Christine Merrell

Inattention, hyperactivity and impulsiveness: Their impact on academic achievement and progress

BACKGROUND Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have been found to achieve lower grades at school than their peers. Does this extend to pupils who are apparently exceptionally inattentive, hyperactive or impulsive, but have not been diagnosed as having ADHD? AIMS This study determined the proportion of children who were assessed by their teachers as exceptionally inattentive, hyperactive or impulsive in the classroom. The relationships between these traits, achievement and progress were examined. SAMPLE The participants comprised 4148 children from a nationally representative sample of schools in England. METHODS Reading and mathematics achievement of the participants was assessed at the start and end of the reception year, and in year 2. Behaviour was assessed at the end of reception using a rating scale based on the diagnostic criteria for ADHD (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). RESULTS The proportion of children with exceptional scores on the behaviour rating scale was reported. The reading and mathematics attainment and value-added of children with high scores on the behaviour rating scale were found to be educationally and statistically significantly lower than children with zero scores. CONCLUSIONS The achievement of children with high scores on the behaviour rating scale replicated previous studies which investigated the achievement of children with ADHD. The behaviour rating scale could be a useful tool for raising the awareness of teachers to young children with severe behavioural problems of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity who have not been diagnosed as having ADHD but may nevertheless be at risk of similar outcomes.

Role models, school improvement and the 'gender gap' ­ Do men bring out the best in boys and women the best in girls?

A number of countries are running role model recruitment drives under the assumption that like is good for like: ethnic minority teachers should teach ethnic minority children, women should teach girls, and so on. The empirical basis for this would appear to be case study and personal reflection. This article will examine quantitative data to test the hypothesis that male teachers produce more positive attitudes amongst boys and female teachers amongst girls. Using data from the Performance Indicators in Primary Schools (PIPS) Project, information from 413 separate classes for 11 year-olds (in England) was examined. One hundred and thirteen were taught by males and 300 by females. All the pupils completed questionnaires that were designed to measure attitude to school, reading, mathematics and science. In addition, background data on those pupils were collected, including cognitive measures, attainment scores, ability measures and home background measures. The data were examined to look at attitudes using multilevel models controlling for background factors. The analysis concentrated on interaction effects between the gender of the teacher and the gender of the pupil and the results gave little support for those who advocate recruitment drives with role models in mind.

The First Year at School: A Quantitative Investigation of the Attainment and Progress of Pupils∗

ABSTRACT In England children must start school after their fifth birthday, but it is common for children to start when they are four in what is known as the Reception class. The Performance Indicators in Primary Schools (PIPS) project collected data on 1700 pupils’ early mathematics and pre/early reading levels at the start and end of their Reception year. The on‐entry assessment proved to be a good predictor of performance in reading and mathematics at the end of reception and the progress which each child made was estimated. This progress was found to vary considerably between schools and the variation was much greater than that typically found in school effectiveness studies. The data provided a unique opportunity to compare the progress of children who had, and had not, been to school. The Reception year was found to have had a major impact on the literacy and numeracy of children. Multi‐level models were employed for the analysis and from the models Effect Sizes were computed to assist in comparing t...

Impact of Early School-Based Screening and Intervention Programs for ADHD on Children's Outcomes and Access to Services Follow-up of a School-Based Trial at Age 10 Years

OBJECTIVES To investigate the impact of early school-based screening and educational interventions on longer-term outcomes for children at risk for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and the predictive utility of teacher ratings. DESIGN A population-based 5-year follow-up of a randomized, school-based intervention. SETTING Schools in England. PARTICIPANTS Children between 4 and 5 years of age with high teacher-rated hyperactivity/inattention scores. Follow-up data were collected on 487 children in 308 schools. INTERVENTIONS Following screening, using a 2 x 2 factorial design, schools randomly received an educational intervention (books about ADHD for teachers), the names of children with high hyperactivity/inattention scores between ages 4 and 5 years (identification), both educational intervention and identification, or no intervention. OUTCOME MEASURES Parent-rated hyperactivity/inattention, impairment in classroom learning, and access to specialist health services for mental health or behavioral problems. RESULTS None of the interventions were associated with improved outcomes. However, children receiving the identification-only intervention were twice as likely as children in the no-intervention group to have high hyperactivity/inattention scores at follow-up (adjusted odds ratio, 2.11; 95% confidence interval, 1.12-4.00). Regardless of intervention, high baseline hyperactivity/inattention scores were associated with high hyperactivity/inattention and specialist health service use at follow-up. CONCLUSIONS We did not find evidence of long-term, generalizable benefits following a school-based universal screening program for ADHD. There may be adverse effects associated with labeling children at a young age.

Using Baseline Assessment Data to Make International Comparisons.

International studies have concentrated on the achievements of children during or at the end of their schooling. But such data are difficult to interpret without knowing the progress that they have made since they started school. This article argues that the time has come to study the starting points of children as they begin their education. Such a study is doubtless difficult to design and this study reports an analysis of data from a baseline assessment carried out with thousands of children starting school in very different circumstances, with different languages and cultures and in different countries. It is a pilot international study. Although difficulties are exposed the analyses indicate that such a study is now possible and, it is argued, should be carried out.

Young Deaf Children and the Prediction of Reading and Mathematics

Nearly 1000 deaf children were assessed upon entry to school, aged four and five years, using a broad baseline assessment, and then again one year later in reading and maths. Comparative data were also available for hearing children. These data were used to look at the prediction of the academic achievement of children with varying degrees of hearing loss. Despite past failures at establishing good predictors and despite the apparently very complex nature of the task, clear and simple prediction proved to be possible. The findings are discussed in terms of monitoring systems and research potential.

Changes in children’s cognitive development at the start of school in England 2001–2008

Since 1997, England has seen massive changes in the Early Years including the introduction of an early childhood curriculum, free pre‐school education for three‐year‐olds and local programmes for disadvantaged communities. Many of these initiatives took time to introduce and become established. Beginning in 2001, and each year thereafter until 2008, the authors collected consistent data from thousands of children when they started school at the age of four on a range of variables, chosen because they are good predictors of later success. These included vocabulary, early reading and early mathematics. Children from the same set of 472 state primary schools in England were assessed each year. This paper contributes to the existing studies of educational trends over time by examining the extent to which children’s scores on these measures changed over that period; in general, they were found to have remained stable.

The importance of districts

Effectiveness studies have largely concentrated on the school as the unit of analysis, although an increasing number have directed their attention to the teacher as the main unit of interest. But policy is often directed through organisations at the district level or what is sometimes known as the Education Authority (EA). Few studies have explored their importance, but the seminal study by Willms (1987) stands out. This paper reports an analysis of 7 large national databases from England using 3-level multilevel models with pupils nested within primary schools that are in turn nested within districts. All tell the same story: The EA attended by pupils has almost no relevance to their progress.

what children know and can do when they start school and how this varies between countries

This large-scale study describes what children know and can do when they start school in Scotland. The description became possible because a third of Scottish Authorities are involved in a single, broadly based, on-entry baseline assessment of children. The study also looked at variations by home background, sex, age and pre-school experience within Scotland. Comparisons were then made with the cognitive development of children starting school in England, New Zealand and Western Australia, concentrating on children whose first language was English. Surprising differences were found between Scotland and other countries. New Zealand also stood out on some measures. The results are discussed in terms of pre-school provision and what on-entry assessment can and cannot tell us.

Checking the possibility of equating a mathematics assessment between Russia, Scotland and England for children starting school

Abstract Is it possible to compare the results in assessments of mathematics across countries with different curricula, traditions and age of starting school? As part of the iPIPS project, a Russian version of the iPIPS baseline assessment was developed and trial data were available from about 300 Russian children at the start and end of their first year at school. These were matched with parallel data from representative samples of equal numbers of children from England and Scotland. The equating of the scales was explored using Rasch measurement. A unified scale was easiest to create for England and Scotland at the start and end of their first year at school when children only differ by a half a year in age, and live in adjacent countries with a common language. Although fewer items showed invariance across the three countries, it was possible to link iPIPS scores in mathematics from the start and end of the first year at school across Scotland, England and Russia. The findings of this study suggest that, despite the apparent difficulties, meaningful comparisons of mathematics attainment and development can be made. These will allow for substantive interpretations with policy implications.