Students can’t seem to tear themselves away from their mobile phones. They’re surfing, texting, posting, and calling one another at every opportunity—and often at all hours. Teachers often regard smartphones as toys and distractions and frequently ban them from the school or classroom, but some savvy educators are rethinking that approach. They’re turning that obsession into a learning tool and using it to facilitate stronger student engagement.

Schools that cannot afford expensive technology can often afford to purchase smartphones. There are countless free or low-cost apps and services accessible with a mobile device that can be put to work in the classroom. Here are just a few ideas made possible through the wonder of Wi-Fi:

• solicit feedback from your students after a lesson, test, or field trip

• ask students to record their speeches, musical and vocal performances, and foreign language assignments and send you the file for evaluation

• use a mass text emailing service like Celly (Cel.ly) to broadcast assignment reminders and messages to parents and students and receive private replies

• have your class follow breaking news and important events together on Twitter

• use Google Voice and other apps to communicate with your students without ever sharing your personal phone number

• have students text you a sentence using one or more vocabulary words

• encourage your pupils to take notes on their smartphone and email them to you when they are finished

• ask students to take a poll using their smartphones

• have your class write a collective cell phone novel

Interested in learning more about how to incorporate emerging mobile technology into your instruction? Visit these Web sites for inspiration and advice:

http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/

http://cellphonesinlearning.blogspot.com/

http://www.teachinggenerationtext.blogspot.com/

http://www.classroom20.com/

')}

Critical Review of Literature

The main function of the literature review in the present analysis is to provide a theoretical framework that guides the selection of variables as predictors of dropping out of postsecondary education. To set the stage for the present analysis, a brief review of the issue of dropping out of postsecondary education in Canada is appropriate, followed by a detailed review of major influential theories on reasons why youth do drop out of postsecondary education.

Current Status of Dropping out of Postsecondary Education in Canada

According to the Daily (Statistics Canada, June 16, 2004), although most Canadian youths went on to further studies after high school, not all stayed until postsecondary graduation, as indicated in the Youth in Transition Survey (YITS) data. Specifically, in December 2001, by the age of 22, about 11% of Canadian youths had left postsecondary education without graduating, and about one-third completed at least one postsecondary credential (13% were continuing their postsecondary education after having already graduated). Adding to the complexity of the issue is the fact that dropping out of postsecondary education does not necessarily mean a halt to higher education altogether. About 35% of those who had left postsecondary education in an earlier survey when they were 20 did return by the time they were 22.

Following the same national sample of Canadian youth for two more years, Shaienks et al. (2006) reported that:

The postsecondary dropout rate in December 2003 was 12% for Canada overall, higher than the high school dropout rate recorded. Given the age of the respondents, this rate is likely to change again in the years to come. The vast majority of provinces had a dropout rate somewhere between 10% and 12%, with Prince Edward Island posting the lowest rate, at 9%, and Nova Scotia the highest, at 16%. As with the high school dropouts, the postsecondary dropouts returned to this type of institution. Nearly half of youth who had left a postsecondary institution as of December 1999 returned within the next four-year period. One in four had eventually graduated as of December 2003. (p. 15).

Shaienks et al. (2006) also provided a detailed decomposition of the Canadian youth who, in December 2003, were 22 years old and not in high school. About 76% attended postsecondary education, whereas about 24% did not. Among those attending postsecondary education, about 12% graduated, about 21% were continuers, and about 12% were dropouts. Finally, although nearly half of postsecondary education dropouts returned, Shaienks et al. (2006) emphasized that it is more difficult for youth to come back as they get older and have children.

Tinto’s (1993) Theory of Postsecondary Education Student Attrition

In 1993, Vincent Tinto published his landmark book on postsecondary education student attrition entitled Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and Cures of Student Attrition (2^nd ed.). The first edition of the book was published in 1987. His original theory on postsecondary education student attrition was subjected to vigorous criticism and testing for five years. In the second edition, Tinto substantially improved his original theory by incorporating many philosophical critiques and injecting much empirical evidence into his conceptual framework. Citing Braxton, Milem, and Sullivan (2000, p. 107), Guiffrida (2006, p. 451) stated that “Tinto’s (1993) theory of student departure is the most widely cited theory for explaining the student departure process and has reached ‘near paradigmic status’ in the field of higher education.” In the present analysis, we adopted Tinto’s (1993) theory as our theoretical framework to guide a longitudinal multivariate analysis designed to profile postsecondary education dropouts and discern reasons for postsecondary education student attribution in Canada.

As an overview, Tinto’s (1993) theory is essentially a multivariate model of student retention in postsecondary institutions to explain student departure from postsecondary education prior to graduation. He posits that individual pre-postsecondary education attributes (family background, individual skill and ability, and secondary schooling quality) form individual goals and commitments for postsecondary education. Once the individual enters postsecondary education, those individual goals and commitments interact constantly with institutional attributes (i.e., characteristics of the formal and informal academic and social environments). The extent to which the individual is able to academically and socially integrate into the formal and informal academic and social environments of the institution determines whether the individual persists through postsecondary education or drops out of postsecondary education. In general, integration and affiliation are the two key concepts that form the conceptual basis of Tinto’s (1993) model. In a book published in the same year entitled What Matters in College? Four Critical Years Revisited, Astin (1993) also emphasized those concepts for they are central to students’ development and progress in postsecondary education.

Tinto (1993) sees integration as a process in which the individual actively engages and involves in activities within the postsecondary education community. He distinguishes between social integration and academic integration. Social integration occurs when the individual develops strong and effective social ties primarily as a result of daily interactions with other members of the community. Academic integration results from sharing common information, perspectives, and values with other members of the community. Overall, integration measures the extent to which the individual identifies with as well as shares and incorporates the normative attitudes and values of instructors and classmates. Satisfactory interaction with the formal and informal academic and social environments of the institution leads to greater integration resulting in persistence. Unpleasant interaction on the other hand discourages integration resulting in lack of persistence. Academic and social integration can be influenced by a variety of factors, including family background characteristics, educational experiences before postsecondary education, and previous academic achievement.

The concept of affiliation or membership captures the multiple communities on campus. Tinto (1993) considers it important for the individual to have multiple affiliations without adopting a single or predominant set of social and academic norms. Being willing to associate with and becoming accepted into an affinity group is critical to individual development and progress in postsecondary education. Affinity groups offer social and academic support that the individual needs to sustain effort through postsecondary education. Sociological research clearly suggests that membership is composed of two dimensions (e.g., Bollen & Hoyle, 1990): One is a sense of belonging; the other is a feeling of morale association.

Tinto (1993) admits that integration and membership are not two separate processes. In fact, he stated that “the concept of ‘membership’ is more useful than ‘integration’ because it implies a greater diversity of participation” (p. 106). Inference from this statement to researchers is that every effort needs to be made to adequately measure the quality of individual membership on campus. Nevertheless, the key measure is the lack of fit (or the level of fit) between the individual and the institution. The individual who has norms, values, and ideas congruent with those of the institution is more likely to persist and graduate from postsecondary education.

Since the publication of Tinto (1993), a new wave of empirical studies has been conducted to examine his revised theory of postsecondary education student attrition. The importance of integration, often examined in the form of engagement and involvement, has been generally supported, and the critical role of membership has also been largely confirmed by recent empirical studies (e.g., Guiffrida, 2003; Handelsman, Briggs, Sullivan, & Towler, 2005; Heisserer & Parette, 2002; Miller & Pope, 2003; Ryan & Glenn, 2003; Schnell & Doetkott, 2003; Zhao, Kuh, & Carini, 2005). Seidman (1996, p. 18) stated that “the Tinto (1975, 1987, 1993) model of retention/attrition has been widely examined, tested and accepted by the educational community since it was first published in 1975.”

The major limitation of Tinto’s (1993) theory that researchers have found relates to his assertion that students must “break away” from past associations and traditions in order to successfully integrate into the (formal and informal) social and academic environments of postsecondary education. Critics have argued that many postsecondary education students, especially religious and minority ones, depend exactly on traditional ties and associations to gain spiritual, cultural, and even material support that sustains them through postsecondary education (Guiffrida, 2005; Kuh & Love, 2000; Rendon, Jalomo, & Nora, 2000; Walker & Schultz, 2001). In conducting the present analysis, both the theory’s success in recognizing the importance of integration and membership and the theory’s failure in recognizing the importance of cultural norms guided us when we considered variables used to predict postsecondary education student attrition and profile postsecondary education dropouts. Tinto (1993) has identified three groups of variables that predict postsecondary education persistence: (a) pre-postsecondary education attributes, (b) integration attributes, and (c) membership attributes.

Pre-postsecondary education attributes as predictors of postsecondary education student attrition. The first group of variables that influence postsecondary education student attrition pertains primarily to pre-postsecondary education conditions of the individual. It includes individual disposition, family background, academic skill and ability, and secondary schooling quality. One important individual disposition is the individual’s intention to go to postsecondary education. Manifestation of this intention can often be gagued by the extent to which the individual has indicated clear educational and occupational goals and has thought through potential career options to make a career decision prior to entrance into postsecondary education. Other important individual dispositions include the commitment of the individual to meet his or her educational and occupational goals and the extent to which the individual has prepared himself or herself to willingly comply with the academic and social expectations of postsecondary education.

Integration attributes as predictors of postsecondary education student attrition. Tinto (1993) describes integration mainly in the form of the interactional experiences that the individual has socially and academically after entering postsecondary education, including the quality of individual interactions with other members of the postsecondary education institution (for social and academic supports), the extent to which the individual perceives those interactions as meeting his or her norms, needs, and interests, and the amount of contact with faculty and social networks (for social and academic purposes). Most measures of social and academic integration deal with perception. To a large extent, Tinto (1993) adopted Spady’s (1971) empirical definition of perceived integration that emphasizes the subjective sense of being able to fit in on campus, the perception of the existence of warm interpersonal relationships, and the feeling of being unpressured by normative difference with the social and academic environments on campus. This is to say that Spady (1971) and Tinto (1993) have essentially argued that perceptions are valid measures of social and academic integration. This is good news for secondary data analysis of large-scale survey databases in that almost all surveys measure perceptions.

Membership attributes as predictors of postsecondary education student attrition. In Tinto (1993), membership, also an interactional factor by nature, measures the degree to which the individual is socially and academically associated with the postsecondary education community, including informal friendships (on social and academic basis), supportive groups (for social and academic purposes), and participation in extracurricular activities (social and academic). These membership issues are examined within the context of sense of belonging and feeling of morale association. Simply put, membership is an identity issue. Identification with a group based on common or shared morale norms or values is the basis for any membership to occur. Bollen and Hoyle (1990) believe that both cognitive and affective elements are needed for such an occurrence. The individual evaluates his or her role in relation to the group cognitively and such a cognitive appraisal results in an affective response. Implication to empirical research is that both cognitive and affective reactions to campus groups need to be considered in selecting variables measuring membership.

Finally, Tinto (1993) believes that individual integration and membership are often facilitated or hindered by internal and external conditions of the individual, including academic adjustment (a common indicator is grade point average or GPA), preparatory participation (in supportive programs such as orientation), external commitment (family or community duties), and financial need (for tuition, learning material, and accommodation).

Lotkowski’s (2004) Meta-analysis of Postsecondary Education Student Attrition

Tinto’s (1993) theory of postsecondary education student attrition is our major theoretical framework in that it draws up a blueprint that identifies major players in the issue of postsecondary education persistence. In this sense, Tinto (1993) provides us with what we call structural building blocks. That is, we know that pre-postsecondary education condition, integration, and membership are building blocks for our longitudinal multivariate model. On the other hand, many empirical studies have looked into each block in an effort to identify the critical components of each block. Fortunately, we have identified a recent meta-analysis (a form of quantitative synthesis of empirical studies) of factors influencing postsecondary education student attrition, and we have employed this meta-analysis as our supplementary theoretical framework.

Lotkowski, Robbins, and Noeth’s (2004) meta-analysis, The Role of Academic and Non-academic Factors in Improving College Retention, is largely based on Tinto’s (1993) theory. Because we adopted Tinto (1993) as our major theoretical framework, conceptual consistence between our major and supplementary theoretical frameworks was obtained. This meta-analysis has synthesized out critical academic and non-academic factors (related to pre-postsecondary education condition, integration, and membership) among empirical studies which demonstrate great promises in predicting postsecondary education persistence. Coming from Lotkowski et al. (2004, p. 6), Table 1 identifies variables that need to be considered in empirical data analysis of postsecondary education student attrition.

Lotkowski et al. (2004) described their meta-analysis in relation to the above table and especially how they identified those factors as influential to postsecondary education student attrition:

We used a meta-analysis technique to identify which non-academic factors had the most salient relationship to postsecondary retention. We also identified the extent to which each factor predicted postsecondary retention. This procedure allowed the identification of those factors that were the best indicators of the risk for postsecondary dropout. We also identified the relative contributions of the more traditional academic predictors of college retention including socioeconomic status (SES), high school GPA, and postsecondary readiness scores (ACT Assessment scores). Once identified, the salient nonacademic factors, together with the more traditional academic factors, were examined to see which the best indicators of risk for dropping out were. (p. 5).

We are confident that our major and supplementary theoretical frameworks have provided us with not only a general blueprint of critical structures but also a detailed synthesis of critical factors concerning postsecondary education student attrition. Our selection of variables in relation to the YITS data has therefore been greatly enhanced by these theoretical frameworks. Even the specification of our longitudinal multivariate models has benefited greatly from these theoretical frameworks.

Source: https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/programs/early-learning-child-care/reports.html

')}

Final Report to the Edge Foundation
August 31, 2010
Submitted by
Sharon Field, Ed.D.,
David Parker, Ph.D.,
Shlomo Sawilowsky, Ph.D,
Laura Rolands, M.A.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Abstract: Researchers from Wayne State University in Michigan conducted the study over two years in 10 universities and community colleges throughout the country and tracked the progress of 110 students with ADHD. It is the largest and most comprehensive study of ADHD coaching conducted to-date. The research team measured students’ progress through both quantitative and qualitative analysis and determined that the Edge coaching model was highly effective in helping students improve executive functioning and related skills as measured by the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI; Weinstein & Palmer, 2002).

Executive Summary

This report describes results from a study to examine the effectiveness of the Edge coaching model on the academic success of students with ADHD in college and university settings. The study clearly demonstrated that Edge coaching services had a significant and meaningful impact on students’ self-regulation, executive functioning skills, and well-being.

Students from eight universities and two community colleges from a variety of geographic regions across the United States participated in the study. A total of 127 participated in the study. Students were randomly assigned to either the treatment group (N=88) or the comparison group (N=39). It is the largest study to date to examine the effects of ADHD coaching.

This study demonstrated that coaching services provided according to the Edge model were highly effective in helping students improve their self-regulation, study skills and will. It helped to build students’ confidence and enhanced their organizational and time management skills. Participation in Edge coaching services resulted in improvement in students’ approach to learning. It also enhanced their sense of well-being and resulted in more positive emotional states, which have been linked by research (Fredrickson & Branigan, 2005) to more effective learning.

This study demonstrated that the coaching services provided according to the Edge model were a highly effective intervention to help students improve executive functioning and related skills as measured by the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI; Weinstein & Palmer, 2002). The LASSI measures Executive Functioning Skills as they are applied in academic environments. Executive functioning is an umbrella construct reflecting self-regulatory mechanisms that organize, direct, and manage other cognitive activities, emotional responses, and overt behaviors (Gioia, Isquith, & Guy 2001). The difference in gain on total LASSI scores between the Edge coaching group and the comparison group was statistically significant (p < .01.The Edge coaching group had a mean gain of 182.67 points pre to post, whereas the comparison group’s mean gain was only 64.05 points. The LASSI is comprised of three cluster scores: Self-regulation, Skill and Will. There were also significant differences between the Edge coaching group and the comparison group, in favor of the treatment group, on all three cluster scores. The differences between the treatment and comparison groups were significant (p < .05) for the Skill and Will clusters Self-Regulation (p < .01) cluster. Partial Eta², is a measure of treatment impact that is useful for determining the practical significance following a statistically significant finding. This analysis revealed that the Edge coaching intervention demonstrated a moderate treatment outcome for the Skills and Will clusters and as a large treatment outcome for the Self-Regulation cluster. For comparison:

• Very large effect size: use of cues, mentoring, reinforcement
• Large effect size: cooperative learning, positive corrective feedback, phonemic awareness
• Moderate: frequent testing, goal setting, staff development, tutoring
• Small: audio-visual aids, parental education, pressure to achieve, school climate, school leadership, student attitude
• Nil or negative: additive-free diet, class size, team teaching

Qualitative analysis of interview findings corroborated the findings from the LASSI. Students’ comments and artifacts indicated that Edge coaching services helped them establish more effective goals and pursue those goals in more efficient, less stressful ways. Students attributed this outcome to coaches’ proficiency in helping them reflect on themselves and their goals more often, in more realistic and positive ways, and to regulate their feelings and behaviors more effectively while pursuing those goals. Thematic analysis of interviews resulted in a major emphasis on self-regulated behavior with a focus within self-regulation on improved routines and structures and more effective self-talk. Results from this study also demonstrated that participation in Edge coaching services enhanced students’ sense of well-being and resulted in more positive emotional states. Edge students’ overall mean score on the College Well-being Survey (Field, Sawilowsky, Parker, & Roland, 2010) was statistically significantly higher than comparison students’ mean Well Being score, when corrected for initial differences in executive functioning. Again, qualitative analysis corroborated that Edge coaching services increased students’ subjective well-being. Thematic analysis of interviews resulted in the designation of positive feelings as an area of major impact of the Edge coaching model. Major themes within the category of positive feelings were less stress, greater empowerment, increased confidence and more balanced lives.

There were no statistically significant differences (p>.05) in GPA between the Edge and comparison students, number of credits earned in Semesters 1 or 2 (p>.05), or on eligibility to continue (p>.05). However, the Edge coaching model as currently implemented was not designed to impact GPA when delivered on a short term basis. It is possible that differences in GPA may be observed in a longitudinal study, or if the model was implemented for a longer duration.

The evidence is abundantly clear that the Edge coaching model made an important difference in the way students approach the learning process. It helped students to be more organized and efficient resulting in increased feelings of control and confidence. Given the difficulty that students with ADHD typically experience in self-regulation and executive functioning, it is anticipated that these findings will be of high importance to those concerned with factors that contribute to success for persons with ADHD.

For more information:

http://www.edgefoundation.org/research/

http://www.edgefoundation.org/parents/get-more-information/

Source: http://www.edgefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Edge-Report-11-10a-exec-summary.pdf (PDF File)

')}

by Patricia O. Quinn, MD

THE TRANSITION FROM HIGH SCHOOL TO COLLEGE AND FROM FAMILY TO SEMI-INDEPENDENT LIVING can be difficult for students with ADHD. Unless ADHD is understood and handled properly, the transition can cause significant stress to both the student and his or her family.

College students with ADHD must understand the impact it has on academic, social, and daily life. Without this knowledge, they cannot perform successfully or be their own best advocate. Making appropriate choices, prioritizing time, solving new challenges and then facing the increased academic demands of college can be much more complicated for them. ADHD may prevent them from performing up to their true potential, staying enrolled, or even graduating.

When the journey toward graduation ends abruptly or is fraught with unexpected difficulty, the emotional and economic costs to families and students can be great. Young adults who expected to excel suffer a huge blow to their egos when they fail because they were not prepared academically, socially, or emotionally for the expectations at college.

Self-determination and success

For several decades, special education experts have been grappling with what causes some individuals with disabilities to have more successful adult lives than others. This important question has led to an understanding of the importance of self-determination skills. Self-determination refers to “a combination of skills, knowledge, and beliefs that enable a person to engage in goal-directed, self-regulated, autonomous behavior.”

A self-determined individual:

• knows who he or she is;
• can set his or her own goals, and make plans to achieve these goals;
• can ask for help when needed;
• can find necessary resources; and,
• can handle conflicts with others.

Most importantly, a self-determined individual can use his or her own thoughts to problem-solve, make decisions, and regulate his or her own behavior.

Success in college and in life requires that young people have the ability to observe themselves, notice when problems are in the early stages or even before they happen, and use their executive functioning skills to manage their emotions, think through their goals and plans for achieving these goals, and problem-solve to overcome any obstacles that stand in the way.

While a number of definitions are used in the special education field, experts would agree that a person who is self-determined has the attitudes and skills needed to set his or her own course for a more meaningful and fulfilling life. While self-determined individuals have meaningful relationships and know when to turn to others for advice or support, they value and accept themselves. They are confident and independent.

Studying coaching as a tool for success in college

A new helping profession known as personal or life coaching has emerged over the past several decades. Borrowing from the field of sports coaching, coaching was first applied in the business world as a way to help professionals become more productive and live more balanced lives. The business world discovered that worker productivity increased when employees were coached versus managed or supervised using traditional methods. It was discovered that, just as sports coaches partner with talented athletes to help them develop their skills and achieve success, life coaches can partner with people to assist them in living the life of their dreams.

Many ADHD experts see coaching as a valuable tool, especially for teens who have deficits in executive functioning skills, or those all-important thinking skills needed for effective day-to-day functioning. Although very few studies have been conducted using the coaching model, the few that have suggest that coaching does help teens improve in many life-management skills.

To address this lack of studies, the Edge Foundation, a national nonprofit organization that provides personal coaching for children and young adults with ADHD, recently completed a $1 million research study to determine the extent of the effectiveness of coaching on the academic and social performance of college students with ADHD.

Led by a faculty team from the Center for Self-Determination and Transition in the College of Education at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, the twenty-seven-month study is considered the first large-scale study to document the effectiveness of coaching for college students with ADHD.

“A primary challenge associated with the use of coaching as a support for students with ADHD is the need for scientific evidence that the approach is effective,” said Sharon Field, EdD, the project’s research director. “There is substantial anecdotal evidence indicating that coaching is perceived by students, parents, and educators as a valuable service that helps students succeed in a variety of settings. However, the value of personal coaching has never been subjected to a rigorous scientific study of its effects on student outcomes.”

One hundred twenty-seven students from eight universities and two community colleges from a variety of geographic regions across the United States participated in the study. Students were randomly assigned to either the treatment group or the comparison group.

Edge Foundation coaches worked with the treatment-group students in seven major areas: scheduling, goal setting, confidence building, organizing, focusing, prioritizing, and persisting at tasks. The coaches helped the students to assess their environments, identify needs, and set goals, and offered suggestions and guidance. They monitored student progress and goals through regular phone or email check-ins. The protocol called for regular daily check-ins to provide more structure and accountability.

Results of the Edge study

Self-determination. The study showed that students who received Edge coaching services demonstrated significant improvement in their ability to organize, direct, and manage cognitive activities, emotional responses, and overt behaviors. They were able to formulate goals more realistically and consistently work toward achieving them, manage their time more effectively, and stick with tasks even when they found them challenging.

Improvement, measured by the difference in gain on total scores on the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) between the coaching group and the comparison group, was statistically significant. The coaching group had a mean gain of 182.67 points pre to post assessment, whereas the comparison group’s mean gain was only 64.05 points. The LASSI is comprised of three cluster scores: self-regulation, skill, and will. There were significant differences between the coaching group and the comparison group, in favor of the treatment group, on all three cluster scores.

Executive functioning skills. The LASSI also measures executive functioning skills as they are applied in academic environments. The coached students with ADHD demonstrated statistically significant, higher executive functioning than students with ADHD who did not receive coaching. “The magnitude of the effect size for self-regulation was more than double the typical educational intervention, and executive functioning was quadruple,” wrote the study authors. “Findings with effect sizes that large are rare.”

Overall well-being. Interviews with students at the end of the study corroborated the findings from the LASSI. Students indicated that Edge coaching services helped them establish more effective goals and pursue those goals in more efficient, less stressful ways. They attributed this outcome to the coaches’ proficiency in helping them reflect on themselves and their goals more often, in more realistic and positive ways, and to regulate their feelings and behaviors more effectively while pursuing those goals.

Results from this study also demonstrated that participation in coaching enhanced the students’ sense of well-being and resulted in more positive emotional states. Students said that coaching helped them feel less stress, greater empowerment, increased confidence, and have more balanced lives. Their overall mean score on the College Well-being Survey was statistically significantly higher than the comparison students’ mean well-being score, when corrected for initial differences in executive functioning.

Approach to learning and academic standing. While the study demonstrated that students who received coaching showed substantial gains in their overall approach to learning, there were no statistically significant differences between the coached students and the comparison students in GPA, the number of credits earned per semester, or eligibility to continue in college. However, the Edge coaching model as currently implemented was not designed to impact GPA when delivered on a short-term basis. It is possible that differences in GPA may be observed in a longitudinal study, or if the model was implemented for a longer duration.

The Edge coaching model made an important difference in the way students approach the learning process, however. It helped them to be more organized and efficient, resulting in increased feelings of control and confidence. Given the difficulty that students with ADHD typically experience in self-regulation and executive functioning, these findings are of high importance to those concerned with factors that contribute to success for students with ADHD.

Overall, the Edge Foundation study offers hope for students with ADHD. The results directly linked coaching to improved self-determination and executive functioning, and improved executive functioning often translates to greater success in school.

Impediments to Success in College

Academic

• Poor organization of time and space
• Reading problems resulting from difficulty persevering
• Notetaking may be impossible, as two processing skills are needed simultaneously
• Writing skills which require sustained attention and organization
• Verbal skills—inappropriate word choices or word retrieval problems affect class presentation or conversation skills; may be further compromised by anxiety or attention problems

Personal

• High level of frustration/poor self-esteem
• Inappropriate social skills
• Confusion about goals and the future
• Lack of perseverance/need for immediate gratification

For more info: Sharon Field, EdD, David Parker, PhD, Shlomo Sawilowsky, PhD, and Laura Rolands, MA.
Quantifying the Effectiveness of Coaching for College Students with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. College of Education, Wayne State University, Detroit MI. August 31, 2010.
The findings of this study were presented at CHADD’s annual conference in Atlanta in November 2010, and are slated to be published in the Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability in May 2011. Visit edgefoundation.org for links to the study.

Patricia O. Quinn, MD, is the director of the National Center for Girls and Women with ADHD and the author of Ready for Take-Off: Preparing Your Teen with ADHD or LD for College. She is a founding board member of the Edge Foundation. This article originally appeared in the February 2011 issue of Attention magazine. Copyright © 2011 by Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD). All rights reserved.

Source: https://chadd.org/about-adhd/coaching/

')}