Those with ADHD need special approach

Teachers and parents need to learn new methods to help children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, declares a researcher from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.

"Fads and how-to lists are more prevalent than methods based on educational research," contends Sydney S. Zentall, professor of special education and psychological sciences and author of ADHD and Education: Foundations, Characteristics, Methods and Collaboration. "Because students who have ADHD spend the majority of their time in general educational settings, it's critical to get scientific information to the people who are going to help them learn how to live in society."

ADHD has three main symptoms: inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, and may be displayed in the form of fidgeting, failing to pay attention, or misbehaving. These youngsters are more sensitive to the loss of stimulation and get bored easily, Zentall explains. "These are children with invisible disabilities. They look like normal children, but often don't have adaptive mechanisms. Teachers need to learn how to show these students ways to get stimulated in more appropriate ways."

Part of the reason for the scarcity of information on ADHD in textbooks is that it had not been categorized as a disability in special education until recently, which limits the amount of funding given to research in the area. Because of the gap in data, teachers have had to rely on treatments from research on learning or behavioral disabilities that might not address the particular academic problems of students with ADHD.

"When people observe a child with ADHD, they might be prone to blame the behavior on bad parenting," Zentall notes. "We want to help them see that there's potential for people with these characteristics, and we can start with educational options first."

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