Empowering educators: an ADHD toolkit of information and effective strategies for creating inclusive classrooms
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Issue Date
2025
Editor
Authors
Windecker-Frano, Shira
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Subject
Abstract
Research demonstrates that students diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) commonly experience behavioural and academic challenges at school (Johnson & Reid, 2011). Significant executive function deficits result in working memory, cognitive shifting, and inhibition impairments which negatively impact academic and behavioural achievement for students with ADHD. The literature on ADHD suggests that teachers in general education classrooms may lack knowledge about ADHD symptoms specific to classroom learning, and it highlights the need for a targeted intervention tool that contains effective strategies and resources that teachers can use for supporting students with ADHD. This mixed methods study examined what teachers know about ADHD, the strategies that they use to support students with ADHD, and the resources that teachers need to increase academic achievement academic achievement for ADHD learners at school effectively. Thirty teachers from British Columbia participated in this study. They were asked to complete anonymous surveys to assess their ADHD knowledge and self-efficacy supporting students with ADHD in the classroom. Survey results showed gaps in teacher knowledge about classroom symptoms of ADHD and highlighted the need for more classroom support, and practical ADHD strategies that can be implemented as part of a daily teaching practice. This research informed the creation of an ADHD toolkit that contains targeted information about ADHD, practical strategies that can be used in any general education classroom, and additional resources for continued learning about the disorder. Implications for education and recommendations for future research are discussed.