Accessibility Services is excited to be able to offer Glean audio-recording software for qualifying students as an alternative to peer note taking assistance, as it fosters autonomy and the strengthening of note taking and study skills. Please explore the links below for more information. 

 

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Glean:

 

Glean software combines audio-recording for lectures with user-friendly organizational tools to help students develop their own notetaking skills, and to better absorb and retain the information shared in the classroom. 

 

For a quick tour of Glean and its features, visit the Glean Skills Portal.

 

Upon approval:

 

Audio Recording Agreement:

All students approved for Glean software with permission to audio record must submit our Audio Recording Agreement and agree to the terms and conditions therein. This agreement only needs to be submitted by each student once, and can be revisited at any time in the student’s AIM portal. 

 

Training:

Students will be connected with our Access Coordinator upon approval in order to schedule a brief training session on using Glean. This training should be completed soon after a student is approved so that they can make the most of the software, and students are welcome to attend additional open training sessions as desired to refresh their knowledge. Alternatively, students can opt to self-train with Glean’s online tutorials, but must inform the Access Coordinator of that decision. 

 

Each Semester:

 

Academic accommodations must be selected for each individual class at the beginning of each semester. Once a student’s schedule has been finalized, they should request accommodations in AIM, and be sure to select “Glean + Audio Recording” for any class in which they attend to use Glean. This will prompt a notification to the professor(s) of each of those classes. 

 

Faculty FAQ: 

 

[Working with Faculty: 6 common questions for implementing Glean in higher education]
https://glean.co/blog/overcoming-faculty-pushback?utm_campaign=Customer%20Marketing&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=86973729&utm_content=86973729&utm_source=hs_email

 

 

Peer Note Taking Services:

 

When students are approved for a Peer Note Taker, a student who is already enrolled in the same class will be hired to provide notes to the qualified AS student. This service is designed to supplement a student’s own note taking in their course, and is not a replacement for attendance. 

 

Not all courses require the service of a Peer Note Taker, so it is useful to consider the individual course design before requesting a note taker for each course. For example, we generally do not approve note takers for lab or discussion sections of a course, and courses with heavy group work components and little to no lecturing may not be appropriate for the services of a Peer Note Taker. 

 

Approved students should request a Peer Note Taker when selecting their accommodations in each course at the beginning of each semester in our AIM system. Once requested in AIM, we will be able to review and approve potential matches from our existing roster of Peer Note Takers, and reach out to class rosters for applicants if an appropriate match is not already working with our office. Please note that this process may take up to 2 weeks from the time a request is received in order to find and hire an appropriate Peer Note Taker.

 

Become a Note Taker:

 

Peer Note Takers are Amherst College students who are currently enrolled in a course in which there is a need from a qualified student through our office. Peer Note Takers are paid to take legible, accurate, and comprehensive notes, and to upload those notes within 24 hours of each class period to our AIM portal. Peer Note Takers are paid at the standard student employment rate for their time taking notes in class, plus a small amount of administrative time to tidy and upload their notes for another student’s use.

 

To be eligible, students must be enrolled in the course in question, and must provide a sample of their own notes for review. There are two ways to be added to the existing roster of potential note takers:

  1. Pay attention to your emails and respond quickly with your interest and a sample of your notes if we email any of your class rosters seeking a note taker for a particular course. The process moves quickly, so you are more likely to be selected if you respond within the same day of the outreach. If you are hired, and you prove to be reliable and to take quality notes, then you will remain on our roster for following semesters.
  2. Reach out at any time to accesscoordination@amherst.edu with your interest and a sample of your notes. Our Access Coordinator will review them and, if they decide to move forward, will reach out to you with instructions on setting up a note taker account in AIM so that you can submit the classes that you are enrolled in for consideration. Again, if you are hired, and you prove to be reliable and to take quality notes, then you will remain on our roster for following semesters.

 

Current Note Takers:

 

At the beginning of each semester:

 

Submit your current course load in AIM, so that you will be considered first for positions in courses where needs arise. Please only add courses that you are sure you will remain enrolled in - you can always add additional courses later on when you are sure.

 

When you are hired:

Complete your Peer Note Taker Training Course. Even if you have already completed the training in past semesters, it is always useful to review good note taking skills, so you will need to update your training for each semester in which you are hired.

 

Apply for the Peer Note Taker position in Workday, fill out any required paperwork with the Student Employment Office, and set up your Note Taker account in AIM. Instructions for these steps can be found in your Training Course.

 

Upload your notes to AIM within 24 hours of each class period. Other students are depending on these notes for their own studies and preparation, so it is vital that you upload each set of notes in a timely manner and do not skip uploads for class sessions unless there were no meaningful notes to be uploaded for that session. 

 

Make sure the notes are covered, even if you are absent. Once hired, you are responsible for providing the notes to the student(s) who are depending on them, so you are expected to procure replacement notes from a peer in class if you are going to be absent. If you have an emergency or cannot procure replacement notes, please reach out to the Access Coordinator at accesscoordination@amherst.edu as quickly as possible to let us know. 

 

FAQs:

 

  • Who should I reach out to with any questions?
    • Raphaela Moreno - Access Coordinator
    • accesscoordination@amherst.edu
  • I don’t have a scanner. How do I scan my notes?
    • Click this link for a list of free options for scanner apps that work with Android and iPhone.
  • I have not been paid. What should I do?
    • Apply for the Note Taker position in Workday. This is where you will submit your timesheets.
    • You need to submit your timesheets in Workday for them to be approved so that you can receive payment. Student payroll is processed every two weeks, so you are welcome to submit after each class or cumulatively every week or two weeks.
    • If you are a new student employee there are required forms/documents to prioritize completing right away with our Student Employment office. Students cannot be paid until these steps are complete. You do not need to upload a resume. Once I receive your application, then I can move you quickly through the hiring process.
    • You can access helpful information, apps, and tutorials for Workday here.
  • What if I drop the class for which I am the notetaker?
    • Please notify our office as soon as possible, as we will need to begin searching for a replacement.
  • What if I need to miss a class?
    • As a notetaker, you are expected to attend every class, unless an extenuating circumstance arises that prevents you from being there. If you are going to be absent due to illness or emergency, you should make an effort to obtain notes from a classmate that you can upload in order to ensure that the student you are supporting has access to complete notes for the course. If you are unable to cover your notes for a class, please reach out to our office as soon as possible to let us know. 

 

 

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Contact:

Please reach out to Raphaela Moreno at accesscoordination@amherst.edu with any questions or concerns, including if expected notes have not been uploaded into AIM in a timely manner, or if there have been any changes to the course structure or any other updates that we should be aware of.