you will
actually retain, which reinforces the idea that smaller periods
of work or studying accompanied by breaks will help students
enhance their retention of information.
Then comes the question of what to do with those breaks; well,
it’s really up to you. Everyone has his or her own way of
relaxing. A good suggestion might be exercise. First of all,
having a good fitness regimen helps to promote better health,
but more importantly exercise releases hormones known as
endorphins, which studies have shown to be effective stress
relievers.
Another obvious choice is to take a nap. Researchers at the
University of California, Berkeley have found that taking
90-minute naps before a long work load enables students to
refresh their brains and make room for more information.
Matthew Walker, a professor at Berkelely claims that, “It’s as
though the e-mail inbox in your hippocampus is full and, until
you sleep and clear out those fact e-mails, you’re not going to
receive any more mail. It’s just going to bounce until you sleep
and move it into another folder.” Afternoon naps don’t just
feel good, they’re also fruitful tools that can help
dramatically enhance mental capacity.
So, next time you have a huge test to study for, try
implementing a work schedule that alternates between work and
breaks. Breaks will not only help increase productivity, but
above all, they help reduce stress, and students like us need a
good stress-reliever every now and then.
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