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SEN

Here you'll find advice from parents and teachers on special needs education.

Original poster

ADHD and A Levels

29 replies

GoodStuffAnnie · 26/08/2023 23:45

ds just got his gcse results - predicted 7/8 s got 5/6 s.

he did no revision without us making him / doing it with him. He had no independence. He hasn’t had any independence for years (would not do homework y8 onwards.)he also has tutors. I don’t know if we did the right thing supporting him so heavily.

he has adhd. I’m not clear in my head how much of him not achieving his potential is down to adhd and how much ‘him’.

im not sure if school supported him enough? What might this have looked like?

he wants to do a levels. We are not prepared to support him so heavily anymore. It was alot of work! I can’t understand how a child who did no work will suddenly start working.

im not really sure what I’m asking.

has anyone had a child who did no work / had no motivation suddenly get motivated?

have we not taken enough account of his adhd? How much of a barrier is it to success? I know how long is a piece of string.

does the adhd effect his motivation. He has no idea what he wants to do and will not commit.

OP posts:
greyflannel · 27/08/2023 14:14

He sounds great! (You should see my DS's bedroom...).

How do you both feel about medication? There 's an increasingly strong evidence base that it is effective for 70-80% of people. Might be worth a trial?

I think at this age, all you can do is help DC explore options, and really encourage their interests, then support their choices. If it doesn't work out, he can come back to it later. His brain and the skills needed to stufy effectively will still be developing - so he may just need a little more time than NT people.

And are you sure it is apathy (indifference), or could it be really chronic procrastination (compulsion to delay important tasks), which is a huge problem for a lot of ADHDers? If funds permit, you could explore the world of ADHD coaching, and see if you can find someone who works with young people. A couple of sessions could help with exploring choices and study strategies?

@OvertakenByLego will have a better answer than me on the EHCP question. The threshold for assessment is relatively low. The threshold to issue, following assessment, is usually around long term needs for educational things that cannot otherwise be provided by school.

Original poster
GoodStuffAnnie · 27/08/2023 13:14

I am very grateful for both your responses.

He had / has a decent sen plan. he had lots of movement breaks. He did not get extra time in exams. He would rush his exams and not use the time allocated. He does not have an ehcp. He is not on medication.

ehcp - how do I know whether he would meet the threshold for one? (I am a teacher so know a bit about things).

I will buy the book.

He did drop a gcse. He was still messing around in class the week before they finished.

I am not sure a levels are the right course. We are totally open to other courses. He just has no interest in anything (school related). He doesn’t commit easily (to academic / school choices). We are leaning toward a levels / b tec at his school sixth form because they know him, he’s there 9-3, the classes are small. If he went to the FE technical college he would be with his friends who are like him (academically unmotivated). I am not a snob. Am totally open to it IF he was enthusiastic. We just feel with his lack of enthusiasm it could make things worse? I literally have no idea if this is right. He wants to stay at his sixth form.

I don’t really understand executive function deficit. I need to read up on it.

He is not an unmotivated teen. He loves fashion, he takes great pride in appearance (washes a lot), his room is tidy, he found and has a job, which he is working hard at. But academic / school work / job choices he is apathetic AND with regards to revision actively would argue about / delay and avoid.

I am really grateful for some people to help me understand / problem solve. Thank you.

OP posts:
OvertakenByLego · 27/08/2023 09:43

Are you sure A levels are the right path? Both grades wise and if DS doesn’t or can’t work outside of class.

Does DS have an EHCP? What support did the school provide? Did they support his executive function difficulties? Key worker/mentor? Maybe dropping a GCSE or 2 to complete homework during that time or focus on core subjects? Is DS on medication?

I took so long to post I X posted.

greyflannel · 27/08/2023 09:33

He has passed all of his GSCEs - congratulations. I hear what you are saying about his potential. Does he have a decent SEN plan or EHCP containing different strategies to help with executive function deficits (might include help with organisation, memory, following chains of instructions, starting and moving between tasks, time management). Does he get extra movement breaks?

Is he taking medication?

Can I recommend Movers, Dreamers and Risk-takers by Kevin Roberts? It's a great book about unlocking the potential of people with ADHD, including questions of intrinsic motivation and hyperfocus.

There is no getting around the fact that the executive function dfficulties with ADHD can often make conventional approaches to studying really hard, and overall there is likely to be a considerable delay in these executive functions maturing (the rule of thumb is that these lag by around a third, so DS's functional capacity to use study skills may be more like an 11-12 year old). Which doesn't mean great things cannot be acheived, but does mean finding out what personal strategies help, and also exploiting areas of natural interest and letting DS explore that awesome ADHD ability to hyperfocus.