Download Note-Taking - Learning development

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Note-taking Workshop
Aim and objectives
Aim:
To learn the basics of good note-taking.
Objectives:
1. To learn how annotating text enhances active reading, focus and comprehension;
2. To learn some of the basics of note-taking;
3. To consider various note-taking methods and to think about what might suit you best; and
4. To distinguish between summarising, paraphrasing, and using direct quotations.
Objective 1: annotating text1
As an "active reader," you already know that when you read textbook assignments, you should have questions in
your mind. As you read, you should be looking for the answers to these questions. You should also have a pencil in
hand so that you can "annotate" your text. As the word suggests, you "take notes" in your textbook.
Unlike "highlighting," which is a passive activity, the process of annotating text helps you to stay focused and
involved with your textbook. You'll find that the process of taking notes as you read will help you to concentrate
better. It will also help you to monitor and improve your comprehension. If you come across something that you
don't understand or that you need to ask you instructor about, you'll be able to quickly make note of it, and then go
on with your reading.
The following is a list of some techniques that you can use to annotate text:
 Underline important terms.
 Circle definitions and meanings.
 Write key words and definitions in the margin.
 Signal where important information can be found with key words or symbols in the margin.
 Write short summaries in the margin at the end of sub-units.
 Write the questions in the margin next to the section where the answer is found.
 Indicate steps in a process by using numbers in the margin.
An example of annotated text can be found overleaf.
Notes
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Sources:
Keeley, Meg. 2003. Annotating text. <http://www.bucks.edu/~specpop/Access/annotated.htm>. Accessed:
24 April 2003
Keeley, Meg. 2003. Example of annotated text. <http://www.bucks.edu/~specpop/annotate-ex.htm>.
Accessed: 24 April 2003.
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HOW DOES MEMORY WORK?
Human memory works on two different levels: short term memory and long term memory.
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Short term memory
This includes what you focus on in the moment, what holds your attention. Most people can only hold about 7
items of information in short term memory at any given moment, although some can hold up to nine.
Look at example A below. Then look away from your computer screen and try to hold it in your short term
memory.
A = 6593028
Most likely, you can hold it as long as you choose. Now follow the same procedure with example B.
B = 573927450621
It's much more difficult, if not impossible, for most people.
Short term memory is exactly what the name says: short term. To learn information so you can retain and
recall it, you must transfer it from short term to long term memory.
Long term memory
This includes all the information that you know and can recall. In many ways, it becomes a part of you. Once
information becomes a part of your long term memory, you'll have access to it for a long time.
FROM SHORT TERM TO LONG TERM
How do you move information into long term memory? Two of the ways are: rote learning and learning
through understanding.
Rote learning means learning through repetition, mechanically, with little understanding. For example, as a
child you probably memorized the alphabet and the multiplication tables by rote.
Learning through understanding involves learning and remembering by understanding the relationships
among ideas and information. Rather than using rote memory, you use logical memory when you learn
through understanding. For example, you use logical memory when you remember main ideas and
supporting details from a lecture not because you repeat the ideas in your mind, but rather, because you
understand them.
Both types of learning and memory are useful and often are used together. For example, in history, you need
to relate facts (like dates) which you memorized by rote to your understanding of historical concepts (like the
Civil War).
THE KEYS TO REMEMBERING
You can learn to remember more effectively if you learn and use the four keys described below. Each one
helps you to enter information into your long term memory.
Choose to remember. Be interested. Pay attention. Want to learn and know. What you want is an
important part of learning. People learn more effectively and remember more when they are interested
and want to learn.
How can you choose to remember? One way is to take a few moments to choose to learn before you
read or listen to a lecture. Sit calmly, take a few deep breaths, and tell yourself with your inner voice:
"I choose to remember what I learn today." Repeat this a few times, and then begin.
Visualize or picture in your mind what you wish to remember. For many people, a mental
picture or visualization is clearer and easier to remember than words. For each major concept that you
want to remember, create a mental picture and then look at it carefully for a few seconds. Once
you've seen it clearly, you'll probably be able to recall it.
If you are not a visual learner, you may find that you need to improve the quality of your mental
pictures or images by practicing. Look at a picture, object, or photograph, then close your eyes and try
to see it in your mind's eye. Practice this for a few moments each day.
Relate the ideas and information you wish to remember to each other and to ideas and
information you already know. When you relate information to other information, you create a
chain of memories which lead to one another. When you label an information chain or group of ideas,
you create a kind of "file" that makes it easy to locate and remember the information.
You can help yourself to relate information by using mental pictures, visual organizers, or by outlining.
Repeat what you wish to learn until you overlearn it. Say it in your own words. Even though
you've already learned something, go over it one more time. Research shows that the time you spend
on overlearning and putting ideas into your own words will pay off by making recall easier and more
complete.
Objective 2: note-taking basics2
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Sources:
Boddington, Paula, and John Clanchy.
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Why take notes?
Note-taking is closely linked with reading and it helps you to
 Concentrate on what you’re reading
 Gather and evaluate information
 Form links between the different texts that you’ve read
 Draw conclusions
 Remember things
 Summarise ideas and arguments
Active note-taking
 To take notes efficiently, keep your purpose in mind. Why are you reading? An essay question, for
example, could provide the purpose for your reading.
 Review lecture/tutorial/background material before reading
 Be wary of merely underlining or highlighting a text
 Ask questions of the text, for example:
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Why is this important?
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How has the author constructed the argument?
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Is the evidence persuasive?
What to note?
 Consider context
 Analyse your assignment topic/purpose before you begin so you can assess what material you need
 Identify bibliographic material
 Identify relevant quotations, author’s intention, purpose, argument, evidence
 Your notes should reflect the demands of your assignment topic/thesis
How to take notes?
 There’s no one formula
 Flexible system: use a note-book or index cards for each course/topic/chapter; develop a note-taking
template; store notes on the computer or in Endnote
 Bibliographic information: author, date, title, place of publication, publisher, edition, pages etc
 Leave space for comments and reactions to the text
 If you copy a quotation, copy it exactly (words, punctuation etc) and record the page number
 Clearly identify the author’s ideas, arguments, theories, concepts from your own
 Review your notes at the end of the note taking process
Notes
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1999.
Reading for Study and Research. South Melbourne: Longman. Ch. 5.
Clanchy, John and Brigid Ballard.
1997.
Essay Writing for Students: A Practical Guide. 3rd ed. South Melbourne: Longman. pp.
19-43.
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Objective 3: note-taking methods
In different cognate areas, you will want to record different information relating to your reading: 3
Humanities
 Bibliographic details
 Topic
 Theoretical framework/thesis
 Arguments
 Evidence
 Quotes and page numbers
 Your evaluation and comments (clearly marked as such in a different colour or part of your notes)
Social sciences
 Bibliographic details
 Topic
 Theoretical framework
 Conclusion
 Arguments
 Data
 Case studies
 Experimental evidence/surveys
 Methodology
 Your evaluation and comments (clearly marked as such in a different colour or part of your notes)
Sciences
 Bibliographic details
 Topic
 Theory tested
 Experimental evidence
 Data
 Case studies
 Methodology
 Inferences
 Your evaluation and comments (clearly marked as such in a different colour or part of your notes)
Consider using a template for your note-taking. Include the various categories listed above, according to your cognate
area, and don’t forget to leave space for tapping background knowledge, setting purposes and making predictions. See
overleaf for an example of a two-page template that also includes pre-reading activities such as tapping background
knowledge, setting purposes and making predictions.
Notes
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Source:
Academic Skills and Learning Centre, ANU.
n.d.
Managing reading and note-taking at university”. Pamphlet.
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Note-taking templates
When taking notes, there are three things you need to collect: complete bibliographic
information, content information, and your response to the content information. Your purpose
will help you make decisions about the content material that you need to note. The
subheadings used below are generic. They can be tailored to suit your purpose. For example,
if your essay asks you to examine the implications of globalisation, you could have as
subheadings ‘positive implications’ and ‘negative implications’.
Bibliographic details: Author, title, publication date, place of publication,
pages, etc.
Page(s)
ARGUMENT:
You need to
know where you
got your
information.
Page(s)
Check the
introduction &
conclusion.
Summarise in dot
points.
EVIDENCE:
This information
pertains to the
author and their
argument.
It is important
to distinguish
your ideas from
the author’s.
Page(s)
EXAMPLES:
Page(s)
DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS:
MY RESPONSE: both positive and negative aspects; assess the strengths and
weaknesses of the argument and the supporting evidence.
This is where you
develop your argument or
position.
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The Cornell Method for note-taking in lectures4
Note-taking area: Record lecture as fully
and as meaningfully as possible.
Cue column: As you’re taking notes,
keep cue column empty. Soon after the
lecture, reduce your notes to concise
jottings as clues for Reciting, Reviewing
and Reflecting.
Summaries: Sum up each page of your
notes in a sentence or two.
(Picture from ISS/Learning Center, University of St. Thomas (UST), St. Paul, MN)
Before the lecture, rule up your page according to the model above. Write on one side of the page
only. This format provides the perfect opportunity for following through with the 5 Rs of note-taking:
Record
During the lecture, record legibly in the Note-Taking Area as many meaningful facts and ideas as you
can.
Reduce
As soon as possible, summarize these facts and ideas concisely in the Cue Column. Summarizing
clarifies meanings and relationships, reinforces continuity, and strengthens memory.
Recite
Cover the note-taking area using only your jotting in the cue column, repeat over the facts and ideas
of the lecture as completely as you can, not mechanically, but in your own words. You may then
verify what you have said.
Reflect
Draw out opinions from your notes and use them as a starting point for your own reflections on the
course and how it relates to your other courses. Reflection will help prevent ideas from being
forgotten.
Review
Spend 10 minutes every day in quick review of your notes and you will retain most of what you have
learned.
Notes
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Source:
Learning Assistance and Resource Center, West Chester University.
n.d.
Cornell Method.
<http://www.wcupa.edu/_academics/cae.tut/TCornell.htm>. Accessed: 5
April 2004.
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Objective 4: note-taking and avoiding plagiarism5
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All the writing you do at university will be based on the reading you do, which is why taking notes
from sources is an important academic skill to develop the quality of the notes you take during the
reading and research process will have an impact on the quality of your research and the quality of
your written work. Whether you take notes on index cards, sheets of A4 paper, or write them directly
onto the computer, you need to get into the habit of taking down the author’s name, bibliographic
details, and the page number of the material that you’re noting.
Some note-taking strategies are better than others. Effective researchers tend to use four ways of
making notes from original sources: summarising, paraphrasing, selectively quoting, and combining
summaries and quotations. Excessive word-for-word copying, that is, copying verbatim large slabs of
text, is not as effective as transforming the source material into your own words and reducing it to a
key phrase, sentence, or dot-point, or selectively quoting material. Even when you condense
someone else’s material into your own words, though, you still need to acknowledge the original
source. If you take notes, but don’t take note of the source, then your notes are effectively
worthless. Sloppy note-taking can lead to plagiarism.
Summarising
When taking notes, it may be important to summarise an author’s main argument or idea into your
own words. The fewer the words used to summarise, the better. Sometimes you may reduce the
ideas an author expresses in a paragraph down to one or two sentences. Sometimes it may be
possible to reduce the line of reasoning in a journal article down to a couple of sentences. “Summary
is most useful when you want to record the gist of an author’s idea without the background or
supporting evidence” (Fowler & Aaron 679). Remember, even though it is your summary, you must
acknowledge the original source.
Paraphrasing
A paraphrase contains a lot more detail than a summary and it also tends to “follow much more
closely the author’s original presentation (Fowler & Aaron 679). In other words, a paraphrase
restates the author’s ideas or line of argument. A paraphrase should differ from the original quotation
in terms of “sentence structures and wording” (Fowler & Aaron 680). When paraphrasing it may be
necessary to read the original text a couple of times in order to comprehend it properly. When
restating the original text, “(y)ou need not put down in new words the whole passage or all the
details. Select what is pertinent and restate only that” (Fowler & Aaron 680). As with summarising, a
paraphrase will require a reference.
Using direct quotations
Fowler and Aaron (683) recommend that you use a direct quotation if it satisfies one or more of the
following requirements:
o
“The language is unusually vivid, bold, or inventive.
o
The quotation cannot be paraphrased without distortion or loss of meaning.
o
The words themselves are at issue in your interpretation.
o
The quotation represents and emphasizes a body of opinion or the view of an important
expert.
o
The quotation emphatically reinforces your own idea.
o
The quotation is a graph, diagram, or table.”
If you choose to quote the source directly, then doing the following when note-taking can help you
avoid plagiarism:
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“Copy the material carefully. Take down the author’s exact wording, spelling, capitalization,
and punctuation.
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Proofread every direct quotation at least twice.
o
Use big quotation marks around the quotation so that later you won’t confuse it with a
paraphrase or summary.
o
If you want to add words for clarity or change the capitalization of letters, use brackets.
o
If you want to omit relevant words, use ellipsis marks, usually three spaced periods.”
Combining quotation, summary, and paraphrase
When writing, you will find it quote common to produce sentences that combine quotation, summary,
and paraphrase. This is because as you work, you “shape the material to suit your purposes” (Fowler
& Aaron 683). When doing this, quotations must be accurate and must be enclosed within quotation
marks.
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All of this material is based on H. Ramsey Fowler and Jane E. Aaron, The Little, Brown Handbook 8th
ed. (New York: Longman, 2001), pp.678-683.
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