TAKING CLASSROOM (LECTURE) NOTES SPECIFICS

 

Taking notes in class is an active process that requires attention, concentration, and discipline.  It is a skill that does not come naturally and is not initially easy.  It takes know-how and practice to master.  Once mastered, however, it will save you time, frustration, and yield tremendous benefits.  To a point, the clearer the lecture, the better set of notes you are likely to create, but you can survive and benefit from even poor lectures with proper note-taking skills.

First, taking notes in class does NOT require writing down every word the instructor says.  None of us can write as fast as another can talk, so it’s impossible anyway.  It does, however, require us to write down some things—the correct things that we will need to study, remember, and be able to use later.  Most important, taking good notes requires a commitment to a process—a series of steps that will lead us to our goal.

 

WHAT TO BUY

 

Buy a standard-size three-ring binder and lots of 8 ½” by 11” loose-leaf, wide-ruled, three-hole-punched paper. (Why wide-ruled?  College-ruled paper does not leave much space between lines).  Invest in a hole punch so you can easily add course handouts and the like to your binder.

 

If you will keep notes for more than one course in the same binder (recommended), buy a package of three-ring binder dividers to break your binder into sections.

 

This set-up allows you to add new information or blank sheets of paper into any spot in the binder whenever necessary.  In addition, you can take out a day’s notes, set the pages side-by-side, and study them in more detail.

 

(Avoid spiral-bound notebooks, steno-pads and the like.  You cannot easily remove pages in these and added pages too easily fall out.)

 

Buy a bunch of comfortable erasable-ink pens.

 

 

BEWARE OF ALTERNATIVES TO BEING AN ACTIVE NOTE-TAKER

 

No good substitute exists for being in class each day and taking your own notes.  Though it may be tempting (and occasionally necessary) to miss class and borrow notes from a friend, it is not the same as being there and taking your own notes.  Classroom notes are personal creations, with information written down that YOU need to enhance YOUR understanding.  Because of this, borrowed notes may be missing the very information you need or taken in a way that is difficult for you to understand.

 

Taping a lecture while you take notes is an option for some, particularly auditory learners.  If you plan to tape a lecture, be sure to ask the instructor’s permission first.  In addition, do not expect the tape recorder to do your job for you.  Note-taking is an ACTIVE process requiring hard work and concentration, so it is tempting to assume that the tape recorder is doing all that for us.  While having an audio record of a lecture may be helpful, it is probably best during the actual lecture to pretend you have no tape recorder running.

 

WHERE TO SIT IN CLASS

 

Sit where you can see and be seen.  The front row is the very best location because you will feel more like a participant and less likely to drift off or daydream.  In addition, the instructor’s eye contact and nearby presence can increase your concentration.  A toward-the-front location also identifies you as a serious student.  Studies have shown that students who sit toward the front of the room achieve better grades.  At all costs, try to avoid a seat in the back of the room, particularly in large classes.

 

Hint: Humans are territorial—in general, they respect others’ territory and expect others to respect their territory.  So do the following each day of the first week for each new course:  Get to the classroom early, sit in the best available seat (front center is recommended) and continue to sit in that seat throughout the first week.  After this, even if you arrive a bit late, your seat will most likely be left vacant for you because you have “marked your territory.”

 

WHAT TO DO BEFORE EACH LECTURE DAY

 

Read (or at least closely browse) in advance anything assigned.  A lecture is like a jigsaw puzzle.  Reading an assignment in advance of the lecture allows you a look at the picture on the puzzle box.  (Imagine how difficult it would be to assemble a jigsaw puzzle with no picture to guide you.) 

 

At the very least become familiar with the overall structure of the assigned reading before the actual lecture.  Read and browse to discover how many main parts the next day’s lecture will have and what each main part’s name is.  (To do this, count and then study the names of the main parts of the chapter.) 

 

Knowing how many parts there will be and their names is like studying the picture on the jigsaw puzzle box.  This knowledge will allow you to record the information in the proper place during the actual lecture. 

 

Remember—it is possible to learn all the correct information but in the wrong organization and fail a test.  Seeing the structure in advance (the jigsaw puzzle picture) helps prevent this from happening because you come to the lecture already having an understanding of the proper organization.

 

Another thing to do while reading the assignment in advance is to pick out a few key words you know you’ll be writing down a lot during the lecture.  Then create simple abbreviations for these words to use during class.  Let’s say the day before a lecture you browse a chapter about the heart.  You see the following terms often during your browsing:  cardiovascular, pulmonary, left ventricle, and right ventricle. Prior to the lecture you create these abbreviations:

 

Cvas for cardiovascular

Pul for pulmonary

LV for left ventricle

RV for right ventricle

 

Be sure to write this information at the top of your first page of notes before the lecture begins and then feel free to use these abbreviations during the lecture.  This will not only save time but also give you another “touch” of the information when you expand these abbreviations during the enhancement phase.

 

Also, be sure to use common abbreviations while taking notes.  Use numerals (1,2,3, etc.) rather than writing out the names of the numbers (one, two, three, etc.).  Use the plus sign (+) for and, use arrows to show directions of ideas, the equals sign (=) for terms, definitions, and the like.

 

WHAT TO DO DURING THE LECTURE

 

  1. First, get to class on time (or a bit early if possible).  Just before you walk in the door, actively dedicate yourself to paying attention that day.  Say to yourself something like this: During class time today, I will pay attention and take the best notes I can.  That is why I am here.  If I do anything else, I am wasting my time.  And then do it.

 

  1. Get your materials out, your notebook open, you pen in hand. 

 

  1. Write the date, the class, and the topic at the top of the first page.

 

  1. Write your pre-selected abbreviations and the terms they represent at the top center.

 

  1. Focus on the instructor and concentrate on listening for and writing down “The Big Six.”

 

  1. In addition, listen for signals of importance—phrases such as “now this is important,” or “remember this,” or “most significant.” You get the idea.

 

  1. Write your notes in the center of the page, leaving the left-hand column blank for labels, recall words or questions.

 

  1. Print rather than use cursive writing.  Printing is quicker and easier to read.

 

  1. Try not to crowd the right-hand margin.

 

  1. Occasionally leave a space or two to use during the Enhancement Phase.

 

  1. Write the pieces of the main ideas underneath and a bit to the right of the main ideas.  This will show the proper relationships.

 

  1. As you are taking notes, don’t worry too much about spelling and excessive neatness.  You’re the only one who will need to read these notes later, and the Enhancement Phase is dedicated, in part, to cleaning up your notes.

 

  1. If you happen to miss something, don’t panic.  Simply note that something was said that you need to ask about later.

 

  1. Remember, your goal during the lecture is to get just enough down in your notes so that you can make sense of them later when you enhance them.

 

  1. Do NOT put notes on the back of the page.  You may want to see all the pages together at once, and notes on the back of the page will not allow this.

 

  1. Take notes during discussion periods.  Sometimes test questions come from these discussions.

 

  1. Pay attention when another student asks a question.  Occasionally the question will also appear on the test.

 

  1. Take notes all the way to the end of the class hour even if others are starting to pack up their books.  Packing up books while the instructor is still lecturing is not only rude but also risky.  He or she may be saving the most important information until last.

 

  1. When the lecture is over, count the number of pages of notes you have taken and number each page accordingly.  For example, if you end up with six pages of notes for a particular lecture, you would number the pages “1 of 6,” “2 of 6,” 3 of 6,” and so on.

 

WHAT TO DO SOON AFTER EACH LECTURE

 

Enhance your notes. 

 

  1. All this means is expand abbreviations, fill in information your remember hearing, write paraphrases for information—anything to remind yourself of the lecture information.  Do this AS SOON as possible—remember The Curve of Forgetting is ticking.

 

  1. To complete the enhancement, put LABELS or QUESTIONS or RECALL WORDS in the left-hand margin to use when you quiz yourself.

 

FINALLY CHOOSE A STUDY OPTION

 

OPTION ONE:  If the tests will be from the lecture notes, create flashcards.  To do this, transfer each left-hand column label to the front of a 3 x 5 card, and then write the corresponding answer on the back of the card.  This activity provides you with another “touch” of the information and a convenient, portable study system.

 

OPTION TWO:  If the tests will NOT be from the lecture notes, occasionally return to the enhanced notes, cover up the information in the right-hand column, turn the labels in the left-hand column into questions, and quiz yourself to test you general recall.