The Services Provided to Students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Primary Schools from the Special Education Teachers’ Perspectives

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the reality and challenges of the special education services provided to students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in primary schools in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from the point of view of their teachers. By examining the perspectives of these educators, the research seeks to identify gaps, barriers, and areas for improvement in order to enhance the educational experience and outcomes for students with ADHD in primary schools. The study used a mixed-method approach, with a questionnaire distributed to 108 special education teachers and semi-structured interviews with conducted with four of those teachers. The mean, standard deviation, and ANOVA were among the techniques used in this study’s data analysis. The study used coding to perform an interpretive analysis on the qualitative data. The study concluded that the reality of special education services provided to students with ADHD is not at the desired level. The results also demonstrated that there are some obstacles facing the provision of special education services to students with ADHD in primary schools, including the lack of clarity in the referral procedures, the concealment by parents of some important information about the child’s condition, and the lack of awareness of general education teachers of disorders. The study suggested the need to adopt special programmes for ADHD in primary schools, the existence of clear procedural guides, and to raise awareness of ADHD through intensive in-service training for special education teachers.