Orton-Gillingham Approach as an Online Intervention for Learners Diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)-Specific Learning Disorder (SLD) in Mathematics: A Descriptive Case Study

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to investigate whether the use of Orton-Gillingham Math as an intervention in teaching a child diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Specific Learning Disorder (SLD) with impairment in mathematics lead to an improvement in addition skills. This study had a single participant chosen purposively based on the criteria namely diagnosis, arithmetic calculation level, and unfamiliarity with OG-Math intervention. The learner-participant was taught using the OG-Math approach which two main features are multisensory approach and concrete-representational-abstract progression via an online platform for twice-a-week over a period of four weeks. The pre and post evaluation of the learner-participant’s Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrician and the pre and post paper and pencil test which was composed of 75-item addition problems conducted by the teacher were used to determine the learner-participant’s basic operation addition fact knowledge prior and subsequent to the implementation of OG-Math online intervention. The data were analyzed using trustworthy thematic analysis and pattern matching. The analysis revealed that the learner-participant can already solve addition problems involving 3-digit addends with and without regrouping after the math intervention from only being able to solve single-digit addition problems. Hence, it is recommended to mathematics teachers to use OG-Math approach as an online intervention to children with ADHD and SLD with impairment in math to improve their addition skills.