It's 2:30 in the morning and my first microeconomics test is closing in faster than a hungry drunk and the Gyro Buggy. I have yet to study the vocabulary, concepts or graphs of the chapters. Anxiety has set in.
Armed with a pack of caffeinated Jolt gum and two leftover slices of a Godzilla Avalanche pizza in the fridge, I begin my journey into the heart of my first ever all-nighter.
For some reason, we as college students think that depriving ourselves of sleep in order to pack in and (hopefully) retain as much information as possible is a good idea.
I will admit, now, at 4:30, I am feeling pretty good. I have familiarized myself with a thick stack of note cards and actually started a load of laundry. The dorms are so quiet that I can actually hear the first birds of the morning chirping. I think they are cheering me on.
Ohio University administrator Betty Hollow believes that the principle of the all-nighter may be the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Some people luck out, she said, and
pull good grades on tests and assignments. From this success, students might think that cramming the entire night before is the way to study. Hollow says the most effective way to help anxiety and performance is through proper time management.
I don't know Betty Hollow. At 5:40 the only thing I have is the occasional brain fart and a slight backlash from those two slices of spinach, sun-dried tomato, chicken and feta cheese pie. I am ready to take the test now.
The couple of students I talked to have grown accustomed to the occasional all-nighter. With sometimes exceptionally heavy workloads, they seem unavoidable. Andrea Denardo, a junior, stayed up for two days straight last quarter to complete a resident assistant program. I got everything done
and I did it well but I was useless the next day.
Sam Shghab, second year graduate student, had just pulled an all-nighter the night before when I talked to him. Aided by seven cups of coffee, he managed to pull through a series of heavy reading assignments.
The days though, are a different story. Shghab said without sleep he feels like he is working like a robot during the day.
The sun has come up, but only the first portion of my all-nighter has been completed. At 6:45 I have studied to the point of mental exhaustion. I start writing e-mail to friends, but then realize I'm not too proficient at writing coherent sentences. I think I heard my pillow whisper a sweet nothing. Fatigue has just kicked in.
Paula Popovich, an assistant professor of psychology, told me that getting at least some sleep is better than none. Fighting against your body when it wants to go to sleep is problematic. The body will take over eventually she said.
I am staring at the test, trying to read the questions but making it about halfway through before having to re-read it again. If there were a bubble to fill in for sleep
I would have penciled it in for every answer. Although I knew the material the night before, and know it fairly well now, I am in no mood for taking a test, let alone doing anything else that doesn't involve a blanket. Anxious, and with my mind elsewhere, I make hasty decisions and lose all general interest in doing well.
A week later I get the test back and my fully rested eyes read a 78 percent - nothing special, nothing too poor, but nothing worth the amount of sweet, sweet sleep I had lost.
I think the students I talked to would agree with me in labeling all-nighters as academic dynamite - if not held with caution, they can blow up in your face.
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Paul Kita
