Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: ADHD
Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has been characterized by Barkley (1998) to involve two sets of symptoms: inattention and a combination of hyperactive and impulsive behaviors. Boys are at least three times as likely as girls to develop the disorder, and the behavior patterns that typify ADHD usually arise between the ages of three and five, although age of onset can vary widely with some children not demonstrating symptoms until late childhood or even early adolescence. Barkley (1998) notes further that many studies estimate that between 2 and 9.5 percent of all school-aged children worldwide have ADHD, thus indicating the severity and extent of the problem and inferring its significance for educators, psychologists, social workers, parents, and other caregivers responsible for overseeing the development of children.
The effectiveness of classroom management techniques and strategies for teaching children with ADHD is critical in helping manage the disorder in a way that does not impact development. Such strategies are important as Barkley (1998) has pointed out because most researchers who have studied this condition and who regard it as a failure of behavioral inhibition that delays the ability to privatize and execute four executive mental functions (i.e., working memory, private speech, emotional control, and creativity) support the theory that children with ADHD might be helped by a structured environment.
Barkley (1998) is one psychologist who also recommends the use of drugs such as Ritalin in conjunction with parental and teacher training in management of behavioral problems of children with ADHD and suggests that some children may benefit from placement in special education programs. However, as Kotkin (1998) has commented, many children with ADHD do not receive pharmacotherapy and are placed in inclusive as opposed to segregated educational se...