Executive Functioning
What Executive Function Skills are Expected in High School?
High school in most school systems in the US encompasses grades 9-12, or from about the ages 14 to 18. This is an important time for applying and expanding the foundational Executive Function skills that began in middle school and elementary grades. These include:
Self-regulation - managing strong emotions and inhibiting impulsive behaviors
Attention - sustaining focus, especially for lengthy or challenging tasks that may have many components
Task Initiation - starting a non-preferred task and overcoming a desire to procrastinate
Organization - keeping track of materials at home and in school, organizing ideas and information for essays and research papers, managing digital data and files
Planning and Prioritizing - mapping out multi- step tasks such as long-term class projects, and tackling assignments in order of importance
Time Management - allocating time for schoolwork and other commitments such as sports, clubs, family, friends, part-time jobs, volunteer work, and other involvements
Cognitive Flexibility - taking the perspective of teachers and peers and formulating different solutions to problems
Metacognition - the ability to reflect on one's own learning and have self-awareness that drives good choices
What are the signs of Executive Function problems in High School students?
Parents often see signs of Executive Function challenges in their child in high school, when students face increased demands for self-management.
Parents and teachers may notice:
Organizational challenges - the student has difficulties organizing class materials, keeping track of and turning in homework, or approaching writing assignments and long-term projects
Behavior or emotion management challenges - the student may have poor relationships with teachers, be unable to resist distractions, have difficulty settling down to do work, or give up easily on challenging or tedious tasks
Time management challenges - the student leaves work until the last minute, causing panic and stress at home, may be overscheduled and stressed
Academic challenges - the student lacks persistence or often does not complete or even start assignments, may do poorly on tests due to ineffective study habits, may lose credit for late assignments, may not know how to take notes in class
https://www.beyondbooksmart.com/executive-function-in-high-school-students
The Educational team at Rush Neurobehavioral Center provides helpful information regarding executive functioning difficulties in students for school teams and families. Resources, workshops, and additional services are available for school teams, parents, and students.
Resources for parents on helping students with ADHD including treatments, webinars, resources, and symptom checkers.
Students with executive functioning issues may have difficulty staying organized, communication skills, and written expression. They may also have trouble shifting attention from one task to another. Helpful resources and additional information is available on the understood.org website including ways to help students with common learning challenges associated with executive functioning difficulties.
