DSA assessor toolkit for Recallify AT

Memory and learning

For students and families, the guide to DSA software for memory difficulties explains the types of software and the needs assessment.

Encoding and retention (episodic memory)

Impact on study. Student does not retain information met once in lectures, seminars or tutorials. Material heard or read once is often unavailable later for coursework or exams, and the student may leave a session with little reliable memory of it. Repeated exposure is needed, but the student cannot produce their own revision materials.

Recallify is specialist assistive software that creates a structured external memory from the information NAME needs to retain. NAME can record teaching sessions where permitted, type notes or upload course materials, and everything is held accurately in one place. Content lost to impaired encoding remains available, and can be revisited in the format that places least demand on NAME: the original audio, a timestamped transcript or a structured summary. Recallify also generates recognition quizzes from NAME's own material, supporting repeated, spaced rehearsal without a support worker having to prepare revision materials.

Working memory

Impact on study. Student cannot hold spoken or written information in mind long enough to use it. Only part of what is said is taken in, instructions are lost partway through, and the student struggles to follow extended explanations or keep track of multi-step tasks.

Recallify reduces the load on NAME's working memory at the point information is delivered. Sessions can be captured as they happen, so NAME does not need to hold what was said in mind while also processing it. Thoughts, instructions and reminders can be offloaded immediately by voice, rather than held in mind until there is a chance to write them down. Structured summaries break long material into key points, so NAME can work through it in manageable parts and return to the full transcript when needed.

Retrieval (long-term memory)

Impact on study. Student cannot recall information at the point it is needed, even when it was understood at the time. They may know a topic was covered but be unable to remember what was said or where to find it. Searching hours of recordings or scattered notes is a further cognitive task they cannot manage.

Material that cannot be freely recalled is often accessible when a cue is supplied. Recallify's search and ask functions provide that cue: NAME can look up a keyword or ask a question in everyday language, and receive the answer from their own recorded and uploaded material. Transcripts are timestamped, so NAME can go straight to the relevant point and check it against the source rather than relying on recall. Answers are drawn only from NAME's own content and not from the internet, so what is returned is what was actually taught.

Prospective memory (remembering to do things)

Impact on study. Student forgets to carry out intended actions at the right time, such as submitting work, attending appointments, replying to emails or completing reading. Deadlines mentioned in passing are not remembered, and the student relies on others to prompt them.

Recallify extracts tasks, action points and deadlines automatically from what NAME has captured and adds them to a task list, removing the step between hearing an instruction and recording it. Tasks can be given reminders that appear as notifications on NAME's phone and sync to their own calendar, turning an intention that depends on self-initiated recall into an externally cued prompt. NAME can also create reminders by voice as soon as something occurs to them.

Consolidation and revision

Impact on study. Student struggles to learn and retain course content over time. Re-reading notes is ineffective, free recall is unreliable, and the student cannot generate practice questions to test themselves ahead of assessments.

Recallify generates recognition quizzes from NAME's own lectures, readings and notes. The recognition format is deliberate: recognition memory is commonly better preserved than free recall, so NAME can practise retrieval successfully rather than repeatedly failing at it. Quizzes can be repeated over days and weeks, supporting spaced retrieval practice, an established strategy for memory difficulty, without NAME or a support worker preparing materials.

Attention and information processing

Sustained and divided attention (inattention)

Impact on study. Student's attention lapses during lectures and seminars, and information given during a lapse is not registered at all. The student may be unable to follow a long session, misses key instructions and has gaps in their notes that they cannot fill.

Recallify holds a complete record of the session regardless of lapses in NAME's attention, so information missed in the moment is not permanently lost. Afterwards, NAME can use the summary to see what was covered, search for the section they missed and review it at their own pace. Instructions given during the session are extracted as tasks, so NAME does not need to have noticed and noted them at the time.

Processing speed

Impact on study. Student processes spoken and written information more slowly than it is delivered. New material arrives while they are still processing what came before, so content is only partly understood and the student falls behind in fast-paced teaching.

Recallify allows NAME to separate the point at which information is delivered from the point at which it is processed. Sessions can be revisited afterwards at NAME's own pace and as often as needed, as audio, transcript or summary. The structured summary gives a consistent, predictable overview of each session, reducing the processing load of returning to long recordings or documents.

Note-taking (dual-task demand)

Impact on study. Student cannot listen and write at the same time. They either listen and write nothing, or write and stop taking in what follows. Notes are fragmented and cannot be used for revision, and handwriting adds a further motor demand.

Recallify produces the record so that NAME does not have to. It captures the session and returns an accurate, timestamped transcript alongside a structured summary, removing the requirement to write while listening. NAME can attend and take part fully, knowing the content is held, and rebuild their understanding afterwards from a complete record rather than from fragments. This applies across lectures, seminars, tutorials, personal tutor meetings and placement or laboratory briefings.

Receptive language and verbal instructions

Impact on study. Student only partly processes information delivered verbally at the speaker's pace, with no opportunity to pause or check what was said. Verbal instructions are misinterpreted or forgotten, leading to incomplete or incorrect work.

Recallify allows NAME to revisit verbal content afterwards at their own pace and as often as needed, in text as well as audio. Structured summaries provide a predictable and consistent format, and verbal instructions become written tasks with explicit deadlines, rather than something NAME must interpret and remember in the moment.

Reading load and written information

Impact on study. Student reads slowly and with effort, and long texts are tiring to work through. The student struggles to extract the key points from reading lists, handbooks and assignment briefs, and to reorganise information independently.

NAME can upload course documents, slides and photos of handouts to Recallify, which produces a structured summary of the key points. NAME can read the summary first and return only to the sections they need, reducing reading load and fatigue. Material can be searched and questioned in everyday language, and text size and background colour can be adjusted. Voice capture allows NAME to record notes without the demands of typing or handwriting.

Executive function

Planning and organisation

Impact on study. Student struggles to organise information and plan their work. Notes, handouts and instructions are scattered across notebooks, emails and devices, and the student cannot build a clear picture of what needs doing and when.

Recallify brings NAME's recordings, notes, documents and tasks together in one timeline, labelled automatically, so information is held in a single place rather than spread across systems. Tasks are extracted with priorities and due dates, giving NAME a clear, ordered list of what needs doing. Because tasks sync to NAME's own calendar, deadlines appear alongside their existing timetable in one view.

Task initiation and procrastination

Impact on study. Student finds it hard to start work, particularly when a task feels large or undefined. Work is left until close to the deadline, causing stress and incomplete submissions.

Recallify converts what was covered in a session or document into discrete, prioritised tasks, which supports initiation where a large, undifferentiated workload does not. Reminders prompt NAME at the time they need to act, and the summary of each session gives NAME a clear starting point when they return to their work.

Time management and deadlines (time blindness)

Impact on study. Student loses track of time and underestimates how long tasks will take. Assignment deadlines and appointments are missed, and the student relies on others to keep track for them.

Deadlines and appointments mentioned in teaching sessions, emails or documents are extracted by Recallify and added to NAME's task list with due dates. Reminders are delivered to NAME's phone and appear in their own calendar, and repeating reminders can be set for regular commitments. Recallify understands relative dates such as 'next Tuesday', so NAME does not need to work out and enter dates themselves.

Impulsivity

Impact on study. Student acts or moves on before instructions are complete, switches between tasks, or breaks off to note down a thought before it is lost. Important details are missed and tasks are left partly done.

Recallify lets NAME capture a thought or intention immediately by voice or text, so it is held safely and can be returned to later without breaking off from the current activity. Because sessions are captured in full, NAME can go back to any instruction they moved past, and tasks are listed so unfinished work stays visible rather than being forgotten.

Hyperactivity and restlessness

Impact on study. Student finds it difficult to stay still and focused through long sessions and to sustain writing. Restlessness reduces the quality of notes and makes long periods of study difficult.

Because Recallify captures and transcribes sessions, NAME does not need to sustain writing throughout a lecture to have a full record. Material can be reviewed later in shorter sessions that suit NAME, on a phone or laptop, and notes and reminders can be recorded by voice while on the move.

Fatigue, health and wellbeing

Cognitive fatigue and fluctuating capacity

Impact on study. Student's capacity to concentrate and process information varies within and across days. On symptomatic days they cannot process material as it is delivered and content is lost permanently. The effort of listening and note-taking uses up limited energy.

Recallify allows NAME to separate the point at which information is encountered from the point at which they process, retrieve or act on it. Sessions are held in full, so content is not lost because NAME was unwell on a particular day. NAME can review material later in whichever format places least demand on them, audio, transcript or summary, and move between these as fatigue changes through the day. In a pilot with adults living with Long Covid, participants described Recallify as a way to offload information and free up cognitive resource.

Burnout

Impact on study. Student experiences exhaustion from sustained effort to keep up and compensate for memory and attention difficulties. They may disengage from their course, miss deadlines and classes, and struggle to balance their workload.

Much of the effort that leads to burnout in students with cognitive difficulties comes from compensating: trying to capture, remember and organise everything themselves. Recallify reduces that load by holding the record of NAME's sessions, summarising it, and turning actions into tasks and reminders. This allows NAME to direct their energy to learning rather than to keeping track, and to catch up on missed content in manageable parts after a period of reduced engagement.

Overwhelm and emotional dysregulation

Impact on study. When overwhelmed, the student's capacity to listen, take in and remember information drops sharply. Content covered during these periods is not retained, which adds to the sense of falling behind.

Recallify keeps a complete record of NAME's sessions however they were feeling at the time, so a period of overwhelm does not result in lost content. NAME can return to it once settled and review a short summary rather than the whole session. A clear task list with reminders reduces the demand of holding everything in mind at once. Recallify does not provide emotional regulation strategies, and can be recommended alongside support that does.

Low mood and reduced motivation

Impact on study. Cognitive symptoms associated with depression, anxiety or other mental health conditions reduce concentration, initiation and motivation, often at the points when academic demand is highest. Material covered during these periods is not retained.

Recallify keeps the record regardless of NAME's concentration or mood, so a difficult period does not result in lost content. What was covered is converted into a discrete task list with reminders, which supports initiation where a large, undifferentiated workload does not, and summaries give NAME a manageable way back into their studies.

Returning to study after illness or injury

Impact on study. Student returning after a brain injury, stroke, neurological event or long illness faces new difficulties with memory, processing speed and fatigue, while needing to catch up and readjust to study. Strategies that worked before no longer work.

Recallify was developed by a clinical neuropsychologist for people with acquired brain injury, and is being evaluated in an NIHR-funded study of adults with brain injury, including stroke, returning to work and study. It gives NAME an up-to-date compensatory strategy in place of paper-based memory aids that are hard to sustain: capturing information, supporting retention through recognition quizzes, providing cued retrieval and converting information into reminders.

Recommendation paragraphs

Use these alongside the justifications above. Replace everything in [square brackets] and remove anything that does not apply.

Recommendation

Recallify AT software ([term]-year licence) is recommended for NAME. Recallify is specialist assistive software developed by a clinical neuropsychologist for people with difficulties in memory, attention, information processing and executive function. It will enable NAME to capture information from lectures, seminars, tutorials and independent study, retain it through structured summaries and recognition quizzes, retrieve it on cue using search and ask, and convert instructions and deadlines into tasks and calendar reminders. A [term]-year licence has no monthly usage limits and covers the remaining length of NAME's course.

Alternatives considered

Mainstream alternatives, including free note-taking, transcription and reminder apps, were considered. These would require NAME to combine several separate tools and move information between them, adding to the cognitive demand their disability already imposes, and some restrict transcription time each month. Recallify supports the full sequence from capture to retention, retrieval and action in a single system that works only from NAME's own material.

Use of AI

Recallify's AI is bounded. It transcribes recordings and produces summaries, tasks, quiz questions and answers, working only from content NAME has recorded or uploaded. It is not an open-ended chat tool, does not draw on outside sources such as the internet and is not designed to write assignments, so everything it returns can be traced back to NAME's own recording or document. This supports academic integrity.

Where another specialist product is also recommended

Recallify meets a different need from coaching-led or anxiety-management products. It supports encoding, retaining, retrieving and acting on academic information where memory, attention, processing speed or executive function is impaired, and can be recommended alongside such products where both needs are present.