Impact of Attention Training on Academic Achievement, Executive Functioning, and Behavior: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
A home-based attention game gave kids with IDD only a tiny late bump in math—delivery details decide the payoff.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers sent a computerized attention-training game home with kids who have intellectual or developmental disabilities.
Families played the game on their own schedule for several weeks.
The team later checked math, reading, and behavior scores right after training and again three months later.
What they found
Right after the game ended, nothing looked different.
Three months later, kids scored slightly higher on a short math test.
No changes showed up in reading, attention, or classroom behavior.
How this fits with other research
Spaniol et al. (2021) ran almost the same game with autistic children and saw medium gains in math, reading, and writing that lasted three months.
The difference: their kids played twice a week at a clinic, while Hannah’s kids played at home whenever they wanted.
Sacrey et al. (2025) pushed the idea even younger: toddlers with ASD who played a short attention game paid attention better in real life.
Together the three studies say the game can work, but setting, schedule, and diagnosis shape the payoff.
Why it matters
If you serve students with IDD, do not count on a take-home game to lift grades.
Use a fixed schedule, track data, and pair the game with direct teaching.
Autistic learners may gain more, so match the tool to the learner and keep your academic goals small and specific.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) experience significant difficulties in attention, learning, executive functions, and behavioral regulation. Emerging evidence suggests that computerized cognitive training may remediate these impairments. In a double blind controlled trial, 76 children with IDD (4-11 years) were randomized to either an attention training (n = 38) or control program (n = 38). Both programs were completed at home over a 5-week period. Outcome measures assessed literacy, numeracy, executive functioning, and behavioral/emotional problems, and were conducted at baseline, post-training, and 3-month follow-up. No training effects were observed at post-training; however, children in the training group showed greater improvements in numeracy skills at the 3-month follow-up. These results suggest that attention training may be beneficial for children with IDD; however, the modest nature of the intervention effects indicate that caution should be taken when interpreting clinical significance.
American journal on intellectual and developmental disabilities, 2017 · doi:10.1352/1944-7558-122.2.97