Learning About Disabilities: Information on Attention Deficit Disorders
ADHD is the full name of the disorders of attention and/or hyperactivity commonly known as ADD. ADHD encompasses three sub-types: combined type, inattentive type, and hyperactive-impulsive type. ADHD is usually first diagnosed in childhood or adolescence, however, the symptoms were likely present from the age of 7 or younger. Symptoms also typically persist into and throughout adulthood. Person's with ADHD can be highly distractible and can even distract themselves with their own thoughts. They often have difficulty paying attention for sustained periods of time. They may consistently act impulsively. Others with ADHD will be hyperactive.
Persons with ADHD often:
- Cannot sit still (fidget, tap fingers or feet)
- Cannot concentrate or are disorganized
- Leave projects/tasks incomplete
- Do not attend to details
- Talk excessively or interrupt
- Have average or above intelligence
- Are distracted by things others find easy to ignore
- Daydream (get distracted by their own thoughts)
- Are artistic/creative
- Cannot shift focus once they have achieved it
Treatment
Most professionals will agree that the best treatment for people with ADHD is a combination of medication and behavior modification.
There are now a plethora of medications used to treat ADHD. The majority of these are stimulants which change the way the brain utilizes its own neurotransmitters. Other medications which have also been found helpful are anti-depressants, anti-hypertensive and anti-anxiety drugs.
Behavior modification is a system in which the person develops routines which help to keep the person organized.
Academic Adjustments and Services
Extended time on tests can be essential to the student with ADHD who is easily distracted or cannot concentrate. It will simply take this person longer to complete a test because he or she will spend some of the testing time distracted by his or her own thoughts or small disturbances around him or her.
Reduced distraction setting for tests can also help the student with ADHD to sustain concentration on the test. A student who reads and thinks aloud may need to test alone.
Books in an alternate format may also assist the student with ADHD to attend to assigned readings. If a student with ADHD listens to a book or assigned reading while simultaneously reading it, concentration and comprehension can be improved.
A peer's notes can be used to supplement the student's own notes. This is helpful because students with ADHD have a difficult time sustaining their attention and may miss parts of the lecture. Any outlines, charts, graphs, or notes a professor can provide are also helpful.
"Check-ins" with a member of the Disability Resources staff, a parent, or a faculty advisor can also help the student with ADHD. Reviewing what assignments are due or overdue, what assignments or exams are coming-up, and discussing how the student is spending his or her time can assist a student with ADHD to stay organized and to plan for the future.
Cues in class can also be helpful to the student with ADHD. Varying tone of voice, tapping on a desk, proximity to the student, and possibly even touching the student on the shoulder can draw the student's attention back to the class lecture/discussion. These cues should be worked out privately between the student and the professor. Cues are obviously not as easily utilized in large classes held in a lecture hall as they are in a regular classroom.