The evaluation of scholar fatigue phenomenon and some factors that cause it on a group of teenagers from Iasi

Scholar fatigue should be carefully evaluated to be able to interfere when needed. Goals: the evaluation of differences/similarities regarding fatigue at pupils studying at different. High schools. Material and methods: the study was done on a group of 237 teenagers studying at 3 different high schools in Iasi: Sport high school (75 teenagers), Music High school (73 students) and Grammar School (89 students). The pupils had to fill in a questionnaire regarding the emersion of fatigue. The results were analysed using the Pearson CHI Square test. Results and discussions: in 45.99% of cases, students are often tired, the calculated differences being statistically significant for a p<0.01 (f=4, χ2=15.500), fatigue being often acknowledged by Grammar School teenagers. The phenomenon appears in the middle of the week (48.10% ,p>0.001 f=4, χ2=20.862) and at midday (43.03%, p<0.01, f=4, χ2=11.738). The statistically significant differences show a high frequency of positive answers for Grammar School students. One of the factors favouring the appearance of fatigue is the small number of sleeping hours (6-7 hours -75.94%). The calculated differences are statistically significant for a p<0.001 (f=4, χ2=21.716) and show a high frequency of teenagers who sleep a little at Grammar School. Conclusions: the appearance of fatigue is different for each highschool, which enforces an exact knowledge of the features of teenagers’ loads.


Introduction
A pupil's development can be disrupted by the rise of the scholar failure phenomenon, situation which can be evaluated with the help of some markers represented by: unsatisfying scholar results of the teenager, the existence of a gap between his personal potential and his results, a lack of personal content and self-confidence, scholar absenteeism, early school abandon, leaving school without getting a qualification, failure at final exams (Cosmovici and Iacob , 2008).One of the main causes of scholar failure, for a teenager with no family or health problems, is represented by the existence of a too high scholar demand associated with the appearance of intense fatigue or even exhaustion phenomenon (Clerget, 2012;Papalia D and Olds, 1990).The fatigue phenomenon has been intensely studied, but yet we don't know exactly the elements causing it and its place in the intellectual structure of a person.Fatigue is a complex state characterised by some objective and subjective symptoms.The objective symptoms are represented by visceral and endocrino -metabolic changes, which appear at people open to this phenomenon and need to go through special medical investigations.The subjective ones are easy to identify with the help of questionnaires, being quickly perceived by the investigated person.(Gavăt , Albu and Petrariu ,2006).The investigation of fatigue is important for students to be able to evaluate how the scholar demands are adapted to the teenagers' possibilities, taking into account especially the age group.Another aspect which needs to be carefully studied is that of spending free time.Many teenagers spend hours every day in front of a computer (playing games or socialising with their group of friends) or a T.V., which is a worsening factor for fatigue, and not a relaxation element.Aimed objectives: evaluating the presence of fatigue phenomenon on a group of students; evaluating the differences/similarities that appear for the presence of scholar fatigue at students from different types of high schools; evaluating the time students spend for passive rest, that allows casting out physiological fatigue; knowledge of fatigue generating factors, such as too much time spent in front of the T.V or the computer.

Methods:
The study was done on a group of 237 teenagers from the 9th and 10th grade (of ages between 14 and 16) from three different types of high schools: Sport High school (75 teenagers), Music High school (73 teenagers) and G. Ibraileanu Grammar School (89 teenagers) from Iasi.These pupils have filled in a questionnaire with questions oriented on three directions: presence of subjective fatigue phenomenon (3 questions regarding the presence of this phenomenon the moment during the day or week when teenagers feel tired); time spent on day sleep and night sleep, allowing the body to regain its strength (2 questions about the number of night sleep and presence of sleep during the day); the number of hours spent on free time activities that emphasize the student's fatigue (2 questions about the daily time spent in front of the T.V. or computer) (Gavăt , Albu and Petrariu ,2006).The results will be presented in comparison on the three scholar collectives, being analysed with the Pearson CHI Square test.

3.Results:
The interpretation of results will be done starting from the three main directions approached: presence of fatigue phenomenon, time spent on passive rest and the one spent on recreational activities.The presence of fatigue is admitted by 45.99% teenagers, which, at the "do you feel tired" question, their answer is often.The attention is drawn on 3.79% teenagers who choose the "never" option.These students don't get fully involved in their scholar schedule, thus they do not feel tired (Table I).The calculated differences on scholar collectives are statistically significant for a p<0.01 (f=4, χ²=15.500)and they highlight the existence of a high degree of fatigue for grammar school students.Physiological fatigue apppears in the evening after a work day and at the end of the week (Bardov, 2009).For students of the study group the physiological fatigue, after a work day is present only in 28.27% cases, which is worrying.In most cases (43.03%) this phenomenon appears in the middle of the day, after finishing the scholar schedule.(Table II).The situation is worrying for 28.69% teenagers who feel tired in the morning, after a night's sleep, because it was insufficient.The calculated differences are statistically significant for a p<0.01 (f=4, χ²=11.738and the attention is drawn on the answers of the G. Ibraileanu Highschool students. The physiological fatigue appears after a week of scholar effort, situation admitted only by 18.98% of the questioned students.In most cases (48.10%) fatigue appears in the middle of the week, time when the effort capacity is at its maximum.The answers of 32.91% teenagers are worrying as they feel tired at the beginning of the week, after a week-end full of activities and insufficient sleep.The calculated differences are statistically significant for a p<0.001 (Gl=4, χ²=20.862),drawing attention again on the answers of the G. Ibraileanu Highschool students.
The obtained results highlight the existence of a fatigue phenomenon marked especially at the students from G. Ibraileanu High school.Thus it is important to evaluate the time spent on passive rest (night and day sleep).Normally, teenagers need 9 hours of sleep a day.We consider to be acceptable 8 hours of night sleep, associated with some sleep during the day.In most cases (75.94%) pupils admit a night sleep of 6-7 hours, which is totally insufficient.(Table III) The recommended number of night sleep hours is present for 16.87% of the questioned teenagers, but there are cases of teenagers who sleep more than 9 hours a night (7.17%).The calculated differences are statistically significant for a p<0.001 (f=4, χ²=21.716)and it shows an insufficient number of night sleep hours, especially for the Grammar School pupils.
The insufficient hours of night sleep can be balanced with day sleep, in the afternoon.This sleeping time is permanently present in the schedule of 5.48% teenagers and often present un 13.92% cases.
Practically, the insufficient night sleep is balanced with the day sleep only in a few cases.(Table IV).In most cases (43.45%) pupils rarely sleep in the afternoon.The attention is drawn on 37.13% negative answers, which highlights the absence of the possibility to balance the insufficient number of night sleep hours.The calculated differences are statistically significant for a p<0.01 (f=6, χ²=20.303)and guides us to the existence of a very small number of pupils from Music School who sleep every day or often in the afternoon.
The study continues on evaluating the daily time pupils spend on watching T.V. or pn computer activities.(Table V).In most cases (41.35%) pupils stay in front of the T.V. between 30 minutes and one hours, which is an adequate schedule.The attention is drawn on 29.53% teenagers who watch T.V. 2-3 hours every day and other 6.32% who watch it 4-5 hours.At the other end there are 22.78% teenagers who don't watch T.V shows.The calculated differences are statistically significant for a p<0.01 (f=6, χ²=18.666)and the attention is drawn on Grammar School pupils, who spend quite a lot of time in front of the T.V., thus explaining the intensity of fatigue phenomenon present at these teenagers.
The activity on the computer lasts in most cases between 2-3 hours a day (38.81%), which is quite a lot.The attention is drawn on 21.94% pupils who spend 4-5 hours daily on the computer, but also 11.81% teenagers who don't use a computer every day.The calculated differences are statistically insignificant (p <0.05, f=6, χ²=3.914), which highlights a similar interest of the study group pupils for computer activity.

4.Discussion:
Pupils don't go through the scholar period with pleasure and easiness, thus it needs to be studied the scholar adaptation (Buzdugan, 2009;Godeau, Arnaud and Navarro, 2008).For a better scholar adjustment it's important to follow some rules: making a balanced life and study schedule; rest accomplished by keeping to the sleep hours; alternating scholar activities with fun; achieving fulfillment regarding the scholar results (Enăchescu , 2004).For the study group pupils, scholar adaptation is difficult, thus we frequently have to deal with scholar fatigue.The occurrence of this phenomenon is logic for the Sport High school pupils, who, besides their normal scholar activity they have daily practice and, at the end of the week they frequently have sport contests.Also it was expected at the Music High school, where there are rehearsal classes within the timetable and many contests.And yet, the most problems appear at Grammar High school, thus demanding a special attention given to these teenagers.Fatigue disappears after a relaxing and sufficient sleep, but this is quite rarely present at teenagers.They have different interresting activities, thus the time spent sleeping is considered to be wasted.Teenagers often go to bed late and wake up early so their sleepin physiological time is not respected (Jayson,2008).For the questioned pupils, the number of night sleep hours is totally insufficient, thus explaining the occurrence of fatigue during the day or week.The biggest problem appears at Grammar High school pupils, thus we will have to focus more on these teenagers.
A last aspect which needs to be carefully studied is that related to how they spend their free time.The ways which have become so popular in the last decades are represented by television and computer.T.V. has good effects as it broadens the field of knowledge, but it also has negative effects because the pupils passively witness to what happened on the screen (Maillet, 1997).Also, television frequently presents shows full of violence and aggression.There aren't shows adapted for teenagers and this is a negative element (Braconnier , 1999).The results obtained from the pupils of the study group are very similar to those obtained in France in the international investigation from 1998 Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children.The results of this investigation are: absence of watching T.V shows -2.9% pupils, between 30minutes and 1 hour -49.9% teenagers, 2-4 hours daily -39.9% and more than 4 hours -7,4% (Godeau , Dressenand and Navarro, 2000).The results obtained in this study point the existence of a higher percentage of teenagers who don't watch T.V. shows.Grammar High school teenagers spend more time in front of the television, which explains fatigue.The obtained result is not very encouraging because the questioned pupils have too little information about how they should spend their free time.
Free time is frequently spend on the computer.At first the entry of computers in schools was seen as a positive element, opening new possibilities for teenagers to gain information and to communicate (Alexander, 2010).Nowadays the internet network is developing and so are video games.Pupils do their homework on the computer, socialize on the computer and so there is a risk of having to deal with a computer addiction (Braconnier , 1999).For the questioned pupils the calculated differences are statistically insignificant, so they spend quite a similar amount of time on the computer.It doesn't matter if they have homework, practice schedule or musical rehearsals, they still have stime for computer games even if that means not sleeping enough.

5.Conclusions:
The study done on this group of pupils point out a series of results which are not encouraging at all.Fatigue is associated with a reduced number of sleeping hours and an increased number of hours spent in front of the T.V. and especially on the computer.The professional doctors, teachers and family should unite to accomplish an adequate scholar activities and rest timetable for these pupils.Rest means other ways of spending free time such as sport, cinema, reading, music, theatre, going out with friends.If no-one steps in in time, there are great chances for overstressing or pathological fatigues phenomena to occur.

Table I -
Presence of fatigue phenomenon at the questioned students

Table II -
Moment of day and week when fatigue appears

Table III -
Numbers of hours of night sleep for the teenagers of the study group

Table IV -
Presence of afternoon sleep in the pupils' schedule

Table V -
Time teenagers spend watching T.V. or on the computer