Best way to study/take notes

[bonoz]

I use OneNote to annotate the powerpoints during each lecture. I also record audio for my lectures. Every lecture has learning objectives. I am trying to find the best way to study the plethora of lectures. I have around 100 lectures to study already since my school does all the preclinical sciences in the first year.

I would love it if I can get some advice regarding the approach I should take with studying. Should I just focus on the my OneNote notes and just study the **** out of them? or should I write my own consolidated notes (takes a while)? exams are based solely on the powerpoints.

Please advise,

Thanks

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[TAWS]

This is my method for studying anything:

Gather all lecture materials and make a comprehensive study guide

Study the review guide --> condense it --> study condensed version --> condense it even more --> study --> repeat until you know material

This solves the problem that I see many students have, which is they study stuff they already know and not what they don't know.

 

[tryp]

I go with consolidated notes. In class, I write down everything that isn't on the slides, then when I go home I combine my slides and rough notes into a comprehensive set of colour coded notes with illustrations and then I study those. I have the prettiest notes in my class

 

[FIREitUP]

I use OneNote to annotate the powerpoints during each lecture. I also record audio for my lectures. Every lecture has learning objectives. I am trying to find the best way to study the plethora of lectures. I have around 100 lectures to study already since my school does all the preclinical sciences in the first year.

I would love it if I can get some advice regarding the approach I should take with studying. Should I just focus on the my OneNote notes and just study the **** out of them? or should I write my own consolidated notes (takes a while)? exams are based solely on the powerpoints.

Please advise,

Thanks

Wow, I don't know what these jokers are saying. If you fancy staying up all night every day condensing your notes and color coding the crap out of them, then enjoy. Personally, I find it very inefficient, and OneNote by itself + supplementary notes works fine for me.

 

[TAWS]

Wow, I don't know what these jokers are saying. If you fancy staying up all night every day condensing your notes and color coding the crap out of them, then enjoy. Personally, I find it very inefficient, and OneNote by itself + supplementary notes works fine for me.

Good notes make studying for comprehensive exams and Step 1 MUCH easier because it is much easier to recall notes that you wrote yourself.

If you just annotate powerpoints and study them, you are going to have a much harder time studying for Step I.

 

[FIREitUP]

Good notes make studying for comprehensive exams and Step 1 MUCH easier because it is much easier to recall notes that you wrote yourself.

If you just annotate powerpoints and study them, you are going to have a much harder time studying for Step I.

So you are suggesting for each class I should rewrite the course notes in my own words? So by that logic, when I have to study for Step 1, I should rewrite the textbook? Also, who says you can't take good notes on a powerpoint?

 

[Abby_Normal]

I go with consolidated notes. In class, I write down everything that isn't on the slides, then when I go home I combine my slides and rough notes into a comprehensive set of colour coded notes with illustrations and then I study those. I have the prettiest notes in my class

This is pretty much what I do, too. I've found it depends upon the way material is being presented in that block, but what I'm doing now and seems to be working is skim book-->go to class and take notes in Powerpoint--> condense notes in notebook, following any objectives listed.

I also try to use flash cards and practice exams to prepare for exams.

 

[FIREitUP]

I guess what I should say that there is no best way to study. Honestly, I find my self changing some of my study habits based on the teacher (i.e., if they have good notes I stick with those and annotate/highlight them). However, I feel that some of the suggestions are wildly inefficient, so my advice to the OP is to experiment and see what gives you the best results without consuming your life.

 

[TAWS]

I guess what I should say that there is no best way to study. Honestly, I find my self changing some of my study habits based on the teacher (i.e., if they have good notes I stick with those and annotate/highlight them). However, I feel that some of the suggestions are wildly inefficient, so my advice to the OP is to experiment and see what gives you the best results without consuming your life.

I don't even have to study a few days before the exam with my method. I see sifting through power-points made by multiple professors of varying quality to be inefficient. You are wasting time going over irrelevant material or stuff you already know.

Writing your own notes from lecture material is not that time consuming. Ever hear of copy/paste?

 

[BlazingAzn]

Wouldn't using a Cornell notes style of taking lecture notes be pretty high yield as well? It's an active learning style and if each page has questions and summaries that you write, it should stick pretty well.

I hated looking at powerpoint slides on my tablet when I was taking class notes for Nursing. TAWS is right in that it is absolutely easier to remember things you write because at that point you are actively participating during the lecture, whereas if it's on the powerpoint and you do not rewrite it, you trick yourself into thinking you know more than you actually know. My 0.02.

 

[Isoprop]

I have personally found writing and rewriting to be highly inefficient. I'd rather go through the material in 5 or 6 passes than rewriting the material twice.

But then again, I'm just trying to pass my class/not aiming for AOA.

 

[FIREitUP]

I don't even have to study a few days before the exam with my method. I see sifting through power-points made by multiple professors of varying quality to be inefficient. You are wasting time going over irrelevant material or stuff you already know.

Writing your own notes from lecture material is not that time consuming. Ever hear of copy/paste?

Two reasons why I wouldn't do this.
1) Spaced Memory Retention--just because you remember it now doesn't mean you'll remember it later on. I want to bang in the high yield facts so I think it's important to keep going over it. The material is not irrelevant just because I know it at one point in time.

2) The concepts are integrative. If I just put what I don't know now then it detracts from the fact that the concepts all interrelate.

I make bad powerpoints good by putting info from other sources to make it make sense.

My method works for me , and if your method works for you then that's fine too. To each his own.

 

[KKat]

I try to go through the lectures and write the notes in my own words. I also generally have to reorganize them in a way that makes sense to me. Sometimes lectures are just poorly organized and when I am studying from them I get frustrated because I am constantly flipping through the slides.

I find that taking a topic and forming my own narrative helps me remember it better. I also like to incorporate different sources in my notes.

I've tried studying straight from the lecture power points and it did not work for me. My grades increased dramatically when I started making my own notes. If you find that you study effectively strait from the power points go for it, I just don't.

After I make my notes, I print them out and the second time I go through them I generally will make diagrams on the back of the previous pages.

I hate highlighting. I find it distracting. Some other students are highlighter obsessed.

My method may take a little time but I generally don't have to study much before tests and can focus on other things.

 

[mauberley]

I hated looking at powerpoint slides on my tablet when I was taking class notes for Nursing. TAWS is right in that it is absolutely easier to remember things you write because at that point you are actively participating during the lecture, whereas if it's on the powerpoint and you do not rewrite it, you trick yourself into thinking you know more than you actually know. My 0.02.

Agree with this. I find material doesn't stick with me if I'm simply reading and rereading. Writing -- in other words, making the material my own -- does.

To a previous poster: the "jokers" comment was a bit unnecessary.

 

[JackShephard MD]

Studying Step 1 from class notes doesn't seem wise. Unless your school builds it curriculum off Step 1, there's a lot of unnecessary material covered.

 

[bonoz]

Thanks for the advice everyone. Anyone got anymore advice?

 

[FIREitUP]

Agree with this. I find material doesn't stick with me if I'm simply reading and rereading. Writing -- in other words, making the material my own -- does.

To a previous poster: the "jokers" comment was a bit unnecessary.

hold on lemme call the wahmbulance for you.

 

[mauberley]

hold on lemme call the wahmbulance for you.

I'm glad you're watching out for me.

 

[Charles_Carmichael]

I don't attend class so I generally just look up the topic that's being covered and read for myself in whatever review book/occasional textbook that's been recommended on SDN. I read this material several times. I also make decent use of the white board I have, particularly with physio where there's a lot of messing around with graphs, arrows, etc. Then, the week of the exam, after I've already gotten a solid understanding of all the material, I go through the lecture powerpoints or a study guide of lecture notes from a previous year or one that a classmate made (we share a lot of resources with each other in my class, which is awesome). This way, I've got a really good understanding of what's important and necessary to know for the boards while still catching all the minutiae that our professors want us to know for the exam.

 

[amaprez]

--"Sorry I'm late! Traffic was bad on the way here. So who called me?"

 

[rollelephants]

I don't attend class so I generally just look up the topic that's being covered and read for myself in whatever review book/occasional textbook that's been recommended on SDN. I read this material several times. I also make decent use of the white board I have, particularly with physio where there's a lot of messing around with graphs, arrows, etc. Then, the week of the exam, after I've already gotten a solid understanding of all the material, I go through the lecture powerpoints or a study guide of lecture notes from a previous year or one that a classmate made (we share a lot of resources with each other in my class, which is awesome). This way, I've got a really good understanding of what's important and necessary to know for the boards while still catching all the minutiae that our professors want us to know for the exam.

i like the idea of this and want to try it, but i feel like I would always be learning more than i needed to by not looking at the lecture notes first. Do you find that is the case or no?

 

[sg3333]

I do some of this stuff but want to add something I've found very useful and timesaving as a step #1:

Find a youtube or mcgraw-hill website animation of the mechanism or system you are going to be learning more about. Animations can make everything make sense so easily and prevent you from being confused when reading words that attempt to describe confusing stuff.

 

[expendible]

 

[FunnyCurrent]

This would never work at my institution. We have exams every 2-4.5 weeks. They are extraordinarily detailed.

 

[bonoz]

Instead of writing down notes, does anyone first look at the material, understand it, and then explain it to yourself or an imaginary friend the same thing in your own words. Does that seem to help and is it more efficient than writing down notes?

Thanks

 

[PSurg530]

Instead of writing down notes, does anyone first look at the material, understand it, and then explain it to yourself or an imaginary friend the same thing in your own words. Does that seem to help and is it more efficient than writing down notes?

Thanks

That's pretty much what I did (yes, I talk to myself when I'm studying), though I think it would only work if it's during the few days before the test. If it's earlier in the block, you might as well take the time to write it down so you can review it again later.

 

[ManBroDude]

Bump.

Incoming MS1 here. What's the BEST way to take notes with powerpoint slides?

 

[KnuxNole]

Using a computer:
You can type notes in the little text box in the bottom of the powerpoint slide(assuming you have access to the slides BEFOREHAND)

OR

Use OneNote. I have never used this in my life so I can't comment on this

If you decide that you want to print out your notes or the school/student organization has a service which does this:

Either print them out with 3 slides a page to write notes

OR

Print them 2 slides per page and add on tidbits as you go

 

[D elegans]

1. Repetition, repetition, repetition
2. Repeat

 

[Bojack Horseman]

The only thing I really don't like about OneNote is that it is a pain in the butt to remove empty space. For example, if I decide that a certain PowerPoint slide is useless after I've added it to OneNote, it takes too long to delete the empty space after removing the slide.