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Top 5 Tips for Effective Notetaking
Few
people realize how fast memory fades.
Studies on memory have shown that,
without review, 47% of what a person has
just learned is forgotten in the first
twenty minutes and 62% is forgotten
after the first day (University of Texas
at Austin). Therefore, having good
lecture notes to review can determine
how well you are able to perform on
exams.
1. Go to class prepared.
"Always have a plan and believe
in it. Nothing good happens by accident."
-- Chuck Knox, NFL football coach
 | Use a three-ring binder instead
of a spiral or bound book. Pages can
be easily removed for reviewing.
Handouts can be inserted into your
notes for cross-referencing. You can
insert your own out-of-class notes
in the correct order (Ellis).
|
| Bring highlighters to class.
Instructors will frequently make
comments like, "This is an important
concept." Or, "Make sure you
understand this." These are direct
clues that this will more than
likely be on an exam. Highlighting
these notes will help remind you
later that this is definitely
something you need to know.
|
| Read assigned material and
previous class notes before class.
Make notations about material or
concepts you don't understand. Look
up vocabulary words that are
unfamiliar to you. You will have a
better understanding about what the
instructor is lecturing about and
that will allow you to better
decipher the more important points
of the lecture. |
2. Improve your listening skills.
"Learn how to listen and you
will prosper even from those who talk
badly." -- Plutarch (A.D. 46 -
120). Greek biographer and philosopher
| Start by entering the classroom
with a positive attitude. Going to
class thinking, "This is the last
place I want to be today" only sets
the stage for inattentive listening.
Approaching lectures with a positive
attitude allows one to be
open-minded and enables you to get
the most out of the information
presented.
|
| Make a conscious effort to pay
attention. Concentrate on
concentrating. "Without
concentration there is no focus, and
without focus there is no learning"
(Pauk 190).
|
| Adapt to whatever direction a
lecture takes. When a lecture takes
an unexpected detour, say a student
asks a question you aren't
particularly interested in, students
have a tendency to "zone out."
Before you know it, the lecture got
back on track five minutes ago, and
you missed crucial information that
should have been noted. |
3. Develop a notetaking method that
works for you.
"Learn, compare, collect the
facts." - Ivan Petrovic Pavlov
(1849 - 1936), Russian physiologist.
Fine-tune the structure and
organization of your notes to increase
your notetaking speed and comprehension
later.
| Start each new lecture on a new
page, and date and number each page.
The sequence of material is
important.
|
| Write on one side of the paper
only. You can set them out
side-by-side for easier reviewing
when studying for an exam.
|
| Leave blank spaces. This allows
you to add comments or note
questions later.
|
| Make your notes as brief as
possible. "Never use a sentence when
you can use a phrase, or a phrase
when you can use a word" (Berkeley).
|
| Develop a system of
abbreviations and symbols you can
use wherever possible.
|
| Note all unfamiliar vocabulary
or concepts you don't understand.
This reminds you to look them up
later.
|
| For examples of popular
notetaking formats, see Notetaking
Systems at
http://www.sas.calpoly.edu/asc/ssl/notetaking.systems.html
|
4. Pay close attention to content.
"There is a great difference
between knowing a thing and
understanding it." - Charles
Kettering (1876 - 1958), American
electrical engineer and inventor
Knowing what and how much to write
down is sometimes difficult. Rely on
some of the following tips for what to
include in your notes.
| Details, facts, or explanations
that expand or explain the main
points that are mentioned. Don't
forget examples.
|
| Definitions, word for word.
|
| Enumerations or lists of things
that are discussed.
|
| Material written on the
chalkboard or on a transparency,
including drawings or charts.
|
| Information that is repeated or
spelled out. (University of Texas at
Austin)
|
5. Review and edit your notes.
"Ideas won't keep; something
must be done about them." -
Alfred North Whitehead (1861 - 1947),
English mathematician and philosopher
Academic skills centers and other
authorities on effective study skills
consider reviewing and editing class
notes to be the most important part of
notetaking and essential to increasing
learning capacity.
| It is extremely important to
review your notes within 24 hours.
|
| Edit for words and phrases that
are illegible or don't make sense.
Write out abbreviated words that
might be unclear later.
|
| Edit with a different colored
pen to distinguish between what you
wrote in class and what you filled
in later.
|
| Fill in key words and questions
in the left-hand column.
|
| Note anything you don't
understand by underlining or
highlighting to remind you to ask
the instructor.
|
| Compare your notes with the
textbook reading and fill in
important details in the blank
spaces you left.
|
| Consider rewriting or typing up
your notes. (Ellis). |
References:
| Berkeley College. A System for
Effective Listening and Notetaking.
12 October 2000. |
| California Polytechnical
College. Academic Skills Center -
Notetaking Systems. 12 October 2000.
|
| Dudycha, George J. Learn More
with Less Effort. (1957). Harper &
Bros. New York, NY.
|
| Ellis, Dave. Becoming a Master
Student. (1997). Houghton Mifflin
Co. Boston, MA.
|
| Pauk, Walter. How to Study in
College. (1984 and 1997). Houghton
Mifflin Co. Boston, MA.
|
| Pegg, Bruce. Notetaking. (4
October 1995). 12 October 2000.
|
| University of Texas at Austin.
Making the Grade 101. (27 February
1998). 20 October 2000.
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