AEF Schools Consider Diverse Methods for Helping ADHD Students Study

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Dec. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- CounselHeal.com has published an article that details the findings of William Pelham Jr., who is the director of the Center for Children and Families at FIU. The study, which was aimed at determining how television and music impact the ability of students with ADHD to focus, reveals that, while television distracts the majority of students, listening to music does not. In response to this announcement, AEF schools have turned their attention to the study habits that will best assist students in achieving their academic goals.

Pelham explains the findings of his study: "If a kid says he can watch TV and focus, it's just not true. With television, we found out what we needed to know. But with music we actually discovered, in most cases, it didn't really affect the children." He continues, "And in some cases, we found listening to music helped the kids with ADHD to complete their work. Actually for this subgroup, the effect of music on them was nearly as effective as medication."

Pelham asserts that this discovery should encourage parents of children who have ADHD to try letting them listen to music while doing their schoolwork to see if it helps them retain their focus. AEF schools believe that it is important for parents to help their children try different study tactics and pinpoint those that work best; however, these schools know that all students are different. As such, it is important that individual children are able to explore study tactics in an effort to find the ones that work best for them.

"There are several methods for helping ADHD students study," asserts a representative from AEF schools. "While music has been found helpful in some studies, it has also been found to be just as distracting as television in others. Every child has a different learning style and, for this reason, students with ADHD may learn best through a variety of methodologies. The key to helping ADHD students is to emphasize structure, consistency, and planning. Parents should make sure that their child has a clean, quiet area in which they can do their homework and study. Setting a specific time to complete schoolwork each day is a critical part of facilitating positive study habits and, ultimately, academic success."

AEF schools look forward to continued research on this subject, as they believe that additional investigation may reveal why music is a valuable study aid for some students and that this information may shed light on other ways in which parents and teachers can help children concentrate.

ABOUT:
AEF schools are operated by the Alternative Education Foundation. Through the work of this foundation, these schools are able to offer students who have special learning needs an environment that is more conducive to success. In addition to AEF schools, the Alternative Education Foundation runs many educational facilities, camps, tutoring services, and parent support groups. Through AEF schools, the foundation is able to forge strong relationships between students, teachers, and parents while offering smaller class sizes and an effective learning community.

SOURCE AEF Schools