Fred is a student in my class who has shown characteristics of frequent inattentive, submitting incomplete work as well as answers he does complete are correct. He also talks out of turn, interrupts other students when they talk, and sometimes offers rude comments. Even though, I send him to the principal’s office, it does not seem to help. To help accommodate Fred in the classroom, I must first go back to my knowledge from my ED543 Educational and Psychology of Exceptional Children class to link his behavior to how, when, and why Fred is inattentive, impulsive and hyperactive. By identify and assessing his behaviors, I will be able to select different educational practices associated with academic instruction, behavioral interventions, and classroom accommodations that appropriately meet Fred’s needs.
The psychological characteristics associated with Fred’s behavior have pointed to current research that supports the idea of two distinct characteristics of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical research, to be diagnosed with ADHD a child must display at least six of the characteristics of either Inattention or Hyperactivity-Impulsivity. Children who exhibit characteristics of Inattention typically demonstrate difficulty responding to direction, participating in organized tasks, and neglect to complete assignments that have been given to them at school or at home (2008). They are also prone to make careless mistakes in their schoolwork. Another symptom of inattention is the high susceptibility to boredom and distraction (2008).
Children who exhibit the characteristics of Hyperactivity demonstrates the inability to sit stil...
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...uired to make innumerable decisions regarding the delivery of instruction. Teachers’ beliefs and their work contexts are the two key factors influencing how teachers make decisions. Teachers’ work contexts also consist of social pressures on teachers’ decisions, for example, through IEP teams, and interactions with parents and colleagues. Students also provide a context, because each student brings a unique set of circumstances that teachers must consider when devising curriculum. These multiple contextual factors of teachers’ work interact with their beliefs when making decisions for their students.
Teachers use their professional knowledge and beliefs to select and adapt practices to meet the needs of their students, integrate the practices with the characteristics of the particular learning environment, and tailor them to their personal strengths as a teacher.
Many psychologists regard ADHD as a state deficit, where children are highly aroused to compensate for the body’s feeling of under arousal. (Kerns, Eso, Thomson, 1999) Three main features of ADHD are 1.Impulsivity, the children often act before they consider consequences 2.Hyperactivity, the children struggle to sit still 3.Inattentiveness, the children have difficulty focusing on a subject because of the overload of stimuli in the environment. Research may indicate that ADHD has biological origins and set symptoms, such as fidgeting, excessive talking, difficulty maintaining concentration, impulsive behavior, lack of focus and messiness. (http://www.mnsi.net/~collinsw/ritalin.htm) According to the Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology, in a recent conference held by the NIMH, National Institute of Mental Health, the validity of the diagnosis of ADHD was held in question. (www.breggin.com) The cause of ADHD is unknown as of yet, and speculation is all psychologists have to diagnose and treat patients. The DSM-IV has categorized ADHD by the three dimensions listed above and included 18 symptoms under the three categories, which include some listed above. ADHD has undergone significant renaming and evaluation since the last publication of the Diagnostic Statistic Manual. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity, was referred to as ADD or sometimes ADD-H, Attention Deficit Disorder with hyperactivity. (www.journals.cup.org)
Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), once called hyperkinesis or minimal brain dysfunction, is one of the most common mental disorders among children. (Elia, Ambrosini, Rapoport, 1999) It affects 3 to 5 percent of all children, with approximately 60% to 80% of these children experiencing persistence of symptoms into adolescence and adulthood, causing a lifetime of frustrated dreams and emotional pain. There are two types of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: an inattentive type and a combined type. The symptoms of ADHD can be classified into three categories: inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. This behaviour stops ADHD sufferers from focussing deliberately on organising and completing a specific task that they may not enjoy, learning new skills or information is proved to be impossible. An example of such behaviour is recognised by the report written by the National Institute of Mental Health where one of the subjects under study was unable to pass schooling examinations due to her inattentive behaviour. Such behaviour can damage the person's relationships with others in addition to disrupting their daily life, consuming energy, and diminishing self-esteem. (National Institute of Mental Health 1999) There are also secondary symptoms which are associated with ADHD, such as learning disorders, anxiety, depression and other mood disorders, tic disorders, and conduct disorders. (Spencer, Biederman, and Wilens 1999 in Monastra V, Monastra D, George, 2002)
The ADHD Rating Scale-IV is designed to be used with children ages 5 to 18 and consists of scales for the Home and School. The Home version is also available in Spanish. The scales are rated according to symptom frequency on a 4-point scale of 9 to 3 (never or rarely) to (very often) and each has 18 items. The checklists are designed to be completed by parents and teachers who have observed the child for six months. Divided across four age groups, the scores are reported as percentile ranks separately for boys and girls. The breakdown of age groups is from 5-7, 8-10, 11-13, and 14-18 for both the Home and School version. The rating scales produce three scores: Inattention (IA), Hyperactivity-Impulsivity (HI), and total. According to Lindskog (1998), “On both forms, the Inattention scale consists of the 9 odd-numbered items, and the Hyperactivity-Impulsivity scale consists of the 9 even-numbered items, which are alternated to reduce response bias.” It is notable that the reviewer states the ADHD Rating Scale-IV is not intended to be used alone in ADHD diagnosis, but rather should be used with other more comprehensive sources such as diagnostic interviews, behavioral observations, and behavior ratings (Lindskog, 1998).
ADHD is a condition that makes it difficult for children and adults to pay attention, control their activity level and limit their behavior in age appropriate ways (2). Inattention is the most common symptom. In addition to having difficulty paying attention, people with this ADHD symptom often are unable to consistently focus, remember, and organize. They may be careless and have a hard time starting and completing tasks that are boring, repetitive, or challenging., impulsiveness and hyperactivity. With impulsivity, people who frequently act before thinking may not make sound judgments or solve problems well. They may also have trouble developing and maintaining personal relationships. An adult may not keep the same job for long or spend money wisely. A hyperactive child may squirm, fidget, and climb or run when it is not appropriate. These children often have difficulty playing with others. They may talk a great deal and not be able to sit still for even a short time. Teenagers and adults who are hyperactiv...
Typically when one hears the term “ADHD” and the potential negative effects that it could have on someone striving towards academic success, they immediately think school age children. Though it is more common for children to be diagnosed and treated, 5% of U.S. adults are living with this condition (American Psychiatric Association, 2012). First ADHD must be defined before coping methods can be explained. ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder is a diagnosis applied to children and adults who consistently display certain characteristic behaviors such as distractibility (poor sustained attention to tasks), impulsivity (impaired impulse control and delayed gratification), and hyperactivity (excessive activity and physical restlessness) (Jaksa, 1998). These are signs that will normally be identified by the child’s educator. Signs and/or symptoms could present themselves differently in adults and affect different aspects of their daily lives.
While the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (DSM-IV) of the American Psychiatric Association) put forth a list of behaviors which predominantly fall in the category of ADD and/or ADHD, many researchers still maintain that there is no set way to diagnosis or develop a treatment program to these disorders which will be guaranteed to work. At the same time there is another set of researchers who maintain that these disorders actually do not exist at all. However, in the real world, parents and educators still continue to struggle with the task of coping with children who are hyperactive and who have very low attention span and whose behavior often interferes with schooling and family life. [Armstrong, 1997]
Attention-deficit hyperactivity (ADHD) is a prevalent disorder in which individuals display difficulty with attention and/or impulse control and hyperactive behavior relative to most individuals of the same age and gender (Barkley & Mash, 2009). Also known to be prevalent in conjunction with ADHD are significant deficits in many areas including educational, family and peer relationships. In order to diagnose a child with ADHD they must exhibit a number of inattentive, impulsive and hyperactive behaviors over a period of 6 months, which should be present in school and at home, and which significantly impair daily functioning (Daley & Birchwood, 2010). Evaluation for ADHD can provide a clear understanding of the functional impairment and a sound basis for initiating treatment, including which problems to prioritize. ADHD is most commonly treated with medication, classroom behavior interventions and parent training (Barkley & Mash, 2009).
Bibliography Baliey, W.J. Attention Deficit Disorder. 9 May 1997. Online Internet. 10 November 2000. http://www.execpc.com/~calliope/ Clark, C.G. Children Who Can’t Pay Attention. 5 October 1998. Online Internet. 10 November 2000. http://www.aacap.org/publications/factsfam/noattent.htm Hallahan, Daniel & Kuaffman, James. Exceptional Child. 1999. Online Internet. 10 November 2000. http://borntoexplore.org/ Hallowell, Edward M. & Ratley, John J. Driven to Distraction. 13 April 1997. Online Internet. 10 November 2000. http://www.livingwithadd.com/ Wender, Pual H. M.D. The Hyperactive Child, Adolescent, and Adult. 15 November 1998. Online Interent. 10 November 2000. http://www.attn-deficit-disorder.com/ Weiss, Lynn M.D. Attention Deficit Disorder in Adults. 4 January 1999. Online Interent. 10 November 2000. http://www.mentalhealth.com/dis/p20-ch01.html
The current diagnostic criterion for ADHD primarily focuses on significant hyperactivity and inattention. Aside from those two, in order for a child to be diagnosed with ADHD the DSM-IV says symptoms must show begin to show before the age of seven, show impairment in two or more settings, the impairment must be clinically significant or affect academic functioning, and the symptoms cannot be explained by another mental disorder (Weis, 2008). Since children may show symptoms of ADHD, but some symptoms may not be as significant as others, the DSM-IV classifies three subtypes of ADHD that are used for diagnosing patients (Mattox, 2007). The first type is ADHD Combined Type (ADHD/C). Children diagnosed with this type show definite hyperactivity and impulsivity, as well as inattentiveness. The other two subtypes are ADHD Predominately Hyperactive-Impulsive (ADHD/HI) and ADHD Predominately Inattentive Type (ADHD/I). When children are diagnosed with one of these, they show a greater amount of symptoms regarding either hyperactivity or inattention but not both. Therefore, it is possible for children to be diagnosed with ADHD and show very minimal signs of hyperactivity. Weis (2008) suggests that children like this are described as having a sluggish cognitive tempo. In ot...
In 1902, a physician by the name of Sir George F. published a series of lectures to the Royal College of Physicians in England in which he described a group of impulsive children with significant behavioral problems, caused by a genetic dysfunction and not by poor child rearing?children who today would be easily recognized as having ADHD (NIMH 1). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder or (ADHD) is a developmental disorder characterized by distractibility, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and an inability to remain focused on tasks or activities. ADHD afflicts an estimated 3-9% of children, with symptoms usually appearing by the age of seven. Some key characteristics of the disorder include a person who:
Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is very commonly known. Today, ADHD is one of the most common mental disorders among children. The NIMH (The national institute of mental health) predicts that it affecting 3 to 5 percent of all children(AACAP), with an approximate amount of 30% to 65% of these children experiencing persistence of symptoms into adolescence and adulthood (AACAP).There are three types of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; Predominantly Hyperactive-Impulsive Type, Predominantly Inattentive Type, and Combination Type(ehow.com). The symptoms of ADHD can be classified into three main categories; hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsivity. These behaviors can interfere with ADHD sufferers’ ability to focus deliberately on organizing and completing a specific task that they may not enjoy. A case of this kind of behavior is recognized in a report written by the National Institute of Mental Health where one of the subjects under study was unable to pass schooling examinations due to her inattentive behavior (clinicaltrials.gov) These kinds of behaviors can damage the person's relationships with others in addition to disrupting their daily life, consuming energy, and diminishing self-esteem, depending on severity of their symptoms (adhd.com). In this paper, the multiple factors of how ADHD affects, and is handled, of those who undergo this disorder, are shown.
From the day I entered kindergarten class at the age of five my accomplishments in school have been tainted by behavioral problems. Every week my mother would inevitably receive calls from teachers and principals complaining about my inattentiveness and hyperactivity in the classroom. I never had a problem with the work and I was always one of the smartest students in my class so my parents just assumed that I was a rambunctious child. My parents completely subscribed to the belief that “boys will be boys” and although I certainly was reprimanded for my behavior, the last thing to have crossed my parents’ mind was that this type of behavior was a symptom of a disorder. The disorder I am referring to is called Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Approximately fifteen million Americans suffer from this disorder yet around the country there are probably thousands of people, just like my parents, who fail to recognize or seek help regarding cases of ADHD. The problem lies in the ignorance of the population. ADHD has dramatic cognitive and behavioral effects on children and without awareness of the symptoms of ADHD, parents, teachers, and students alike are left without the necessary tools and strategies to raise and educate children inhibited by the disorder. To promote awareness, this paper will attempt to shed light on how to recognize Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in young children in order to create strategies to help optimize the time children spend on their studies so they can realize their potential as students.
There has been an ongoing debate about whether the mental disorder ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) is over-diagnosed. ADHD is commonly diagnosed in people, more specifically children, who lack the ability to pay attention, are often disruptive, are hyperactive, and impulsive. A medical personnel or a psychologist diagnoses the children using a list of criteria. It is only in recent years that doctors have begun researching better and more effective ways to diagnosis patients using brain scans. It is because of this, that ADHD is over-diagnosed for several reasons: the different personalities that children can exhibit; parents not taking responsibility as parents; and the lack of proper ways to identify ADHD.
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity is a childhood neurodevelopmental disorder defined as a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity/impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development. Inattention is viewed as an inability to sustain focus, being disorganized, and lacking persistence. Hyperactivity is described as excessive motor activity, such as running around and climbing on things, as well as extreme fidgeting and talking. Impulsivity refers to acting hastily and without thought, which can be seen in interrupting others, intruding into others’ activities, and an inability to wait one’s turn. These inattention and/or hyperactive/impulsive behaviors are inconsistent with age or developmental level and can be seen across settings. Although ADHD begins in childhood, it often carries over into adulthood. This results in social, academic and occupational functioning impairments.
Attention deficit disorder (ADD) can be defined as the inability to control one's attention at an appropriate developmental level. Students with ADD often have difficulty organizing tasks and activities, are often easily distracted by extraneous stimulants, and often avoid dislikes, or are reluctant to engage in assignments that require sustained mental effort such as school assignments or homework. ADD is commonly accompanied by hyperactivity disorder which is defined as impulsive and /or hyperactive behaviors that are maladaptive and inconsistent with appropriate ...