COLGATE UNIVERSITY
WRITING CENTER
212 ALUMNI HALL


NOTE TAKING

It's a simple fact of academic survival -- the best students take the best notes! Notes not only aid comprehension, but they also make learning active and, most importantly, make study time more efficient, especially during end-of-the semester review sessions for final exams.

Here are some tips on when and how you should take notes, and how to use them effectively.

CLASS NOTES

should be kept on every class you attend, even seminar discussions. Be sure to write down everything, and then edit after class as part of a study/review session.

Some techniques.

  1. Shorthand. Develop your own techniques. Rmv vwls. Use symbols ( + for "and" etc.). Abbreviate names ("O." for "Odysseus").
  2. Form questions that you want answers to before class, and answer them as they are revealed in the class.
  3. Use a 1/2 page system, with lecture notes on the left hand side of the page and comments/revisions on the right.
  4. Rewrite. Condense notes afterwards. Check with your professor and classmates over missing or difficult concepts. Begin a note-exchange group.
  5. Reread/ Review. Always review notes on a periodical basis; because little reviews over a long period of time aid retention, they are far more effective than cramming. Develop mnemonic devices to place key concepts into long-term memory. Use post-its to locate key concepts in your note book and create a flash-card system with them. Quiz yourself on your notes by creating tests like the kinds of tests you expect in the class; again, this promotes active learning, stopping you from getting bored with the material.

TEXT NOTES

should be kept on every text you read. Don't just highlight! Write notes in the margins, linking key points to major themes discussed in class and to concepts from other classes that you are familiar with. Write chapter summaries; these force you to reword concepts and enable you to understand them in your own words. Rewrite your notes centering around major concepts or themes based on class discussion and/or paper topics.

People learn differently, and different tasks demand different techniques. Experiment to see which ones work for you. Most importantly, find methods that engage you with the material, so that study time is more active and more profitable.

Back to the Colgate University Writing Center page.

http://www2.colgate.edu/diw/notetaking.html
Revised: October 4, 1995.
Questions to: bpegg@center.colgate.edu
Copyright 1995 © Bruce Pegg. All rights reserved.