Diagnostic+and+Assessment+Strategies+for+ADHD+Students

Diagnostic and Assessment Strategies for ADHD Students By Natalie Muus In the classroom, the Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) child has many different challenges. The article, “ADHD in the Classroom: Effective Intervention Strategies”, states that students with this special need are defined as being “characterized by pervasive and developmentally inappropriate difficulties with attention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity”, as well as being associated with “a number of behavior difficulties such as aggression and noncompliance” (DuPaul, Weyandt, & Janusis, 2011). Because of these obstacles, ADHD students are likely to have “poorer grades, lower scores on standardized tests, greater likelihood of identification for special education, and an increased use of school-based services” (DuPaul et al., 2011). There are a variety of interventions for helping children with this special need, including ways to make accommodations in diagnostic and assessment strategies. When thinking about assessments, an educator must take into account all of the different things that the student deals with, not merely academic but behavioral issues, as well. While the most common intervention is the use of psychotropic medication, this method does not fully treat all the different struggles an ADHD sufferer must face. Other approaches must be utilized.

Addressing behavior is only one facet of helping an ADHD child succeed. Both antecedent-based and consequence-based strategies will be of benefit in this area. DuPaul et al. (2011) list antecedent-based interventions as effective to “try to prevent inattentive and disruptive behaviors from occurring.” Some of the ideas include making sure that classroom rules are few in number, simply stated, positively presented, explicitly explained, prominently posted, routinely reviewed, and consistently carried out. To further this concept, ADHD children may need the rules displayed very close to them, like laminated and taped on their desk. Teachers should highly praise appropriate behavior, especially when demonstrated by the ADHD child. Another good idea is to change how long assignments or assessments are. When you limit the work, whether in time or amount, to match the attention span of the student, you can help them achieve more easily. Then the workload can be increased gradually depending on the student’s improvement. When this method is paired with teacher praise upon the completion of the task, it is especially effective. Giving the student choices about assignments is another valuable technique. Because they are provided with options, children are usually more engaged in the task since they had a degree of preference in the learning process. Planning ahead will lead to fewer disruptive behaviors in the classroom. “Consequence-based strategies involve manipulating environmental events following a specific behavior” (DuPaul et al., 2011). This includes positive reinforcement, like teacher praise or the giving of tokens for desired behavior, and response cost, when something is taken away because of undesired behavior. If a teacher uses positive reinforcement, it should be frequent, individualized, varied, and as immediate as possible (DuPaul et al., 2011). For response cost, linking it to a reinforcement system is the most productive way to put it into practice. Implementing a combination of antecedent- and consequence-based policies will help ADHD students with their behavior in class, which will help them learn content material better. When students know what is expected, they can more easily monitor their actions.

The article declares, “Self-management (or self-regulation) interventions encourage students with ADHD to monitor, evaluate, and/or reinforce their own behaviors” (DuPaul et al., 2011). One of the reasons this type of strategy works well is that it specifically targets the difficulty ADHD children have with delayed appropriate responses. Students can rate their behavior on a scale of one to five, teachers will do the same, and then the two evaluations are compared. If they are very similar, the student is accurately assessing their own behavior. The more precise the student is in matching the score to the teacher’s, the more they are learning to identify to desired behaviors. Eventually, the goal is to use only the student’s self-evaluations. Besides behaviors in class, this approach can also be applied to things like being prepared for class with supplies or homework. Working on behavior and metacognition can lead to improved academics because more focus can be placed on content material rather than on avoiding disruptions.

To increase subject-matter acquisition, there are a variety of tactics to take. For one thing, teachers can directly teach important skills, like note taking, that are related to aiding the learning process. Using different mediums can also be beneficial, such as computer work instead of written work. Peer tutoring is another option that is valuable for all students. When it comes to testing what the ADHD student has learned about content material, many accommodations can be made.

//StatsSheet.com// gives some practical advice when assessing ADHD children. Like DuPaul et al., the website advocates shortening tests to meet the attention spans of the students. This may mean limiting the number of questions asked by focusing the test on only the key elements and concepts. Another alternative could be to give short quizzes more frequently instead of a single, long test. Using color or underlining to highlight important information will also assist in keeping the students on task. ADHD students may benefit from taking the assessment in a different environment with fewer distractions, or maybe an aide could proctor the test in another room while the rest of the class is taking the assessment. All of these changes still require the ADHD student to demonstrate his or her mastery of the subject, but in a way that allows him or her to best succeed. Many different strategies need to be implemented to help a child with ADHD achieve behaviorally and academically.

Both the article, “ADHD in the Classroom: Effective Intervention Strategies”, and the website, //StatsSheet.com//, offer practical and effectual ideas to help ADHD students at school. The approaches outlined address conduct and scholarship because they both influence each other. Using all of the plans listed in conjunction with one another can be of great value for those students who struggle with this special need. Altogether, the implementation of a variety of methods will best support the child with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in order to facilitate their advancement in school.

References Cowan, D. (n.d.) Teacher tips: Giving tests to ADHD students. Retrieved from http://www.statssheet.com/articles/article42800.html StatsSheet.com

DuPaul, G. J., Weyandt, L. L., & Janusis, G. M. (2011). ADHD in the classroom: Effective intervention strategies. //Theory into Practice, 50 (1), 35-42.// doi: 10.1080/00405841.2011.534935 ADHD in the Classroom: Effective Intervention Strategies