1. Understanding learners with ADHD

1.6 Summary of understanding learners with ADHD​​​​​​​

“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid” - Albert Einstein, Time magazine’s Person of the Century, and believed to have ADHD.

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​​​​​​​ADHD impacts 5-6 per cent of the population - about one in 20 New Zealanders, but:

  • each person is affected by ADHD symptoms to varying degrees, and this severity can change over time, and
  • ADHD does not impact the level of intelligence a learner may have because ADHD is not a learning disability, but it can make learning difficult.

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​​​​​​​ADHD is a developmental impairment of the brain’s self-management system, specifically the frontal lobe which is responsible for: 

  • behaviour
  • emotional regulation
  • filtering and controlling attention
  • energy or motor control judgement, and
  • executive functioning - which includes our ability to plan and organise.


There are three predominant presentations of ADHD:

  • ADHD Predominantly Inattentive Presentation
  • ADHD Predominantly Hyperactive and Impulsive Presentation, and
  • ADHD Predominantly Combined Presentation (a combination of the two above).


Poor executive function can result in several academic problems for learners:

  • research shows that learners with ADHD receive lower grades than their peers, and are more likely to withdraw from their lessons, have poor learning habits and have trouble completing tests and assignments on time, and
  • this often results in a higher-than-average risk of dropping out, compared to their peers.




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You may have already seen some of these impairments in action. Presentation of these in action will vary from student to student and can include:

Strengths:

  • leadership,
  • sense of humour,
  • problem-solving,
  • persistence and energy,
  • empathy and sensitivity, or
  • creativity, enterprise and willingness to take risks.

Challenges:

  • impulsively calling out, acting without thinking or talking excessively,
  • grasping and retaining important information,
  • being attentive and organised,
  • settling down to work, or
  • learning routines.

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