Shanise Tuitt

Child Psychology

Fall 2013

 

 

 

 

 

Public Service Campaign Assignment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 In the United States, about 4.7 million children ages 3 – 17 have been diagnosed at some point with ADHD. This accounts for approximately 7.4% of all American children in this age range. Symptoms of ADHD usually occur around the age of 7.  Studies indicate that symptoms in preschool children with ADHD do not differ significantly from older children. We should seek to treat ADHD with alternative methods other than medications because it has strong effects on children ages of 4-5. P.S.277 a school in the lower Bronx there are mothers dealing with children who struggle with ADHD. These parents usually turn to medication to solve this issue, while failing to consider the possibility that this may have adverse effects on the child. ADD/ADHD is a psychological term currently applied to anyone who meets the DSM IV diagnostic criteria for impulsivity, hyperactivity and or inattention. The general symptoms of ADHD are hyperactivity, impulsivity, impaired short-term memory, inability to manage time and lack of adaptability. I do not think that medication should come in to play when attempting to change children’s behaviors because the side effects can turn out to be more harmful then helpful.

 

   My campaign focuses on the PS 277 target group because ADHD is affecting the children’s ability to stay focus in school resulting in students performing below standard. Parents do have a choice in how to best treat their children ADHD issue or symptoms. There are many different ways to treat ADHD. Before making the choice of medication I recommend parents explore alternative choices. My campaign focuses on building tools for parents in the lower Bronx to help treat their children between the ages of 4-5 suffering from ADHD. My “Living above ADHD Campaign” uses different methods to treat the child ADHD disability.  The program entails several methods. Method one, includes doing regular yoga routines such as meditation and relaxation techniques. This would help children relax and learn discipline. Method two looks at Diet changes. By making changes in the children diets such as eliminating foods thought to increase hyperactivity, such as sugar, and common allergens such as wheat, milk and eggs.  Method three is using “The Fish oil treatment” which is giving the children fish oil supplements rich in omega-3 essential fatty acids for a period of three months. Last, but not least is behavior therapy. The goal of the therapy is to incrementally teach children new ways of behaving by rewarding desired behavior such as following directions.

There are several child development treatments but the ones that provide the best solutions to dealing with ADHD are B.F.Skinner, Alfred Bandura and Lev Vygotsky. To get results in treating ADD naturally it all start with the parents changing their own behaviors of how they handle the children. According to B.F.Skinner, who coined the term operant conditioning, believed that children’s behavior and learning can be shaped by providing rewards and punishment. This means parents have to teach their children discipline and show them in order to get rewarded with something they want they would have to earn it by behaving good and doing what is asked of them. The theory is also a brief way to teach the child how to behave correctly through cause and effect. Therefore if they do not follow direction they will be punished and privileges will be taken away. On the other hand Alfred Bandura believed that children can learn new information and behaviors by watching, or observing, other people. This was referred to as the social learning theory. This is a fact in my opinion because when children are born they do not know anything at all so they tend to reenact and copy what they see going on in their surroundings. This is why the practice to grouping children suffering from ADHD into one class may be defeating the treatment. It may be confusing to a child when told they have no control and when everyone in their environment is acting the same way. Using yoga is a good alternative because if a child with ADD is in an environment where everyone is being calm they are going to follow it as well. And in doing that they begin to learn that there are different ways to behave in certain environments and they also gain self control. Lastly Lev Vygotsky who believed in the sociocultural theory that children learn actively and through hands-on experiences, and that parents, caregivers and peers have a role in a child’s development. He said that children learn best when new information is scaffold for them. He called the area of cognitive development, from where a child starts out to where he could get to with scaffolding, the Zone of Proximal Development. The support provided by parents or caregivers such as guidance on the development of cognitive and social skills, modeling a task, giving advice and providing coaching helps the child to develop learning strategies on their own.  

            I don’t think that medication should come in to play when attempting to change the behavior of a child because the side effects can turn out to be more harmful then helpful.  Also statistics has showed that parents began to notice rebound effect was becoming more frequent in the children. The rebound effect is basically after the medication wears off the symptoms of ADHD worsens as opposed to the children who did not take the medication at all. This is why I recommend exploring the alternatives treatments for ADHD. It is important because you never want to hinder you child form performing at their absolute best due to side effects caused by the medication. Children can become very irritable and aggressive. An alternative way to help deal with that is by helping them to read or doing something on the computer which would changes their behavior. Making sure that the children eat nutritious food once they feel hungry is a plus as well. This can help to energized children and keep them to stay focus. For certain children it may just take one of the alternatives to see a difference in the behavior.  However, children with more serve symptoms of ADHD, it may take a combination of the alternatives. For example one child may just take regular yoga classes and that will improve their behavior. While a another child will have to take regular yoga class, behavior therapy and the fish oil treatment in order to suppress ADD behaviors. This can be frustrating, however I urge parents to be diligent in the process.