Use of Otter.ai as a notetaking tool | Accessible Learning Services | Seneca Students

Use of Otter.ai as a note taking tool

After March 2023, a new note taking support is available to students registered with Accessible Learning Services that have documented disability related impacts to note taking. Students who are eligible for this accommodation will have this updated on the Letter of Accommodation. It will state: 

Otter Ai is an application that provides students with real-time captions and notes for in-person and virtual lectures, classes or meetings through technology. Otter AI allows students to pull electronic PowerPoint slides into a note taking application while transcribing auditory information presented in lecture. It empowers students with the ability to highlight, comment, and insert images within class notes and give them the ability to seamlessly create study tools with the transcripts. 

Videos: 

FAQ for Otter AI 

1. How does Otter AI work? 

 Otter is cloud-based and 100% AI-powered with no human transcribers involved. It’s speech-to-text engine supports English and requires minimal training and customization. 

Otter Ai uses a speaker identification algorithm that distinguishes and learns to create a voiceprint for each speaker. The result is a legible, speaker-labeled transcript with synchronized audio and text. 

2. Why are we moving to Otter AI? 

Traditional note taking related accommodations (i.e., Peer Note taking) were not effectively meeting student needs because it is dependent on other student volunteers, has no mechanism to assess quality control/accuracy of notes and has limit opportunity for knowledge consolidation for the student.  

Otter AI is widely compatible — laptops, tablets, smart phones, and other mobile devices, allows students to consolidate slides with transcribed verbal lecture content, provides accurate and immediate notes and meaningful study guides, and requires minimal training for students to use independently.  

3. Will Peer Note takers still be used to support students in my class? 

Over the remainder of the 2022-23 academic year, and the 2023-24 academic year there will be a slow phase out of Peer Note taking as an accommodation for note taking support, but some current students have experienced success with it, so for those few students Peer Note taking will continue to be available for the duration of their studies. 

4. What safeguards are in place around Privacy and Intellectual Property? 

A Privacy Impact Assessment was completed by the Seneca Privacy Office, and a local procedure has been developed defining how information will be protected when students use Otter AI. This document is hyperlinked in the Letter of Accommodation and aligns with Seneca’s existing Recording Lectures and Educational Activities Policy.  

When this accommodation is added to an accommodation plan and appears on the Letter of Accommodation, students are trained how to ethically use Otter AI with respect to professors and other classmates and the local procedure is reviewed with them. 

5. What do I need to do to implement this accommodation as a faculty member? 

When Note taking Support (Digital Note taking) appears on a letter of Accommodation, instructors are required to notify their class and obtain consent for recordings. For most recordings, implicit consent is sufficient, and can be completed by notifying students at the beginning of a term that lectures will be recorded, and for what purpose (i.e., for accommodation purposes, without identifying the student). 

*For additional information about Otter AI click the image to visit their webpage.