FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT: A METHOD FOR DEVELOPING CLASSROOM‐BASED ACCOMMODATIONS AND INTERVENTIONS FOR CHILDREN WITH ADHD

Abstract

Approximately 5% of school‐aged children will receive the label attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The majority of these children receive most of their education in the general education classroom, and teachers are confronted with developing accommodations and interventions to meet the academic and social needs of these children. This article describes functional assessment as a method teachers can use to develop classroom accommodations and interventions for children with ADHD. Functional assessment focuses on analyzing environmental variables and determining the outcome a child is attempting to achieve by performing inappropriate behavior. This information helps teachers identify an appropriate behavior that has a similar function. The authors present a rationale for adopting a functional approach and describe the basic stages and steps of functional assessment and various accommodations and interventions for promoting appropriate classroom behavior.