Support for Memory Impairments
Memory, including the acquisition, storage, and retrieval of information, involves a complex set of cognitive processes and neurological structures. Some students registered with the PMC have disability-related functional impairments that directly affect memory. At university, students must learn and retrieve significantly more information at a higher level of complexity and detail than they have in the past.
The general purpose of all academic accommodations is to increase the likelihood that the performance of students reflects their knowledge and ability, rather than the functional impact of their disability, without jeopardizing essential course requirements or providing an unfair advantage. Memory Aids are a rare accommodation for students whose disabilities clearly impact on the ability to retrieve information that they have learned during tests and exams.
Table of Contents
Memory Aids
Cueing Sheets and Computational Formula Sheets
Cueing Sheets are not cheat sheets; with facts copied down for the student to refer to during tests or exams. They contain retrieval cues that the student has developed over time from their course material to assist in the recall of previously learned information.
Features of a Cueing Sheet
- Double-sided 8 ½” x 11” page
- Created on a computer (minimum 12-point font) or hand written (equivalent to 12-point font)
- May contain mind maps, images, rhymes, acronyms, and so on
- Make sense only to the student who created it
- Submitted to PMC 5 business days before a test or exam for review and possible revision
Cueing Sheets do not…
- Cover all of the information from a course
- Include specific examples, complete words or sentences, or other essential course knowledge
- Provide answers
Cueing Sheet Examples
Computational Formula Sheets
A Computational Formula Sheet is appropriate only for courses for which memorization of computational formulas is not an essential learning objective. It is intended to allow students to demonstrate their ability to apply formulas rather than to retrieve them from memory.
Features of a Computational Formula Sheet
- Double sided 8 ½” x 11” page
- Created on a computer (minimum 12 point font) or hand written (equivalent to 12 point font)
- Contain formulas in notation form
- Submitted to PMC 5 business days before a test or exam for review and possible revision
Computational Formula Sheets do not…
- Cover all possible formulas, only those that cannot be retrieved.
- Include instructions, steps, or specific examples.
- Provide essential information, for example, theoretical information about the relationships among concepts (such as in a purely definitional formula).
- Generally, do not include conversion.
Memory Aids: Process
PMC Coordinator’s Role
- The PMC Coordinator reviews the student’s formal documentation to verify a functional limitation that supports the Memory Aid accommodation. In unclear cases, the PMC Coordinator may request that additional or updated documentation. In all cases, the PMC Coordinator and student must first employ alternatives, including:
- Referral to a PMC Learning Strategist to develop individualized exam-writing and memory strategies, with an emphasis on self-testing
- Referral to other campus resources to develop exam-writing and exam anxiety coping strategies
In very rare cases where these have proven ineffective, and up-to-date documentation clearly indicates a functional impairment in the student’s ability to retrieve information they have learned, PMC will support a Memory Aid Accommodation.
- After having approved the Memory Aid Accommodation, the PMC Coordinator adds it to the student’s Letter of Accommodation (LOA), and emails the LOA to the Instructor.
- The PMC Coordinator sends a follow-up email to the Instructor to explain the process and invite the Instructor to respond with any questions or concerns.
- For each test or exam, the PMC Coordinator oversees the Memory Aid Accommodation. This includes screening and sending all Proposed Memory Aids well in advance of a test or exam for the Instructor feedback, and delivering them, if approved, to Exam Services for inclusion in the student’s exam package.
Student’s Role
- The student must request accommodations at the beginning of each term. They must first confirm any authorized items allowed for the entire class for tests and exams.
- The student must submit their Proposed Memory Aid to the PMC Coordinator no later than five business before the test or exam.
- The student must make any changes required by the PMC Coordinator and Instructor, and resubmit the edited Proposed Memory Aid no later than three business days before the test or exam.
The Memory Aid Accommodation may not be available if the student does not follow the above process.
Instructor’s Role
- After receiving the student’s Letter of Accommodation and the follow-up e-mail, the Instructor will reply to the PMC Coordinator to raise any questions or concerns.
- Upon receipt of a student’s Proposed Memory Aid, the Instructor will reply with their formal approval or request changes to content if it undermines the essential learning objectives for the course, or provides an unfair advantage.
When (and if) the Instructor has approved the proposed Memory Aid, the PMC Coordinator will submit it to SES for inclusion in the exam package.