Glossary

Changes to how a student accesses instruction or demonstrates learning, without changing the academic content or expectations. Accommodations level the playing field. They do not lower the bar. Extended time, reduced distraction testing environments, preferential seating, permission to use assistive technology, and written rather than verbal directions are common accommodations for students with ADHD and executive function challenges.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. A neurodevelopmental condition characterized by persistent patterns of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that interfere with functioning and development. ADHD is not a deficit in knowing what to do. Research by Russell A. Barkley establishes that ADHD is primarily a disorder of performance and self-regulation: the ability to do what one knows, consistently, when and where it matters.

A legal standard under IDEA requiring that a student's disability adversely affects their educational performance before they can qualify for special education services. Schools interpret this standard differently. For students with ADHD, adverse educational impact may be demonstrated through academic performance, behavioral data, work samples, grades, or observations of how the disability affects learning in the classroom setting.

The total demand a task places on a student's attention and working memory systems, as used in the Show Your Work Attention Load Checker. Attention load is a practical measure that combines cognitive load factors including number of steps, split-attention demands, presence of a clear starting point, delivery mode, and duration, into a rough score that indicates how demanding a task is likely to be for students with attention and executive function challenges.

The ability to pause before acting, stop an ongoing response when it is no longer appropriate, and resist interference from competing stimuli. Barkley's research identifies behavioral inhibition as the core deficit in ADHD. When inhibition is impaired, the executive functions that depend on it, including working memory, self-regulation, and planning, are also affected.

The total amount of mental effort a task places on working memory. Cognitive load theory, developed by John Sweller, distinguishes between load that comes from the inherent complexity of the material and load that comes from how the task is designed and presented. The second kind is avoidable. For students with ADHD, who start with reduced working memory capacity, avoidable cognitive load has a greater impact on performance than it does for typically developing students.

The degree to which the components of a task must be processed simultaneously rather than in isolation. High element interactivity means that understanding one part of a task requires simultaneously holding and connecting multiple other parts. Low element interactivity tasks can be processed one component at a time. High element interactivity increases cognitive load significantly, particularly for students with limited working memory capacity.

A set of mental processes that support goal-directed behavior. Barkley's model identifies the key executive functions as working memory, self-regulation of affect and motivation, internalization of speech, and reconstitution, which is the ability to analyze situations and generate responses. These functions develop gradually across childhood and are not fully mature until the mid-twenties. In students with ADHD, executive function development is typically delayed by approximately 30 percent relative to same-age peers.

The cognitive load imposed by how a task is designed, presented, or delivered, as opposed to the complexity of the content itself. Extraneous load is avoidable. Poor instructional design, unclear directions, split-attention conditions, and unnecessary complexity in task format all increase extraneous load. Reducing extraneous load is the primary goal of task design improvement for students with working memory and attention challenges.

Individualized Education Program. A legally binding document developed for students with disabilities who require specially designed instruction to access their education. An IEP is created and reviewed by a team that includes the student's parents or guardians, teachers, specialists, and school administrators. It describes the student's current levels of performance, annual goals, and the specific services and supports the school will provide.

The cognitive load that comes from the inherent complexity of the material being learned. Intrinsic load cannot be eliminated without also reducing the learning goal. A task about fractions carries more intrinsic load than a task about counting. A multi-paragraph essay carries more intrinsic load than a sentence. Intrinsic load is not the target for task design improvements. Extraneous load is.

One of the 13 disability categories under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) under which a student can qualify for an IEP. ADHD most commonly qualifies for special education services under Other Health Impairment, which covers conditions that result in limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that adversely affects educational performance. Parents are sometimes told that a child with ADHD can only receive a 504 plan. This is not always accurate. A child with ADHD can qualify for an IEP under OHI if the condition adversely affects educational performance and specially designed instruction is needed.

A term used by Barkley to describe ADHD as a condition that disrupts the ability to perform what one knows, rather than the ability to learn or retain information. Students with ADHD often know exactly what to do. The breakdown occurs in translating that knowledge into consistent action, particularly under conditions that require delayed effort, self-monitoring, or working memory.

The exact moment and place where a behavior, skill, or task is expected to occur. Barkley's research establishes that interventions for students with ADHD are most effective when delivered at the point of performance, not in a separate session beforehand and not as a debrief afterward. A reminder given at the start of the day is far less effective than a visual cue present at the desk when the task begins.

A condition in which presenting the same information in multiple formats simultaneously increases cognitive load rather than reducing it. When two sources of information contain the same content, such as a diagram and a verbal explanation of the same diagram, students must process both and determine that they are equivalent, which adds cognitive work. The redundancy effect is separate from split attention. It involves repetition rather than incompleteness.

The ability to manage one's own behavior, emotions, attention, and effort in response to the demands of a task or situation. Self-regulation depends on behavioral inhibition and working memory. In students with ADHD, self-regulation is consistently and reliably impaired. Not occasionally, and not by choice.

Instruction that has been adapted in content, methodology, or delivery to meet the unique needs of a student with a disability. Specially designed instruction is what distinguishes an IEP from a 504 plan. A 504 plan provides accommodations, meaning changes to how learning is accessed or demonstrated. Specially designed instruction involves changes to what and how a student is taught, based on their individualized needs.

A condition that occurs when students must process two or more separate sources of information simultaneously, and those sources cannot be understood independently. Chandler and Sweller's research demonstrates that tasks requiring learners to mentally integrate multiple information sources produce significantly higher cognitive load than tasks where that integration is built into the design. The student's cognitive resources go toward managing the split rather than learning the content.

The ability to maintain focus on a task over time, particularly in the absence of immediate feedback or reward. Sustained attention is consistently impaired in ADHD. The longer a task requires uninterrupted independent effort, the more working memory and self-regulation are taxed by the act of staying on task itself, leaving fewer cognitive resources available for the actual work.

The executive function skill involved in beginning a task independently. Task initiation is a distinct skill separate from the ability to complete a task once started. Students with ADHD consistently show impaired task initiation, particularly for tasks with an unclear starting point, tasks that require deciding between multiple possible entry points, or tasks that have previously been associated with frustration or failure.

Difficulty shifting attention and cognitive focus from one task or activity to another. Cognitive shifting is the ability to mentally disengage from one task and orient to the next. It is an executive function skill that is reliably impaired in ADHD. Transition difficulty is not defiance or rigidity. It is a processing problem that requires structure and advance notice, not a consequence.

The cognitive system responsible for holding and manipulating information in the short term while completing a task. Working memory is limited in both capacity and duration for all people. Students with ADHD show consistent deficits in working memory relative to same-age peers. When a task requires holding too many pieces of information in mind simultaneously, working memory is overloaded and performance breaks down.

A plan developed under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act that provides accommodations and supports for students with disabilities who do not require specially designed instruction but need adjustments to access the general education curriculum. A 504 plan provides accommodations, meaning changes to how a student demonstrates learning, but does not include specially designed instruction or the legally enforceable goals that an IEP includes.