EduPort

KNOWLEDGE AND MISCONCEPTIONS OF TEACHERS ABOUT ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERAKTIVITY DISORDER

The article presents the results of research on the topic of teachers' knowledge and misconceptions about attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A good knowledge of the issues of this spectrum neurodevelopmental disease, its causes, manifestations, possible therapy, support in the education of these groups of students is one of the prerequisites for the success of students with ADHD in school. The main goal of the research investigation was to find out what the level of knowledge of teachers is about the problem of ADHD and in which areas of the topic of ADHD teachers need the most knowledge support. The partial goal was to identify categories of teachers indicated for more prominent profiles of professional competences in the framework of inclusive education for the effective education of this group of pupils. We found out which area of ADHD is known to teachers and which misconceptions teachers continue to have. We were also interested in whether there are groups among teachers who have experience teaching students with ADHD, for whom there are statistically significant differences in the level of knowledge about ADHD. Groups of respondents were categorized according to the following specifics: age, level of education achieved, length of teaching experience, experience with educational pupils with ADHD, experience with an individual with ADHD from a close social environment, number of completed DVPP courses, interest in DVPP in the field of ADHD, self-assessment of knowledge about ADHD. In the third quarter of 2021, we conducted an electronic questionnaire survey in four regions of the Czech Republic among more than four hundred teachers of the 2nd grade of elementary schools who have experience with educational students with ADHD. The research instrument was The Knowledge of Attention Deficit Disorders Scale (KADDS), which was developed in the Department of Clinical and School Psychology at Muhlenberg College Allentown, USA, as a tool to determine teachers' knowledge and misconceptions about ADHD. The individual items of the KADDS scale, which are conceived as statements about ADHD, are divided into three subscales: treatment and intervention, generally about ADHD, symptoms and diagnosis. As part of the research, we used the Czech adaptation of the questionnaire, which we modified in the context of current diagnostic criteria according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association. The results of the research point to an overall average level of knowledge of the respondents about ADHD. Data analysis indicated the lowest level of knowledge and the highest level of uncertainty regarding ADHD interventions and treatments; also the persistence of misconceptions, especially regarding the harmfulness of sugar and food additives, but also the targeting of specific types of therapy to eliminate or reduce the symptoms and consequences of ADHD. The results of the research identified categories of teachers indicated for more significant support of professional competences within the framework of inclusive education for the effective education of this group of pupils: teachers with experience with a smaller number of pupils with ADHD); teachers who have completed less than 4 training courses on ADHD; teachers who do not have experience with a person with ADHD from a close social environment; teachers who evaluate their own knowledge as sufficient or insufficient; teachers who are not interested in ADHD education. The research results also revealed the areas and contents of the ADHD issue suitable for more significant support in the context of undergraduate teacher training and lifelong learning within the DVPP.

Keywords: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, student with ADHD in elementary education, teachers' knowledge and misconceptions about ADHD, interventions and therapy.