The Hyperactive Child in Elementary School: A 5 Year, Controlled, Followup

Abstract

The study examines the academic performance of 37 schoolchildren, diagnosed as hyperactive 4 to 6 years previously, and compares it with the performance of an equal number of nonhyperactive classmates. The results indicate that hyperactive youngsters have a significantly higher failure rate in all academic subjects and are rated by their teachers as displaying far more behavioral problems than their controls. While the hyperactive children showed an increase in learning disorders and did poorer on a group IQ test than their peers, intelligence alone was ruled out as the main contributor to their academic failure.