Below is Paul Dix's answer to a behaviour question asked by a TES reader. The response was published in the TES:
The Problem
I have a pupil who has just been diagnosed with ADHD. We treat his behaviour issues as we would any other child's, but his parents don't think he is responsible for his actions. They have talked about the Disability Discrimination Act - could we be accused of treating him unfairly?
The Expert View
I agree with the parents. Yes, he may not be able to take responsibility for his actions at the moment. Yes, you will need to tailor strategies to manage and improve his behaviour together with his parents. Yes, his condition would be covered by the Disability Discrimination Act.
You cannot afford to have an adversarial relationship with the boy's parents even if you find yourself at odds with their views. The diagnosis is recent and their approach may soften: in time you may be able to shift the focus from the child taking responsibility to the child developing more control. Allowing the child to blame his behaviour on ADHD/his parents/the weather is not going to help anyone to manage or improve it. If you are to have a chance of managing the condition, you are going to have to do it together.
In many ways you will treat him as you would any child: build a relationship, set clear boundaries, encourage appropriate behaviour, model emotional patience and have the flexibility to respond to individual needs. If you are persistently using high-level sanctions and nothing improves then you should look for ways in which you can refine what you do.
Where it may be different from the way you treat other children is in the time that you take to plan ways to manage and improve his behaviour, to share strategies that work and to devise an intervention plan for when his behaviour is most challenging. You will have to spend time listening, learning and negotiating with the child about how he can be helped to manage his condition. You will also have to explain to colleagues why he is different, why it matters that you are consistent and why he cannot "just go somewhere else".
