ALTERNATIVE LEARNERS

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Attention Problems

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a common psychiatric condition that occurs in 3 to 9 percent of school-age children.  Youngsters with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder are described as being highly inattentive, hyperactive, or impulsive.  Specific symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder include distractibility, difficulties with behavioral control and problems in concentration.  There are currently four diagnostic categories of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders, and children may display predominant signs of either inattention or hyperactivity in their behavior.  In addition to children who meet the strict criteria for a diagnosis with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, there are many other children who display attention problems and experience many similar difficulties, albeit at a more moderate level.

Attention problems are characterized by deficits in executive functions.  Children with these problems often have difficulties in getting started on tasks or sustaining their attention and effort. They have problems in following directions, keeping things in mind, and managing their time effectively.  They may also experience problems in regulating their feelings, becoming easily frustrated, and giving up reading when a task appears too difficult.  A number of prominent researchers, including Russell Barkley (2006) and Thomas Brown (2006), have begun to describe Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as predominantly a disorder of executive functioning.  These researches have identified issues such as shifting attention, short-term working memory, the ability to inhibit responses and difficulties in guiding behaviors towards the future (planning), as core components of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.  For youngsters with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, the difficulty is not due to a lack of skill, but to problems in their performance of these skills.  The symptoms, which may be commonly seen in other individuals, tend to be chronic and impairing in youngsters with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.  They may be able to perform their executive skills “if they are interested,” which appears to be brain-based, rather than simply motivational.

There are some common interventions for youngsters with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, including the use of stimulant medications to reduce impulsivity and increase focus and attention, the use of salient rewards at the point of performance for appropriate behaviors, and efforts to make tasks more reinforcing and stimulating.  Recommendations for helping youngsters with attention problems  to follow directions effectively include being concise, making eye contact, and requiring children to repeat what they have heard.  Approaches at school might feature arranging for seating close to the teacher, signals to help children get started and sustain effort on tasks, and opportunities for movement and breaks.  Many other strategies for youngsters with attention problems can be viewed in the following links and on our website.

Digital technologies and games to address the symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and other attention problems are quite varied.  Many digital technologies, such as cell phones, iPods, and personal digital assistants, can support and practice organizational skills and time management.  Parents frequently describe their children as being able to sustain their attention and effort while playing video games in a manner that is not seen in other areas of children’s lives.  Games often require children to practice skills such as self-control, planning, and metacognition.  But to generalize the practice of executive functions to the real world, game play must be accompanied by supplemental training activities: see LearningWorks training guides.

The use of working memory training programs, games that require increased processing speed (such as Dance, Dance Revolution and Guitar Hero), and games that focus on step-by-step planning and response inhibition may also be very helpful for youngsters with attention problems. 

Digital Technologies and Strategies:

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders Digital Technology List

• Cogmed Working Memory Training
• Guitar Hero
• Warioware Smooth Moves
• Wii Fitness
• Wii Play
• Brain Age
• Big Brain Academy
• Personal Digital Assistants