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Resources from the SETSIG Executive Board

SETSIG Resources for Students Who Struggle
by The SETSIG Executive Commitee

Note taking is a central part of the learning activities in most classrooms beyond forth grade. However, students with disabilities and many other students struggle with the process of listening, processing, and recording key ideas. This complex metacognitive skill has so many component skills that can go awry and create significant frustration for a stuggling student.

While technology cannot fully replace the process of notetaking, there are many strategies and tools that students can explore to determine what increases their effectivness as a notetaker:

Use a product like Inspiration (http://www.inspiration.com) to organize the key ideas and terms in a concept map.
Ask the teacher to provide a structured outline for notetaking (http://www.ri.net/schools/East_Greenwich/notesheet.htm). Learn how to use a structured note taking system like Cornell Notes (http://hines.nn.k12.va.us/avid/notes.html).
Allow the student to use a portable keyboard (http://www.alphasmart.com) or laptop computer to type the notes.
Use a portable digital recorder and upload the file to a dictation center (http://www.idictate.com) who will type the notes for you to review.
See if the instructor is willing to podcast his/her lecture so that you can listen to the lecture again after class.
When taking notes from online reading or research assignments use tools like NoteStar (http://notestar.4teachers.org) or Google Notebook (http://notebook.google.com) that will help you create summaries and keep track of the sources.

Resource Corner

Resources from the SETSIG Executive Board

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