Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Sep;93(3):694-711.
doi: 10.1111/bjep.12586. Epub 2023 Feb 9.

Associations between sleep, reading, and mathematics in Taiwanese children

Wei-Lun Chung  1 , Louise Kyriaki  2 , Joanne Arciuli  2
Affiliations

Associations between sleep, reading, and mathematics in Taiwanese children

Wei-Lun Chung et al. Br J Educ Psychol. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

Background: Some research shows a link between sleep behaviours and school achievement in English-speaking children and adolescents.

Aims: The current study aimed to examine the relationship between children's sleep behaviours and aspects of their school achievement in Mandarin-speaking children who are living in Taiwan.

Sample: The present study reports on 69 second-grade children (age range = 6.84-8.4 years) recruited in Taipei City, Taiwan.

Methods: Children's sleep behaviours were assessed through two standardized parent self-report questionnaires: the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) and the Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC). Children undertook three standardized tests of word reading, reading comprehension and math.

Results: Key findings include: (i) sleep disturbances are more prevalent when using the CSHQ scale than the SDSC scale, (ii) around half of second graders struggle with general sleep disturbances as observed by the CSHQ scale, (iii) children who go to bed before 22:00 and have at least 9-h sleep tend to exhibit fewer sleep disturbances, (iv) parasomnias as measured by the CSHQ are negatively correlated with reading comprehension after controlling age and nonverbal IQ, and (v) the amount of sleep (naps) during daytime is negatively correlated with Chinese character recognition, reading comprehension and math after controlling age and nonverbal IQ.

Conclusions: There is growing awareness of the value of research that spans culturally and linguistically diverse populations. Our study contributes to ongoing discussions about the relationship between sleep, and skills in reading and math in school-aged children in Taiwan.

Keywords: children; math; reading; sleep; sleep disturbance; sleep patterns.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Asarnow, L. D., McGlinchey, E., & Harvey, A. G. (2014). The effects of bedtime and sleep duration on academic and emotional outcomes in a nationally representative sample of adolescents. The Journal of Adolescent Health: Official Publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine, 54(3), 350-356. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2013.09.004
    1. Association of Sleep Disorders Centers & Association for the Psychophysiological Study of Sleep. (1979). Diagnostic classification of sleep and arousal disorders. Sleep, 2(1), 1-137.
    1. BaHammam, A., Al-Faris, E., Shaikh, S., & Saeed, A. B. (2006). Sleep problems/habits and school performance in elementary school children. Sleep and Hypnosis, 8(1), 12-18.
    1. Biggs, S. N., Lushington, K., van den Heuvel, C. J., Martin, A. J., & Kennedy, J. D. (2011). Inconsistent sleep schedules and daytime behavioral difficulties in school-aged children. Sleep Medicine, 12(8), 780-786. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2011.03.017
    1. Bruni, O., Ferini-Strambi, L., Russo, P. M., Antignani, M., Innocenzi, M., Ottaviano, P., Valente, D., & Ottaviano, S. (2006). Sleep disturbances and teacher ratings of school achievement and temperament in children. Sleep Medicine, 7(1), 43-48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2005.09.003

LinkOut - more resources