Study: Prompting, Self-Management Yield Better Classroom Results Than Other ADHD Accommodations

additudemag.com:

March 21, 2022Prompting students and teaching them self-management strategies reduce disruptive behaviors and increase classroom engagement in adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or ADD) more effectively than do allowing frequent breaks or fidgets, according to a small study published in the Journal of Attention Disorders.1The study found that redirecting students with ADHD back to a task (prompting) and teaching them strategies to independently regulate their behavior (self-management) decreased disruptive behaviors and task initiation time and increased task engagement more than implementing popular classroom strategies such as breaks or use of sensory items or fidgets.According to the study’s authors, prompting, taking breaks, and sensory proprioception are widespread accommodations used for students with ADHD.

The first two often appear as part of Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). On the other hand, self-management strategies are a frequently recommended intervention that is not typically found in IEPs.

The authors noted that research supporting specific practices over others is lacking, and such research could inform IEPs.The researchers evaluated the efficacy of prompting, teaching self-management, encouraging sensory proprioception, and taking breaks in 15 sixth and seventh graders during 20 sessions, each one lasting 20 minutes.Students were randomly assigned one of the following four strategies in each session.Data analysis showed that prompting and self-management strategies delivered the most desirable outcomes in student behavior and engagement, while sensory proprioception resulted in minor or no desired effects.However, researchers noted that participants were not “fans” of.