If you are approved to use a memory aid, please review the information and training video below. Your SAS Advisor will provide this video when the accommodation is added to your SAS eligibilities.
What is a Memory Aid?
A memory aid is an accommodation designed to allow students with certain disabilities to retrieve information from memory that they have already learned, but have difficulty accessing without the use of cues.
A memory aid does not have specific course material on it, but rather cues or triggers such as rhymes, acrostics, or diagrams. Without a solid understanding of course material gained through previous study, a memory aid will be of little use to a student. In addition, the cues or triggers will be so separate from course material that the memory aid would not help anyone but the student who created it.
Some students may have a formula sheet accommodation. More information about formula sheets can be found below.
Who Gets a Memory Aid?
Memory aids are approved for students who have a documented medical condition or learning disability that causes a significant memory deficit, even with appropriate study.
SAS will only recommend a memory aid when disability-related documentation:
- Clearly outlines the functional impact on memory
- Describes the memory assessment performed
- Shows that other strategies to support memory are not sufficient
Because of the complexity and potential impact on academic outcomes, SAS may request an additional third-party review of documentation before approving this accommodation.
Human Rights and Fairness
The purpose of any accommodation is equity, not advantage. Accommodations must remove disability-related barriers without compromising essential learning outcomes.
An essential requirement is that which cannot be adapted without compromising the basic objective of the task.
If demonstrating memorization is a core learning outcome, then memory aids may not be appropriate.
Academic Integrity and Essential Course Requirements
When course content or specific information is an essential learning objective, it cannot appear on a memory aid.
Example:
- If the outcome is to know and reproduce a formula → the formula cannot be included
- If the outcome is to apply a formula → the formula may be permitted on a formula sheet, not a trigger sheet
Although an SAS Advisor may recommend a memory aid, the professor or department chair determines whether using a memory aid affects the integrity of a test or exam. If memorization is a fundamental course objective, the accommodation may be disallowed.
Memory Aid Specifics
A trigger sheet...
- is a single-sided 8.5” × 11” page
- has a white background and no content in margins
- may be handwritten/drawn or typed (12-point font)
- must be clearly legible
- may include cues such as images, diagrams, mind maps, acronyms, rhymes, or other personal triggers
- should make sense only to the student who created it
A trigger sheet does not...
- cover all course information
- include complete terms, definitions, worked examples, or essential course knowledge
- include formulas (these belong on a formula sheet if approved)
- provide answers
A formula sheet memory aid...
- is a single-sided 8.5” × 11” page
- has a white background and no content in margins
- contains only formulas in notation form
- includes only formulas the student cannot retrieve
- may be handwritten or typed (12-point font)
- must be clearly legible
A formula sheet does not...
- include all possible formulas
- provide instructions, steps, or examples
- include theoretical or conceptual information
- include conversions
- include cues or triggers (these belong on a trigger sheet if approved)
Students approved for both a trigger sheet and a formula sheet may use two separate sheets, if both are relevant to the test or exam.
Process of Creating and Approving a Memory Aid
SAS Advisor Responsibilities
- Review disability-related documentation to determine whether a memory aid is the most appropriate accommodation.
- Provide training on how to construct a memory aid (or refer the student to the Writing & Learning Specialist or the video at the top of this page).
- Communicate with instructors as needed to:
- Clarify essential requirements
- Problem-solve challenges
- Provide sample memory aids
- Address questions or concerns
- Explain submission processes for the Exam Centre
Student Responsibilities
- Be registered with SAS in the current semester.
- Be approved for a memory aid accommodation. Training will be provided at approval.
- Request the memory aid (trigger sheet and/or formula sheet) each semester through the SAS Student Portal.
- Confirm with each instructor whether a memory aid is permitted in the course.
- Confirm any authorized aids allowed for all students in the course.
- Create a draft memory aid and submit it to the instructor for review at least 7 days before the exam or by the mutually agreed deadline.
- Revise the memory aid as requested until the instructor approves it.
- Email the approved memory aid and the instructor’s written approval to the Exam Centre (sas.exams@uoguelph.ca) at least 3 business days before the test. CC your SAS Advisor. Screenshots will not be accepted.
- Repeat this process for every test and exam.
- After writing the exam in the Exam Centre, place the memory aid in the exam envelope for the instructor’s review.
Important:
- If the memory aid is not submitted on time, it will not be allowed for that exam.
- If an instructor does not approve the memory aid, it cannot be used. Students should notify their SAS Advisor for assistance with resolving the issue.
Instructor Responsibilities
When the instructor receives the Faculty Notification Letter that outlines a student’s SAS-approved accommodations, they should reach out to the SAS Advisor if they have any concerns about the use of a memory aid in their course.
When a student submits a memory aid for approval, the instructor should first confirm in the SAS Faculty Portal that the student is approved for a trigger sheet and/or formula sheet.
Approval should be based on essential requirements and learning outcomes.
The instructor may:
- Approve the trigger sheet and/or formula sheet as submitted.
- Request edits to remove content that compromises academic integrity and ask the student to resubmit.
- Disallow the memory aid if the cues or formulas on the sheet represent essential knowledge or skills required in the course.
The instructor should notify both the student and SAS Advisor of any concerns and, where time allows, permit the student to submit a revised version.
Instructors are not responsible for correcting content errors on memory aids.
After the exam, instructors should verify that the trigger sheet or formula sheet submitted with the exam matches the version previously approved.
SAS Exam Centre Responsibilities
- Receive memory aids and instructor approvals via forwarded email from the student (no screenshots) at least 3 business days before the exam. SAS Advisors should be copied.
- Print and include the memory aid in the exam envelope for student use.
- Review each trigger sheet and/or formula sheet to ensure it complies with SAS guidelines as outlined on this page and in the E-form agreement the student signs in the SAS Student Portal.
- If a sheet does not meet guidelines, contact the student, SAS Advisor, and instructor for clarification or further approval.
