TAKING NOTES



TAKING GOOD NOTES IN LECTURES

Why take notes? There are three basic reasons: to learn, for reference, and to keep you thinking. But taking good lecture notes isn’t easy. Good lecture notes must be summarize the main points, include the important ideas in your own words, and list the specific details needed for your purpose in this class. To be successful, you must make what you hear part of your own thinking.

Be Prepared To Take Good Notes

Understanding a lecture and taking good notes during it will be easier if you have prepared and know what topics will be covered before you go to class. You should read all assignments listed in the syllabus given by instructor. In addition, you should review your notes from the previous class session and any handouts. Finally, you should determine what your purposes for this class session and any handouts so you will be able to take the notes you need to fulfill your purpose.

Know Your Instructor’s Style

Does your instructor: 1) simply review the text page by page, 2) use the text as a basis for lecture but add a lot of information form other sources, or 3) assign you to read the text –expecting you to read it on your own—and lecture form other sources? It’s possible that your instructor will use a combination of these approaches during a semester, but your awareness of where lecture material is coming from is your first step in taking good notes.

Also consider the way an instructor organizes and delivers information. If you have an instructor start a class with, “Today we will discuss the three basic views of …,” use that as a key to organize your notes as you take them. If, on the other hand, your instructor begins with an anecdote or some other illustrative material, you will have to write down ideas in the order the instructor delivers them and then spend time organizing them after class. Stay alert for cues your instructor gives you, such as changing voice pitch, rate, or tone, writing information on the board, and using audio-visual material such as transparencies or computer presentations.

Understand What You Write

Don’t try to be a human type recorder—try to write a complete transcript of the class is not good note taking. Your notes should capture the main points and only those details you need for this specific purpose.

Your notes should be simple and n your own words whenever possible. Aside from complex concepts or specific formulas that you must memorize and therefore need to write/copy, always translate ideas into your own words. Include supplemental and text references your instructor gives; the additional readings will help you clarify your notes and the concepts that are covered.

Take Your Notes The Same Way

Use standard 8 ½ x 11 lined notebook paper. Title it with class, date, and whatever other information is needed to distinguish the notes you take in class today from any other notes. Devise and use your own shorthand to make note taking easier and stick to it—remember that each not must be complete enough to be intelligent later. If you miss information, leave a blank spot in your notes and ask after class. Don’t crowd information together. Leave room for extra information and put only one idea or item on a line.

Make Notes On Your Notes

Study from your notes; don’t just read them over. Right after class, spend 5-10 minutes editing your notes. Fill in missing information, clarify abbreviations, and expand details. Try using the Recall-Clue system (words in the margins) to index your notes:

1. Leave an extra 2-inch margin at the left side of each page of notes. Do not write in this margin while you are taking notes.

2. After you have edited your notes, annotated in the left margin with word, phrases, or questions that briefly summarize major points. These recall clues should be key words that trigger your memory to help you recall the complete information.

3. To study, cover up the lecture notes and look only at the margin notes. Read the clue and try to recall all the information in your notes. Slide the cover down and quiz yourself.

TAKING USEFUL NOTES FROM TEXTS

There are many techniques for taking notes from books and the one you select will vary with the type of book, the assignment, and the requirements of the instructor. What won't change, however, is the necessity for you to take some type of notes. You must make reading and learning an active process and note taking is a good way to ensure you get involved with what you are reading.

Being An Active Reader Ideas that are organized in a way that makes sense

Is The Key To Good Notes to you are easier to remember than isolated bits of information. Your goal for note taking is to find a way to organize information that you read, so you can use it to help you study efficiently and effectively.

Begin a reading/studying session by previewing the entire assignment-quickly read over the titles, sub-titles, introduction, conclusion, and chapter questions to get an overview of the content.

Next, based on your preview, list the main topics in the reading assignment. Then, jot down information you already know about the topics, plus questions you have about the topics and questions your instructor has given you. In other words, give yourself a reason to read—

identify some ideas and information you need to discover. (For details on reading with a purpose, see Tip Sheet "An Effective Textbook Study Strategy.")

Now you are ready to read and take notes. As an active reader--one with a reason to read--you will be able to sort out information that is important to your purpose from interesting, but inconsequential, minor details. You have several options for taking notes from books.

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Taking Notes In The Text Underline or Highlight. 1) Always read a section completely before you mark it. If you underline/highlight as you being to read, you run the risk of marking information that is not important for your purpose.

2) Decide what level of information you need--main ideas only; main ideas and major details; terminology only, etc. and mark only those portions that meet your purpose. If you underline/highlight almost everything on the page, it is no more helpful than if nothing is marked.

Annotate (write margin notes). 1) After you read a section; write words and phrases in the margins that summarize the information you need to know; mark important information with abbreviations such as def for definition, ex example, * for key point; jot questions you have or challenges to the author's ideas. 2) After reading and annotating a section, think about how what you have read/written relates to the questions you set out for yourself during your preview.

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Taking Notes on Paper To take useful notes on paper, like taking notes in the text, you must read a section through at least once before you begin to take notes. Then, with your purpose in mind, you can write down in your notebook, only those ideas and information that answer your purpose. Try to summarize and restate information in your own words and organize it in a way that makes sense to you. One of the biggest advantages of taking notes on paper is that it lets you combine your lecture notes with your text notes to enhance your overall comprehension of the subject.

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TAKING NOTES

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