Remote Learning 101 for CM Freshmen AY 2021- 2022

If you don’t take notes well, or don’t take them at all, now is the time to develop this essential skill! Note-taking can help you gain deeper understanding and develop a better ability to remember. Notes also make for good exam preparation materials for later.

When taking notes, do keep in mind the following seven principles:

1.   Record publication details.

Always note the publication details of a text—that is, the title, author, date, publisher, place of publication, URL, and page numbers.

2.   Preview the text before you take notes.

Scan, skim, and ‘surface read’ the text before noting to help you develop understanding of the text and awareness of what is important to note. Taking notes of everything is a slow, boring, ineffective exercise.

3.   Maintain a central place for your notes.

Where to record your notes is up to you. Some people prefer using a computer, while others use flash cards, folders, or exercise books. What is important is that you can find your notes and understand their layout and content a few weeks or months later.

4.   Paraphrase and summarize ideas.

Writing out sentences word for word is not a useful way of taking notes. Sure, there may be times when you need to write things word for word (use quotation marks when you do this!), but better understanding will come through putting things in your own words. Not sure how to do this? Say the key points in your own words out loud and then write them down. Finish by checking that your paraphrase is clear and accurate.

5.   Note your thoughts.

Don’t forget the great value of noting beyond just what is said in the text. Note down your reactions and ideas, what you agree or disagree with, relevant experiences, questions, examples, and relationships with other texts. These initial thoughts that you have as you read may be of great use later, and it is a mistake to risk forgetting them.

6.   Be creative.

Consider how you should take note of different parts of texts as this can aid understanding as well as the ability to remember information and reflect. Depending on the nature of the information you wish to note, you may choose to use spider diagrams, concept maps, columns, bullet points, numbers, symbols, colors, or pictures.

7.   Review your notes.

Once you have completed some notes, always look back at them and check whether: (1) they are accurate; (2) they are readable; (3) you will be able to use them later; and (4) they contain full reference details.

Now, assess yourself as a note-taker. Do you follow all the seven principles above?                        

It's okay if you currently do not follow some of them. What matters is that from now on, you will consciously make an effort to follow all of them, regularly. Eventually, doing all seven will come naturally!