Enhancing the Note taking Skills of Students with Mild Disabilities

Teachers can improve the note-taking skills of students with mild disabilities by either modifying their presentation during lectures or teaching students how to use note-taking techniques. This article begins with a vignette and then describes how teachers can modify their lectures and how they can teach note-taking techniques to students. The two note-taking techniques described are strategic note taking and guided notes. In his first year of teaching Mr. Wickman reviewed the requirements for passing his history class with his students and then began his first lesson. Because it was the first day of the new school year, he chose a topic near and dear to his heart-life in Colonial Williamsburg. As he spoke, students frantically began to record notes, trying to write verbatim what was said. Mr. Wickman ner-vously fumbled through his notes, often speaking too fast to be understood. When he looked up from his handwritten notes, he noticed that all of the students, even Seth, were recording notes. &dquo;Good,&dquo; 11 Mr. Wickman thought to himself, &dquo;even the special education kid can keep up with the rest of the class.&dquo; &dquo; What Mr. Wickman didn’t know was that Seth was lost. Seth was in deep trouble. This was the first time he had experienced a lecture in which the teacher did not write notes on the board (or use transparencies); in-stead, Mr. Wickman stood next to the podium and read notes to students. At first, Seth wrote what he could, but before long, he could not keep up with the quick pace of the lecture because Mr. Wickman was talking too fast. This was when Seth had his first panic attack. His mind raced with a million questions. &dquo;What should I copy down,&dquo; &dquo;What is he talking about,&dquo; &dquo;Is this stuff in the book,&dquo; &dquo; &dquo;What did I just miss,&dquo; &dquo; &dquo;Why isn’t he writing anything on the board?&dquo; As the lecture ended, Seth was exhausted, and when he looked down at his notes, he could not read a word that he had just written. Seth went back to class the next day and was more determined than ever to concentrate harder and take better notes. Unfortunately, the results were very much the same