Category: Cram Session
Hey all i need a reminder service or smething the school uses outlook and the calendar and w.e and i dont all agree well its probably mostly me so can i get some help I am m failing eglish cause id didnt know what homework was due because simple formats elude these opeople and the teacher is a bitch about even trying to type shit... lets not even talk about freshman seminar and math or psychology oh fuck the review is due for that and well, I dont have it done will try to find it.. or e-mail her and explain it to her i dont even have it fuck she was supposed to e-mail it to me and I didn't read the book and need to tell phil the test date for music which i am passing and love thank you very much ah well
I know how that goes; I hadn't been doing my work for Psychology because I never knew when it was due. It took me to ask her about it after she had unexpectedly asked the class for and was handing back papers. Do you have access to a scanner? Because then you could scan your syllabus and save it to disk, and when you get on the computer to do your work, you can have the disk with you and see what you have to do and then delete each assignment after you've finished it. Or, if you had a notetaker or PDA you could read or have someone tell you which assignments are due when, and then you could enter them into the calendar/planner feature. But if the teacher just isn't good at or willing to communicate with you personally (like not answering your phone calls or emails), I would try to set up a time to talk with her personally and to get her to tell you what all needs to be done. If she's not even willing to set aside some time for you, and if you can't or don't want to drop, then you'll have to ask a classmate. And also ask around to other students about future teachers so that you can get an idea of what they're like. (Preferrably, I'd ask several who have the same preferences or problems, like not likeing pop quizzes or not being good at math for example, about one that you hear sounds good, just to make sure whether or not you'll get the same responses about him/her.) And also, if you can find an accessible form of next semester's schedule, try to get ahold of as many of the teachers as you can and also email them to see what they're like before you take someone that will end up being not right for you. For instance, I talked to a math theacher an found out by the way he talked to me that he wasn't interested in dealing with me as a blind student, and I had emailed and called a teacher months ahead of time asking what books I would need for her class, and got no response whatsoever. So I figured not to waste my time with those teachers. And I had only asked one person about another teacher, but found out too late that although he is a nice teacher, he gives pop quizzes, so I know not to take him again either.
Anyways, that last part was just something to help out in the future. If you want an actual planner program on the computer that will help you stay organized, I've tried out Lotus Notes (I believe that's what it's called), and it worked out pretty good with JAWS for the most part. (I don't remember how it works exactly though, so if they have a demo program, you might want to look for that and try it out. There is also a free program called, A Simple Diarey, and that one is very accessible and easy to use, and it's free. I believe you can also schedule for alarms if you wanted, but I haven't tried out that feature yet. Hope any of this helps, and good luck with getting your work done.
hmmm that's tough. I guess just keep nagging at the teacher and make them tell you or e-mail things to you, I mean if you follow through on everything then they have no choice. but tinkerbell's idea is good.
I tried to find a zsimple diary and couldnt where can i get it?
Here's what I found about "a simple diary": hope this helps.
http://www.freedownloadscenter.com/Reviews/r344.html
Have you ever wrote a diary? It's great to note down what happened during the day, record sparks of humor and office adventures which make work considerably
less mundane. Or use it as a weather diary and scrupulously take down all the weather parameters three times a day. Or it could be an always-available
scrapbook for phone numbers, links, appointments etc. Whatever way would you use your diary, A Simple Diary will help you do that quickly and efficiently.
A Simple Diary is a tiny tool that lets you save notes for every day, whether it is today, or some day in the past or in the future. The interface
is pretty simple: a scrollable one-month calendar on the left and some space for notetaking on the right side of the program screen. It has an alarm feature,
too, though you can't set more that one alarm at any given time. A basic to-do list is also included, and it's the same for all days.
This tool does not require installation - just download it and run - and is absolutely free. Check it out today!
thanks I couldnt find anything I needed that after my math appointment I will run to get it.
If you have, or plan on getting a Braillenot, they have planners, where you can write pages and pages of detailed notes for each day of the week, and also set multiple appointments, with or with out alarms on as many days as you would like. As for not having read the book. That is your problem, not the teacher's. lol I always try to read my text book in it's intirety, cover to cover before the course is even a fifth of the way through, and then look up or reread individual chapters or sections as needed. If you read the whole thing ahead of time you will always be somewhat prepared for pop quizs, and won't be so screwed over if you are unsure of an assignment date, having all ready gotten the gist of the information. If you didn't have the book, then you need to explain to your teacher, firmly, and even bitchily if neccessary that you checked with the library of congress, the NLS, and RFB and D, and that you were unable to find the book. Let them know that you are in the proccess of having it read on to tape, scanning it with your scanner, or having it brailled up by a volinteer Braille group. She can't expect you to have read what you don't have. If you don't know which assignments are due when, just start working through them in book order or numerical order, starting with the one that was assigned first. That way, when she asks where assignment X is, you can say. Well, I Don't have X, but here is W, and I am almost finished with X. I didn't know exactly when it was due, and I can get it to you by next class, or after the weekend. If she knows that you're trying, and sees that you have done some assignment, even if it isn't the right one, she will be more sympathetic, and more likely to help you and give neccessary extentions or incomplete grades to be updated later. If you have a teacher that you absolutly can't deal with, and they are seriously at falt, just take it to the head of the department. If they are the head of the department, take it to the principal or dean. Ok, my fingers are getting tired. I'm shutting up now.
I agree with the last poster about a notetaker being essential for a VI person to go to school these days. As she said, the BrailleNote has a daily planner that would be a god-send in your case. The Pac Mate also has a fine planner/calendar system. These devices are terribly expensive so perhaps you could get your state organization for the blind to help out with the cost.
If you can't get a notetaker, perhaps a laptop computer with something like microsoft outlook would help a little. Outlook is not real blind friendly in its calendar, but it can be done.
If nothing else works, you can use a portable tape recorder to take assignments down, and transcribe them into a file when you get home.
I feel your pain--I am constitutionally disorganized, and it has hurt me all my life.
Hope this helps.
Bob