Supporting Teachers Working With Children With Attentiondeficit/Hyperactivity Dissorder in the Inclusive Classroom.
Date
2022-12
Authors
Rath, Maria
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Mount Saint Vincent University
Abstract
Students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often present with behavioural, academic, and social difficulties in the school context. Teachers are often not adequately trained to address the varied needs of students with ADHD, which can result in impairment and a lack of support. The purpose of this implementation study was to assess an online intervention designed for use by classroom teachers of students with ADHD. Teachers were recruited from across Canada to participate. 151 teachers were enrolled in this study and as such were given access to the ADHD module of Accessible Strategies Supporting Inclusion for Students by Teachers (ASSIST) and asked to respond to a variety of questionnaires assessing effectiveness, implementation, satisfaction, and possible impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Data was collected using a mixed-methods approach. Descriptive statistics, computer-generated statistics, paired-sample t-tests, and content analyses were used to examine the data using the RE-AIM (reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance) framework. Analysis showed that recruitment resulted in a diverse sample of teachers whose attitudes and beliefs about students with ADHD improved significantly after completing the program. Participants reported being highly satisfied with ASSIST for ADHD but that the COVID-19 pandemic imposed some barriers to the implementation of ASSIST strategies in their classrooms. The results of this study suggest that ASSIST has enormous potential to become an affordable and accessible way to provide teachers with evidence-based strategies for supporting students with ADHD in the inclusive classroom.