Drug treatment benefited children in the amount of school work that they completed , by up to 15 % , and less consistently improved children ’s accuracy in specific types of academic assignments , such as arithmetic .
Methylpheni date , dexamfetamine and mixed amfetamine formulations all showed beneficial effects on children ’s on-task behaviour and academic work completion .
These review findings suggest that medication for ADHD has the potential to improve children ’s learning and academic achievement
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) has a significant impact on children ’s classroom behaviour , daily functioning and experience of school life .
However , the effects of drug treatment for ADHD on learning and academic achievement are not fully understood .
This review was undertaken to describe the effects of methylpheni date , dexamfetamine , mixed amfetamine salts and atomoxetine on children ’s on-task  behaviour and their academic performance , and to perform a meta- analysis to quantify these effects .
Attention deficit disorder with and without hyperactivity: clinical response to three dose levels of methylphenidate.
The response of 23 children with attention deficit disorder ( ADD ) with hyperactivity ( + H ) and 17 children with ADD without hyperactivity ( -H ) to three doses of methylpheni date ( 5 , 10 , and 15 mg twice a day ) was evaluated in a triple-blind , placebo-controlled cross-over design using parent and teacher ratings of behavior , laboratory tests of ADD symptoms , and behavioral observations during academic performance . Results indicated that the children with ADD+H were rated as having more pervasive behavioral problems at home and more pervasive and severe conduct problems at school than the children with ADD-H. Laboratory tests found the children with ADD+H to be impaired in behavioral inhibition and vigilance whereas children with ADD-H were more impaired in the consistent retrieval of verbally learned material Drug effects were noted on the parent and teacher ratings and on most laboratory measures , with all three doses typically producing significant changes but rarely differing among themselves in effectiveness . The groups were not found to differ significantly on any measures in their response to methylpheni date . However , more children with ADD-H were clinical ly judged as having either no clinical response ( 24 % ) or responding best to the low dose ( 35 % ) of medication . In contrast , most ADD+H ( 95 % ) children were judged to be positive responders and most were recommended to receive the moderate to high dose ( 71 % )
Drug treatment benefited children in the amount of school work that they completed , by up to 15 % , and less consistently improved children ’s accuracy in specific types of academic assignments , such as arithmetic .
Methylpheni date , dexamfetamine and mixed amfetamine formulations all showed beneficial effects on children ’s on-task behaviour and academic work completion .
These review findings suggest that medication for ADHD has the potential to improve children ’s learning and academic achievement
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) has a significant impact on children ’s classroom behaviour , daily functioning and experience of school life .
However , the effects of drug treatment for ADHD on learning and academic achievement are not fully understood .
This review was undertaken to describe the effects of methylpheni date , dexamfetamine , mixed amfetamine salts and atomoxetine on children ’s on-task  behaviour and their academic performance , and to perform a meta- analysis to quantify these effects .