EmoBridge: Bridging the Communication Gap between Students with Disabilities and Peer Note-Takers Utilizing Emojis and Real-Time Sharing

TL;DR

EmoBridge, a collaborative note-taking platform that facilitates real-time collaboration and communication between PNT-SWD pairs using emojis, is developed and evaluated, showing improved class participation for SWDs and a reduced sense of sole responsibility for PNTs.

Abstract

Students with disabilities (SWDs) often struggle with note-taking during lectures. Therefore, many higher education institutions have implemented peer note-taking programs (PNTPs), where peer note-takers (PNTs) assist SWDs in taking lecture notes. To better understand the experiences of SWDs and PNTs, we conducted semi-structured interviews with eight SWDs and eight PNTs. We found that the interaction between SWDs and PNTs was predominantly unidirectional, highlighting specific needs and challenges. In response, we developed EmoBridge, a collaborative note-taking platform that facilitates real-time collaboration and communication between PNT-SWD pairs using emojis. We evaluated EmoBridge through an in-the-wild study with seven PNT-SWD pairs. The results showed improved class participation for SWDs and a reduced sense of sole responsibility for PNTs. Based on these insights, we discuss design implications for collaborative note-taking systems aimed at enhancing PNTPs and fostering more effective and inclusive educational experiences for SWDs.

Figures (6)

• Figure 1: Research overview. This figure outlines the overall research procedure taken in this study. As a first step, semi-structured interviews were conducted with students with disabilities (SWDs) and peer note-takers (PNTs), highlighting their needs and challenges, particularly the unidirectional nature of their interaction. This informed the design of the collaborative note-taking platform, EmoBridge, a web-based note-taking platform facilitating real-time note-sharing and emoji-based communication. Following this, a pilot study was conducted to refine the design of EmoBridge, and an 'in-the-wild' evaluation was conducted with seven SWD-PNT pairs. The study concluded with design implications for improving PNTP and student accessibility and disability support in higher education institutions.
• Figure 2: EmoBridge Web Interface. (a) Toggle switch for the note-taking emoji window. (b) Field for the note title. (c) Note-taking emoji window. (d) Text highlighted in gray where a note-taking emoji is inserted. (e) Inserted note-taking emoji. (f) Real-time mutual cursor of the partner. (g) Indicator showing the selected text line for note-taking emoji insertion. (h) Text format menu. (i) Inserted chit-chat emoji. (j) Chit-chat emoji window. (k) Toggle switch for the chit-chat emoji window. (l) Note-saving button for exporting as a txt file. (m) Log-in/out button.
• Figure 3: Emoji list of EmoBridge. Note-taking emoji on the left side, Chit-chat emoji on the right side.
• Figure 4: EmoBridge's note management folder system interface. When a user logs in, they are directed to the 'My Class' screen on the left, where they can view a list of their classes. By selecting (1) a class name, a user is taken to the 'My Documents' screen on the right, which displays a list of their notes. To create a document, (2) the user enters the note title in the top right corner and clicks the create button. To delete a document, they click the (3) trashcan button next to the document. Confirming the action with a (4) check mark will delete the note, while clicking the X button will cancel the deletion.
• Figure 5: Boxplot Comparison of Pre- and Post-Deployment Questionnaire Responses for SWDs. This figure displays the distribution of responses for each question on a 7-point Likert scale (1 = Strongly Disagree, 7 = Strongly Agree), collected before (pre) and after (post) the deployment. Statistically significant differences (p-value < 0.05) are indicated by asterisks (*), demonstrating the deployment’s impact on the responses. Additionally, questions with p-values between 0.05 and 0.1 are marked with a dagger symbol, indicating marginal significance. Outliers for all questions are indicated by diamonds. For detailed data and statistical analysis, refer to Appendix A.1. The specific questions corresponding to each boxplot are listed in Table \ref{['table:questionnaire']}. For questions Q2 and Q3, all values except for one are either 1 or 7, resulting in no box being drawn and only a line being shown.