Exploring the awareness of university EFL lecturers on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a disorder whose effects can be observed from a very young age. Even people ranging in age from 1 to 4 can experience its symptoms. This may lead to the misperception that the disorder concerns only the individuals at a tender age. But in fact, ADHD is a life-long situation that changes and develops as the personages. In adults, hyperactivity may decrease, but symptoms such as impulsivity, restlessness, and difficulty concentrating may persist. For this reason, it is important that university EFL teachers have sufficient knowledge about ADHD in order to educate these students more efficiently. This study aims to investigate the awareness of EFL teachers on ADHD. 160 EFL teachers working at 3 private universities and 4 state universities in different regions of Turkey participated in the survey. The survey also reveals the effect of demographic characteristics on their level of knowledge about ADHD. In order to get in-debth information, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 8 English teachers selected among the participants. According to the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Scale, teachers' average awareness level is moderate. Demographic variables such as gender, educational background, expert support, in-service training, books, pamphlets, handouts, teaching experience, and having students diagnosed with ADHD were found to be ineffective on EFL teachers' level of knowledge about this disorder. It has been determined that the ADHD training course, the number of students with ADHD, articles, TV programs and the internet are effective on teachers' ADHD knowledge. The results revealed that teachers need training to increase their theoretical and practical acquisitions in this field.