FAQ Sheet About Students with ADHD
Source: Pearson Allyn Bacon Prentice Hall
Topics: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), more...
Definitions of ADHD focus on the frequency and severity of problem behaviors and how a person exhibiting these behaviors compares to his or her same-age peers. The table below answers some frequently asked questions on identifying and assessing individuals with ADHD and describes possible outcomes of the condition.
| Who are they? | Children with ADHD manifest "a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that is more frequently displayed and more severe than is typically observed in individuals at a comparable level of development" (APA, 2000, p. 85). |
| What are typical characteristics? | • Impulsivity |
| • Hyperactivity | |
| • Inattention | |
| • Coexisting conduct problems | |
| • Coexisting academic problems | |
| What are the demographics? | • 3 to 7% of school-age children (between 1.9 and 4.5 million students) are identified with ADHD. |
| • Approximately 2 to 4% receive stimulant medication. | |
| • Fewer than 1% are identified under IDEA as other health impaired. | |
| • Approximately 75% are male. | |
| Where are students educated? | • 53% of students identified with ADHD under IDEA spend most of the day in general education classrooms. |
| • Placement settings are similar to those for students with learning disabilities. | |
| How are students identified and assessed for intervention? | • Criteria from DSM-IV-TR are used for identification. |
| • Multiple methods are used to document ADHD, including interviews with parents and teachers, rating scales, and observations in multiple settings. | |
| • Functional behavioral assessments provide the most useful information for instructional and behavioral planning. | |
| What are the outcomes? | • Approximately 30% have no symptoms of ADHD as adults. |
| • Approximately 25% have conduct disorders that continue as adults. | |
| • Approximately 25% develop major depression as adults. |
Excerpt from Special Education for Today's Teachers: An Introduction , by M.S. Rosenberg & D.L. Westling & J. McLeskey, 2008 edition, p. 236.
© 2008, Merrill, an imprint of Pearson Education Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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