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Aiden Frantz

Professor Porter

ENG 1201

27 March 2022

Research Essay

Branden, a high school student, plays with a little ball of paper he has rolled up in

his hands. He was supposed to be taking notes but he was a bit more fidgety today than

usual. He hates when he gets this way. Nothing can stop him from shaking his leg and

playing with that crumpled piece of paper. Branden has trouble with school, and it

causes him to feel down at times. He resents going to school because of how hard it is

for him to pay attention to the rambling teacher presenting the notes on the whiteboard.

No matter how hard he tries to focus, there are a million things racing in his head.

Branden has what many people know as ADHD. He is one of the 8-9 million people that

struggle with this disorder. More importantly, between three and five percent of this

population are young students (Tratchenburg). He would move from class to class trying

to focus on the teacher. In the first period of the day it was the ball of paper. In his

second period it was the ticking of the clock. In his third period he began to count the

number of specks on the ceiling. This cycle continued throughout the school day and

would affect his home life just the same. Branden was stressed about his homework

because he knew every time he started it, something would distract him. Why does

ADHD affect his life so much? How does it affect students' lives besides himself? ADHD

negatively impacts students’ performance in the classroom, and at home.

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Throughout history, there have been many different causes of why students

struggle with school and home experiences. ADHD is one of the main probable factors

for some children and some young adults in school. First off, ADHD stands for Attention

Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. This is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that is

diagnosed usually in the earlier years of people's lives. ADHD was first mentioned in the

early years of the 1900s when people started to realize a change in the way people

learned. British pediatrician Sir George Frederic founded and described the

abnormalities from this disease in some children that could not control their behaviors in

normal everyday situations. Although anyone can have ADHD, studies throughout

history have shown that boys are most likely to be diagnosed. One study concluded that

there are more than twice as many boys who are diagnosed with ADHD compared to

girls (The History of ADHD: A Timeline). Even though the population of ADHD is mostly

made up of boys, this does not mean females are vulnerable to ADHD. This means that

females are usually underdiagnosed mainly because of differences in symptoms and an

unequal focus of males in research. In the rise of the 1960s, the American Psychiatric

Association (APA) finally recognized ADHD to be a mental disorder. It was then

recognized in the 1980s to be ADHD. The more studies conducted on ADHD, the more

it became prevalent to society. In the 1990s there was a climb in diagnosed patients

with ADHD. This was not necessarily because more children were being born with it, but

more so because doctors could diagnose it much more efficiently in children. The more

the study on ADHD grew, scientists created a new disorder that was once named DSM

then to hyperkinetic disorder now known as ADD. This stands for Attention Deficit

Disorder. Scientists found that there are different diagnoses of ADD: those with
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hyperactivity and those without. ADD and ADHD both have a short, but seemingly long

history behind them as scientists are still in continuance of new findings. This is such a

crucial topic since ADHD can be threatening to a child's career from when they start

kindergarten, to when they are in college. Certain issues that children face today is how

ADHD affects students’ lives and their performance in the classroom. ADHD negatively

impacts students’ performances while in the classroom and at home in many different

ways.

First, we need to understand the main factors to why ADHD affects students in

the classroom. ADHD affects a student’s ability to focus, listen, pay attention, and their

effort on schoolwork. It can also make a student more fidgety or hyperactive. This

makes it difficult for a student in school to concentrate on what they are learning and

learn the different skills that are needed to accomplish their goals (“ADHD and School”).

Psychiatrist Shirin Hasan explains ADHD and how to help against it in school. “ADHD

also can make a student fidgety, restless, talk too much, or disrupt the class. Kids with

ADHD might also have learning disabilities that cause them to have problems in

school”(Hasan). There are also potential solutions or helpful techniques for students

with ADHD. Parents and students can set up an individual education program (IEP) or

another plan, called a 504 plan, which provides students with services that are flexible

to the different learning styles. These plans can include extra or special instructions,

positive feedback, extra time on tests, the use of technology for assistance, extra

breaks or time to move around, special environments to limit distractions, and help with

staying organized (ADHD in the Classroom - CDC). These accommodations can help a

student that struggles with ADHD excel in the classroom at their own pace. It also can
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help a student with ADHD not feel like they are in a stressful situation. Being in a

classroom can stress people out and give them anxiety. These extra accommodations

provide students the chance to be with an instructor one on one to help minimize the

student’s struggles. Overall, these certain accommodations can positively help a

student with ADHD be successful in the classroom by creating new techniques and

learning skills.

ADHD can negatively affect students’ performance in the classroom and at home

by affecting their social skills, behavioral problems, and academic performance. This

disorder also constitutes a developmental risk. This impacts their day to day functioning.

Kids with ADHD are seemingly hyperactive, which can slow the growth of development.

This can cause many problems in the future for students in college and even in their

careers. ADHD can also develop problems with social skills and behavioral problems.

Since there are certain behavioral patterns, there are difficulties in interpersonal

relationships with adults and peers. Behavioral problems are important in development

of all life cycles that being humans with or without ADHD. This also affects the person’s

personal growth in a variety of ways that include their ways with their motor skills.

Writers Anaisa Leal Barbosa Abrahao and Luciana Carla dos Santos Elias carry out a

few observational studies to see if ADHD made a huge impact on students in the

classroom. They stated, “In summary, the results showed that the children presented

scores above the reference mean in total social skills and in specific subclasses,

according to parents and teachers; behavior problems marked by hyperactivity,

externalization and internalization; average or above average academic performance in

the different disciplines investigated; and the presence of family resources, despite
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financial difficulties”(Students With ADHD: Social Skills, Behavioral Problems, Academic

Performance, and Family Resources). This article is expressing how they had set up an

observational study to see some of the effects of ADHD on students and their

performance. The results of this observational study showed that there was a distinct

difference between these students that struggle with ADHD compared to those of the

reference samples, the ones who do not.

Children and young students with ADHD can develop behavioral problems

through their earlier stages of life. These problems tend to start during kindergarten and

can continue depending on the individual. Every kid misbehaves, but why do kids with

ADHD misbehave at a higher level compared to those who do not have ADHD? Doctor

David Anderson, PhD, a clinical psychologist explains the reasoning for why kids with

ADHD misbehave at such a high level. Kids with ADHD are likely to be attracted to

things outside of what they are supposed to be focusing on. This can lead to conflict in

their everday lives. Kids do not have bad intentions when this occurs, they can not help

it. These are the hyperactive and impulsive symptoms of ADHD in children (ADHD and

Behavior Problems). Even at restaurants kids won’t want to stay still. ADHD affects

students’ lives outside of home and school. Doctor Anderson emphasizes that kids with

ADHD have minds that race at 1000 miles per hour. He explains how these kids are

especially curious about different things, and want to interact with everything they see.

These can lead to negative interactions with their parents. As a kid with ADHD, it is hard

to be disciplined. Kids with ADHD act out when they are getting disciplined. Some think

internally if there is something going wrong, while others get angry and act aggressively.

This can lead to a tantrum. If a task is boring to a kid or student, they will not want to
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complete the task, even if it is simple. Usually if an individual with ADHD dislikes the

task, the person giving the task will change it to compromise with the individual (ADHD

and Behavior Problems). This makes it easier on the individual but also gets the task

completed. By doing this, it can help prevent the same negative behavior from being

repeated. It is important that a parent figure does not avoid these certain behaviors

because it can create bad habits for the child. If these behaviors were to be avoided, it

could cause the person with ADHD to develop bad social skills.

Health concerns are also a big issue for students with ADHD. There are a

multitude of reasons why a student may feel down at times. Being a student can be

stressful at times, and it is important to take health checks on yourself. A lot of students

that have ADHD tend to have other symptoms along with this disorder. Some have

depression while others may have anxiety. Most people know the common symptoms of

ADHD, but health concerns are often over looked. Some of things parents should look

out for in their child with ADHD are depressive symptoms, emotional instability, and

symptoms of anxiety. With this, a negative impact on an individuals sex drive can occure

(Hyatt). People with ADHD often have to worry about staying organized or completing

tasks they can’t stay focused on, so it is frequently harder for them to have a normal sex

drived. This article, written by Vicki Hyatt, argues the health concerns for those of ADHD

and how it can affect how one feels about themselves and others. Not every person with

ADHD is tireless, but some can be drained and depressed where it becomes a problem

in their daily lifestyle. It is super important for people around them to lift them up and

help guide them through these struggles.

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Some students with ADHD also have bad social skills. In social interactions,

some children with ADHD may become distracted and be distnant in the conversation or

overpower the conversation. This may cause their peers to have negative thoughts

about them like they are unkind or uninterested. This can cause students with ADHD to

be avoided by their peers. This can lead to not as many opportunities to socialize with

other people and can even decrease their confidence and cause them to stop talking to

others. Without these social interactions, students can begin to feel negative emotions

to themselves and others. It can cause them to avoid interacting all together (How

ADHD May Be Impacting Your Child’s Social Skills and What You Can Do To Help). This

article also explains how kids or young adults with ADHD interact with others and how it

might be a challenge. This disorder constitutes a developmental risk which impacts

students’ day to day functioning. Kids with ADHD are seemingly hyperactive, which can

slow the growth of development. This can cause many problems in the future for

students in their future school years. ADHD can also develop problems with social skills

and behavioral problems. As stated earlier, there are certain behavioral patterns which

make there difficulties in interpersonal relationships with adults and peers. Behavioral

problems are important in development of all life cycles that being humans with or

without ADHD. This also affects the person’s personal growth in a variety of ways that

include their ways with their motor skills.

How might ADHD negatively affect children and young adults at home? As ADHD

can play a huge role in students’ lives in the classroom, it can also be challenging for

these kids at home as well. Children’s behaviors can have an effect on the entire family.

They can be hyperactive, moody, and cause problems at school. These things can
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cause stress on the parents and cause tension throughout the entire family (Austin).

These things can ultimatelyh lead to family conflicts. More often these conflicts would

occur in social gatherings like during meals and other big family activities. This article

written by Margaret Austin also explains thatg when children or young adults get home

from school or any extracurricular activity, things are still challenging at times. Parents

can also give their kid a simple task to do at home, like chores, which can cause these

conflicts onto the kid. Children with ADHD may sometimes have a hard time focusing on

these tasks. These certain conflicts can be quite overwhelming for the parent and the

kid struggling with ADHD. This conflict can affect more than just the relationship

between the parent and the children. In Margaret Austin’s article she states “Raising a

child with ADHD strains not only the parent-child relationship, but also the marital

relationship. Caregivers may argue with each other over discipline. Nothing seems to

work. They often experience their own negative emotions such as feelings of sadness,

guilt, anger, and helplessness.”

Some might say that ADHD does not negatively affect students' lives. ADHD

does not negatively affect students’ lives if treated in a proper manner. There are many

symptoms, but many ways to treat it as well. Most importantly, this will not always make

things better. Some may also claim that having ADHD might have some benefits to it. In

this article, it explains the few benefits of having ADHD. There is one example that

explains ADHD helps a student be creative and inventive. The author believes that

living with ADHD could give them a different and broader perspective on life. With this,

they could complete tasks and approach situations with a different, more thoughtful eye

(Nall). In other words, Nall describes them as being more original, artistic, and creative.
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Although it may seem that ADHD may make a student or person more

inventive/creative, this is not always the case. ADHD is different for everyone and not

everyone functions the same way with it. Some might be fidgety while others may be

very aggressive. Because ADHD is so unpredictable, it is hard to see the benefits of

being diagnosed as a child.

ADHD has affected many people's lives in such different ways, each and every

day. ADHD has had a huge impact on students' lives in the classroom. When it comes

to taking a test or answering a question asked by a teacher, it takes them more time and

effort than a student without this disorder. These students are taking more time and

thinking about a certain situation more than an “average” student. They are coming

across and thinking about too many different solutions for one particular problem. This

has become a bigger problem in students' lives than people think. Some people are

diagnosed with this disorder but there are tons of people that meet the qualifications

that are still not officially diagnosed. There has to be a way to help these students from

suffering in the classroom and take a ease of their stress from thinking and being easily

distracted from their task that they are trying to complete. Having ADHD can be such a

pain especially for students. Students already have so much on their plate, as many are

involved in extracurricular activities on top of school. These activities let alone stress

students out, and cause a race in their minds. Yes, all of it is to prepare a youngling for

the future, but it can be a lot of pressure on children, young adults, and especially those

who suffer with ADHD.

ADHD negatively impacts students’ lives. Because of this, people also should be

more aware of the effects ADHD has on young adults and even small children. Since
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there are many underlying conditions these students suffer with, it can affect them

emotionally, mentally, and physically. Some become very angry at things, while others

become very upset and depressed. It is important and crucial that teachers, parents,

and any other adult figure become aware of these certain actions and symptoms so the

students’ can get the help that they need. There are many people like Branden, who

suffer each and every day. With the help of scientists, teachers, friends, and family

members, the fight against ADHD is growing. ADHD should not be a factor to why a

student fails a class, or forgets simple tasks. As a parent, it is most important to watch

certain movements of a child or young adult with ADHD. It is important that each person

with ADHD get the help that they need with school and other things as well. As stated

before, there are certain options that can help kids with ADHD in school. This can

include getting a tutor, an IEP, or a 504 plan.

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Work Cited

“ADHD and School (for Parents) - Nemours Kidshealth.” Edited by Shirin Hasan,

KidsHealth, The Nemours Foundation, June 2020, Accessed 27 March 2022.

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/adhd-schyool.html. Accessed 20 March 2022.

“ADHD in the Classroom.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention, 23 Sept. 2021, Accessed 27 March 2022.

https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/school-success.html. Accessed 27 March

2022.

Barbosa, Abrahao, Anaisa Leal, and Luciana Carla dos Santos Elias. “Students with

ADHD: Social Skills, Behavioral Problems, Academic Performance, and Family

Resources.” Psico-USF, vol 26, no. 3, July 2021, pp. 545-57. EBSCOhost,

https://doi.org/10.1590/1413-82712021260312. Accessed 27 March 2022.

Holland, Kimberly. “The History of ADHD.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 28 Oct. 2021,

https://www.healthline.com/health/adhd/history. Accessed 27 March 2022.

Austin, Margaret V. “Signs of ADHD in Children at Home.” Signs of ADHD in Children at

Home - ADHD: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder,

https://www.gracepointwellness.org/3-adhd/article/13855-signs-of-adhd-in-childre

n-at-home. Accessed 27 March 2022.

Nall, Rachel. “Why Having ADHD Can Be a Benefit.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 19

Jan. 2021, https://www.healthline.com/health/adhd/benefits-of-adhd. Accessed

27 March 2022.
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“How ADHD May Be Impacting Your Child's Social Skills and What You Can Do to

Help.” Foothills Academy,

https://www.foothillsacademy.org/community-services/parent-education/parent-art

icles/adhd-social-skills. Accessed 27 March 2022.

Miller, Caroline. “ADHD and Behavior Problems.” Child Mind Institute, 3 Feb. 2022,

https://childmind.org/article/adhd-behavior-problems/. Accessed 27 March 2022.

Hyatt, Vicki T. “Effects of ADHD on Sexuality.” Edited by Timothy J Legg, Healthline,

Healthline Media, 19 Feb. 2019,

https://www.healthline.com/health/adhd/adult-adhd-sex-life. Accessed 27 March

2022.
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