Summary: A Broad Look ADD And ADHD

A Broad Look ADD and ADHD
Michael Johnson and Michael Carlile
Introduction
As future teachers it is important that we gain a deeper understanding of those students that we are likely to come across in our classrooms. One such disorder that is becoming a growing problem and concern, as the number of diagnosis continue to climb. Attention Deficit Disorder, otherwise known as ADD, comes in a couple of different flavors. There is the standard and then there is the version that also includes hyperactivity, abbreviated with ADHD. Research has allowed us to understand that this difference is “characterized by either the overarousal or underarousal of attentionaal systems” (Marshall et. al., 2014). Both versions are, of course, similar with some

Diagnosing ADD and ADHD can be very difficult. One of the biggest reasons for that is the comorbidity, or the appearance of another disorder along with ADD and ADHD. In the book, entitled Rethinking ADHD, which is a collection of essays and studies, an author writes, “A significant obstacle to diagnosis of ADHD is the issue of comorbid conditions, which are highly prevalent and include childhood learning disabilities, conduct disorder and affective and mood disorders, as well as parental psychopathology including substance abuse and mood disorders” (Furman, 2009, p. 35). These comorbid conditions often cloud the ability of the psychologist to determine the cause of the child’s issues. This comorbidity is probably one of the most difficult aspects of ADD and ADHD to get around in terms of understanding. Of course, the range of the comorbidity is very problematic as the author also goes on to state that the range of comorbidity is between thirty-five to sixty percent. At rates such as that it is possible that around half of those with ADHD or ADD also have another disorder. This makes identifying the characteristics of ADHD and ADD very difficult at times, but not impossible. Some key identifying attributes have shown themselves to be prevalent in almost all cases, and thus have become the key characteristics of

These include: (1) attention is part of a learning disturbance that is one of eight ‘neurodevelopmental constructs’ which need to be viewed as a totality; (2) the symptoms represent an expression of temperament in childhood; or (3) a variation in normal behavior, particularly for boys who are much more frequently diagnosed with ADHD; or (4) evidence of differential rates of developmental and brain maturation among children; or (5) are an artefact of rigid or unhelpful expectations by parents and educators in today’s society. (Furman, 2009, p.