Middle School Language Arts

Israel-based author Stephanie Freid describes an effective technique developed by  sports psychologist, Boris Blumenstein, and two other scientists at Israel’s Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sports.  Its original purpose was to mentally prepare Olympic athletes.  Now, however, this effective, proven technique–a gradual five-phase biofeedback process designed to help athletes better focus and self-regulate under stressful conditions–is being tried with appropriate modifications on a group of Israeli students with extreme ADHD.  The students were initially suspicious and skeptical, but were eventually won-over, in part because of their fascination with the biofeedback technology.  The “Wingate 5-Step Approach (W5SA)” techniques were found to be very effective in improving these students’ performance and behaviors.  As a consequence, educational psychologists from various other countries are also showing interest. 

If even these students with severe behaviors can be helped effectively without drug treatments, the ”W5SA” should be a beacon of hope for both our schools and our parents.  I know that, as a parent, such an approach would be the first option I would want for my child if it were available.  Drug treatments should always be a last resort, since they rarely get to the root of problems and can cause side effects and other related issues, such as possible abuse of medications.  I believe that a targeted biofeedback approach has great potential for improving the performance of every student, not just those with problems.

To learn more, read “Getting Rid of Ritalin” pgs. 50-51 in the Nov./Dec. 2006 issue of Edutopia Magazine.  This same article can be read online at http://www.edutopia.org/getting-rid-ritalin