Classroom Support of ADHD Social Skills Development

The purpose of this project is to design, develop, and evaluate an Intergrated Media Intervention (IMI) that will assist teachers, school counselors, group facilitators and related personnel to foster the development of age-appropriate social problem-solving skills by children and adolescents with disruptive behavior disorders such as ADHD, ODD, and CD. The IMI is a package of classroom implementation materials including video-based scenarios, classroom guides, and teacher training materials that introduce and support the development of social problem-solving skills. These materials will be made available through an array of dissemination mechanisms ranging from traditional video and paper-based products through interactive multimedia CD-ROMs to web-based streaming media in order to support both the teacher and the learner. By providing the medium while also ensuring access to the basic pedagogical strategies to the widest range of end-users. Such a re-purposing of materials maximizes the use of each individual component of the project. Phase I will develop and test (1) three video-based scenarios and an introductory video segment, (2) an Interactive Video based Scenario, (3) a paper-based teacher guide and (4) a one day workshop introducing teachers to the program. Design and development will follow a user-centered design methodology with user participation in several iterations of the various components of the package. Two evaluation activities will be conducted: (1) formative evaluation, and (2) a two-part efficacy trial. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The IMI will be a cost-effective means of providing social problem-solving treatment to large numbers of students. The IMI is particularly commercially viable since recent legislation mandates that schools develop effective interventions for children with disruptive, aggressive behavior problems, a trend with is likely to continue as concepts such as the Safe School effort come increasingly to the forefront.