Impact of Play Therapy on Learning Outcome in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Pupils: An Experimental Approach (Published)
The study examined the impact of play therapy on learning outcome on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder pupils in Port Harcourt Metropolis, Rivers State. Quasi experimental design within which the Solomon four group design was employed. Using purposive sampling technique, a sample of 60 primary three pupils who met the criteria for ADHD were randomly assigned into the four groups which was made up of two experimental groups and two control groups. Two valid instruments titled: Conners’ Rating Scales-Revised (CRS-R) for assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder and Mathematics Achievement Test (MAT) were used for collection of data in the study. The research questions were answered with mean and standard deviation. Hypotheses were tested for significance at 0.05 using dependent sample t-test, Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and One-way analysis of Variance (one-way ANOVA). The result revealed that play therapy is effective in the improvement of learning outcome of attention deficit hyperactivity pupils. There was a significant difference of play therapy on learning outcome among the groups (experimental group 1, control group 1, experimental group 2 and control group 2). Based on these findings’ recommendations were made.
Keywords: and learning outcome, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), play therapy