AWARENESS AND KNOWLEDGE OF ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER AMONG PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS
Abdulrahman Mohammed Alwahbi*, Fahad Al Maathm, Abdulmajeed Ali Alrasheed, Saleh Mohammed Al-Buti, Omar Abdulrahman Al-Tasan, Adnan
Khalifah AlKhalifah, Abdullah Khalid Al-Jadi, Ali Khalid Alsugair and Majed Saud
Almutairi
ABSTRACT
Background: School teachers play an important role in the assessment
of children’s behaviors, and have been considered one of the most
valuable sources of information with regard to the diagnosis of ADHD.
Objectives: To assess primary school teachers’ knowledge of the
symptoms and management of children with ADHD. Subjects and
methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Al-Qassim
Region, Saudi Arabia during 2015-2016included a representative
random sample primary school teachers. Self-administered
questionnaire was utilized for data collection included the Knowledge
of Attention Deficit Disorder Scale (KADDS) in addition to sociodemographic
and work-related questions. Results: The study included
255 teachers. More than half of them (57.3%) were males and having Bachelor degree
(55.3%). About one-third of them have been read or attended awareness courses about
ADHD among students (31.4%). Overall adequate ADHD knowledge was reported among
only 11% of the teachers. The only significant factor associated with ADHD knowledge
among teachers was their teaching experience as the highest rate of adequate knowledge was
reported among teaches who has experience between 15 and 19 years in teaching (19.5%).
Followed by those who had 4 years or less in teaching (18.9%) whereas the lowest rate was
reported among teachers of 20 years or more of experience in teaching (4.6%), p=0.033.
Conclusion: We observed an inadequacy of knowledge regarding ADHD among primary school teachers in AlQasim. This inadequacy of knowledge raises serious questions about the
screening of ADHD at the level of primary schools in AlQasim.
Keywords: ADHD, Knowledge, primary schools, teachers.
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