AD/HD Awareness Month is celebrated every October, with events and activities happening all across the country and now, around the world.
AD/HD is a neurodevelopmental condition that begins in childhood and can continue across the lifespan. It is characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. Three types of AD/HD can be diagnosed through behavioural analysis, as an inattentive type, a combined type and a hyperactive/impulsive type. The type of AD/HD diagnosed depends on the most predominate set of symptoms.
Inattentive behaviours can include:
Hyperactive behaviours can include:
Impulsive behaviours can include:
The Australia Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing (2014) found AD/HD to be the most commonly diagnosed mental disorder of childhood with 7.4 per cent of all children and adolescents diagnosed. This equates to 312,000 children based on the 2015 population.
Boys are more likely to be diagnosed than girls with a ratio of 4:1.
Many children with AD/HD experience executive functioning difficulties that impact their learning and behaviour at school. Children with AD/HD are often poorly organised, unable to sustain attention, find it difficult to stay motivated, are slow to finish tasks, have problems listening to instructions and have poor self-awareness. They struggle in both the classroom and the playground.
It is well known that school is a difficult place for children with AD/HD. Children with AD/HD tend to underachieve, have learning difficulties, are more likely to have school suspensions and suffer from low self-esteem.
It can be very difficult for teachers to differentiate AD/HD symptoms from poor behaviour. Inattention can look like refusal to listen, restlessness can be irritating to peers and impulsivity can cause conflict in playground games. The problem can be summed up by the phrase "won't he or can't he?" i.e. should the child be punished for poor behaviour or supported because they are struggling as a result of a disability.
It is well established that suspension, expulsion or exclusion from school is not effective in changing a student’s behaviour. Instead, teachers and schools should look at promoting positive behaviours in order to improve the behaviour of students with AD/HD in their classrooms.
Most children with AD/HD require classroom and playground accommodations to function optimally. A well devised Individualised Education Plan can be helpful – the keys to success are providing more structure, routine and clear boundaries.
Young people with AD/HD can need more support with self-management and organisation, and can often have difficulty with social situations. Teachers should aim to control the delivery of their message to include peer or role modelling as well as low expressed emotion. Any strategy should avoid setting the young person with AD/HD up to fail, but instead should seek to engage before directing the young person.
Some practical teaching and learning strategies include:
Teachers with students who have AD/HD should set clear rules and expectations and be generous with strategic praise. Students with AD/HD deserve praise for achieving seemingly simple things other children can do without much effort, e.g. staying in their seat or putting up their hand before speaking. Positive attention and reinforcement, in turn, promote positive behaviour.
For further information on managing AD/HD in the classroom, please visit our website www.adhdaustralia.org.au.