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 .
Methylphenidate in hyperactive children: Differential effects of dose on academic, learning, and social behavior
Methylpheni date ( Ritalin ) has been shown to have differential effects on hyperactive children 's behavior as a function of dose level . In the present investigation , a triple-blind , placebo-control , within-subject ( crossover ) experimental design was employed in which 12 hyperactive boys between 6 and 10 years received three different dosages of methylpheni date ( 5 , 10 , and 15 mg ) in a r and omly assigned sequence . Dosage effects were assessed on clinic(PAL-Paired Associates Learning test ) and school-(percent on task , teacher ratings , work completion rates , and accuracy ) related behaviors . For 10 of the children , classified as responders to medication by the PAL using the criteria of Swanson , Kinsbourne , and colleagues , a series of ANCOVAs with repeated measures showed significant dosage effects on teacher ratings ( p ⋖01 ) , percent on task ( p ⋖01 ) , academic accuracy ( p ⋖05 ) , and assignment completion rates ( p ⋖05 ) . PAL performance was also significantly enhanced ( p ⋖01 ) after optimal dose levels were considered . Subsequent trend analysis showed a significant positive linear relationship between dose and each of the dependent variables . A comparison of fixed-dose and miligram-per-kilogram plots showed that children 's performance across the different dosages were clearly individualistic and task-specific , even when similar body weights were compared . The implication s of using clinic-based testing to determine optimal medication responsivity were discussed
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 .