TAC – Teaching AD(H)D Children

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common mental disorders in childhood and adolescence due to its relative frequency - with a prevalence of 3-5% worldwide. Children with ADHD have considerable difficulties in learning and social life. Regardless of their intellectual potential, the specific perception and processing style of affected children often impairs their learning ability, memory and emotion regulation, which can lead to a lack of (mutual) understanding, stigmatisation, social exclusion and even dropping out of school. At the same time, teachers often feel particularly stressed by the behaviour associated with ADHD. Over the last few decades, a considerable body of knowledge on ADHD and supportive interventions has been accumulated in scientific and professional fields. The project aimed to contribute to the dissemination of this knowledge in training and further education of teachers in order to better support students with ADHD in the classroom and reduce stress on teachers. In addition to a comprehensive training module, the consortium created a online learning platform and an quick guide e-book on teaching children with ADHD.

The aim of the project was to make appropriate teacher training tools available and promote its mainstreaming in order to - sensitize (primary and secondary) school teachers to AD(H)D in pupils, inform them about the natures, causes and how it influences school performance, - support teachers in dealing with pupils affected by AD(H)D and to provide them with sufficient knowledge and skills for realizing education’s primary mission: successful socialization - promote equal opportunities in school, and realize inclusion of AD(H)D-affected pupils - prevent early school leaving or underutilization of the educational potential of children and young people affected by AD(H)D - contribute to reduction of stress and to burnout prevention of teachers - contribute to scientific research in the context and provide valuable results for impact analysis of targeted measures and interventions - get teachers and education professionals closer to the European policies, normative and initiatives concerned - promote updating teacher training curricula and further education measures for regular school teachers by including the AD(H)D topic

The project results and deliverables emerged from the following three activity phases of the project: 1. Research and Development of the envisaged project products R1 – R4 2. Pilot implementation of the TAC teacher training module including practice in schools with accompanying impact research 3. Sharing, Promotion and Advocacy, including the organisation of national multiplier events and a European conference. These project activities were complemented by the transversal activities in project management, quality control and sharing and promotion.

Key results of the TAC cooperation partnership were the innovative and evidence-based products for teacher training: Based on more than 1000 responses to the online survey distributed among in-service and in-training teachers, the consortium created a competence model carefully adapted to the main challenges the target group is facing with a particular emphasis on teachers’ skills for managing the classroom and the teaching process. The TAC Competence Framework (R1) subtracts 4 key competencies, summarizing the specific knowledge, skills and attitudes required for a successful learning experience for both teachers and pupils , is available in all four partner languages (EN, DE, BG, PT) on the project website, https://teaching-adhd-children.eu/wp-content/uploads/TAC_R1_Competence%20Framework_EN.pdf?_t=1682056908. This competence framework provided the basis for the TAC training module, ensuring a grounded development of methods and tools, which are tailored to the needs of primary and secondary school teachers and based on evidence-based practice. The training opportunities for teachers have been designed using a three-fold approach in order to maximise impact and dissemination. The training products are available in English, German, Bulgarian and Portuguese (R2-R4): R2: Fully-fledged teacher training module for face-to-face teacher training , focused on practical skills for successful teaching in neurodiverse classrooms with pupils that show AD(H)D-relevant behaviors, ready to be implemented into in-service teacher training of primary and secondary school teachers in Europe, including curriculum, four learning units (Unit 1: Background, Unit 2: Classroom Management, Unit 3: Relationships, Unit 4: Learning experience, Organisational Training & Self-management Strategies), practical materials and tools. R3: A reduced open access online learning programme for teachers that do not have the possibility to take part in a fully-fledged training module, including self-assessment opportunities, multimedia content such as interactive animation videos to ensure learning is as vivid and practice-oriented as possible, provided on the teaching and learning platform moodle: https://tac.dieberater.com.The module contains the four training modules and a final quiz. R4: A Quick Action Guide on teaching children with AD(H)D for teachers who do not (yet) participate in the TAC training offers but feel the need to quickly inform and orient themselves: Practice-oriented teacher's guide to ADHD-specific knowledge and first instructions for action with regard to working in classes with AD(H)D-relevant behavior: https://teaching-adhd-children.eu/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/TAC-Quick-Guide-e-book_en.pdf In addition to the development of the training products, the following results were achieved: - Documentation on piloting of the TAC training module (R2) with 77 teachers in training together with scientific accompanying impact assessment report (see Piloting Evaluation Report) - Awareness raising and promotion results in all partner languages (EN, DE, PT, BG): website (https://teaching-adhd-children.eu), online and print version of project flyer, teaser videos with interview statements of pilot participants (https://teaching-adhd-children.eu/resources) social media (Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teachingadhdchildren, Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@tac-teachingadhdchildren4909), newsletter, multiplier events - Results relating to the cooperation of the partners and project management, as monthly online meetings, four transnational partner meeting, documentation and reporting to the National Agency.