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Articulo Executive Function & School Success
Articulo Executive Function & School Success
Articulo Executive Function & School Success
addrc@mail.com
Lets take a more in-depth look at just one element of executive functions deficits in working memory and
recalland their impact on school work.
Poor Working Memory and Recall
Deficits in working memory and recall negatively affect these students in several areas:
1. The here and now: Our children have limited working memory capacity that often impacts their behavior at
home and in the classroom:
- remembering and following instructions.
- memorizing math facts, spelling words, and dates.
- performing mental computation such as math in ones head.
- completing complex math problems (algebra)
- remembering one part of an assignment while working on another segment.
- paraphrasing or summarizing.
- organizing and writing essays.
2. Sense of past events: Because our students have difficulty recalling the past, they have limited hindsight; in
other words, they dont learn easily from past behavior. This may help explain why our children often repeat
misbehavior.
3. Sense of time: Many students with ADHD also have difficulty holding events in mind and using their sense of
time to prepare for upcoming events and the future. Consequently, they have difficulty judging the passage of time
accurately. Practically speaking, they dont accurately estimate how much time it will take to finish a task, thus
they may not allow enough time to complete the work.
4. Sense of self-awareness: As a result of their diminished self-awareness, these students dont easily examine or
change their own behavior. Perhaps this explains why they often are unaware of behaviors that may alienate
friends.
5. Sense of the future: Most students with a working memory deficit focus on the here and now and are less likely
to talk about time or plan for the future. Thus, they have limited foresight; in other words, they have difficulty
projecting lessons learned in the past, forward into the future. Not surprisingly, they have difficulty preparing for
the future.
Common Academic Problems Linked to ADHD and Executive Function Deficits
Many students with ADHD have impaired working memory and some also have slow processing speed,
which are critical elements of executive function. Not surprisingly, these skills are critical for writing essays and
working math problems.
A research study by Mayes and Calhoun has identified written expression as the most common learning
problem among students with ADHD (65 percent). Consequently, writing essays, drafting book reports or
answering questions on tests or homework is often very challenging. For example, when writing essays, students
often have difficulty holding ideas in mind, acting upon and organizing the ideas, quickly retrieving grammar,
spelling and punctuation rules from long-term memory, manipulating all this information, remembering ideas to
write down, organizing the material in a logical sequence, and then reviewing and correcting errors.
Since learning is relatively easy for most of us, sometimes we forget just how complex seemingly simple tasks
such as memorizing multiplication tables or working a math problem really are. For example, when a student
works on a math problem, he must fluidly move back and forth between analytical skills and several levels of
memory (working, short-term, and long-term memory). With word problems, he must hold several numbers and
questions in mind while he decides how to work a problem. Next he must delve into long-term memory to find the
correct math rule to use for the problem. Then he must hold important facts in mind while he applies the rules and
shifts information back and forth between working and short-term memory to work the problem and determine the
answer.
To further complicate matters, other serious conditions may co-occur with ADHD. According to a
landmark National Institute of Mental Health study on ADHD (known as the MTA), two-thirds of children with
ADHD have at least one other coexisting problem, such as depression or anxiety. Accommodating students
with complex cases of ADHD is critical! These children are at greater risk than their peers for a multitude of school
problems, for example, failing a grade, skipping school, being suspended or expelled, and sometimes, dropping out
of school and not going to college.
Favorite School Success Strategies
Over the years I have identified several teaching strategies and accommodations that work well for students with
ADHD. So here are just a few of my favorite tips:
than just a simple case of hyperactivity. When deficits in executive function and related learning problems are also
present, students can try their very best and still not succeed in school!!
So what should parents and teachers do with this new information? Identify:
1) the students specific learning problems (e.g. written expression or math) and
2) their executive function deficits (e.g. working memory, disorganization, forgetfulness, or impaired sense of time)
and provide accommodations in both areas!
I leave you with this food for thought, Succeeding in school is one of the most therapeutic things that
can happen to a child!! So do whatever it takes to help the child succeed in school.
A Personal Comment: Our youngest son, Alex, struggled terribly throughout his high school and college years
with ADHD and executive function issues. Were proud that he beat the odds and graduated from college. So if
your child is struggling in school, do not give up. My family offers living proof that there is hope and help for
ADHD and coexisting conditions.
Please visit my website www.chrisdendy. com to learn more about my family and how we have coped
with ADHD. Several helpful articles are also available for you to download and share with friends. Best wishes for
school success to you, your children and students with attention deficits!!
References:
Barkley, Russell A. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, (3rd ed.) New York: The Guilford Press, 2006.
Brown, Thomas E. Attention Deficit Disorders and Comorbidities in Children, Adolescents, and Adults. Washington, DC:
American Psychiatric Press, 2000.
Dendy, Chris A. Zeigler Teaching Teens with ADD and ADHD (Summary 28). Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, 2000
Dendy, Chris A. Zeigler Teenagers with ADD, (2nd ed.) Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, 2006.
Deschler, Donald D., Edwin S. Ellis, and B. Keith Lenz Teaching Adolescents with Learning Disabilities. Denver, CO: Love
Publishing Company, 1996.
Levine, Mel Educational Care.(2nd ed.) Cambridge, MA: Educators Publishing Service, 2002.
Mayes Susan D. and Susan Calhoun Prevalence and Degree of Attention and Learning Problems in ADHD and LD. ADHD
Reports, v.8, n.2, April 2000.
Chris Dendy has over 40 years experience as a teacher, school psychologist, mental health counselor and
administrator plus perhaps more importantly, she is the mother of two grown sons and a daughter with
ADHD. Ms. Dendy is the author of three popular books on ADHD and producer of three videos, Teen to
Teen: the ADD Experience and Father to Father. A new DVD for children and teens, Real Life ADHD,
featuring 30 teens is currently in production. She and her son Alex coauthored a book specifically for
teenagers: A Birds-Eye View of Life with ADD and ADHD: Advice from Young Survivors. She and her
husband are members of CHADDs Presidents Council. She served on the national CHADD Board of
Directors from 2001-2005. She was inducted into the CHADD Hall of Fame for outstanding
contributions to the field.