Handwritten note taking in medical school

[olofmeister]

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Hi, I'm starting next fall and I would like to know how viable it is to take notes with a pencil and paper during lecture. I did this all throughout college and it worked very well, but with the substantially increased amount of info in med school, I'm not sure if it would still be a good option.

Is taking notes in a notebook feasible or does everyone use iPads/laptops? I'd like to know if I need to buy a laptop and/or iPad. Thank you

 

[Goro]

My students do everything digitally, from what I can see fron the lectern.

 

[AJ25]

Hi, I'm starting next fall and I would like to know how viable it is to take notes with a pencil and paper during lecture. I did this all throughout college and it worked very well, but with the substantially increased amount of info in med school, I'm not sure if it would still be a good option.

Is taking notes in a notebook feasible or does everyone use iPads/laptops? I'd like to know if I need to buy a laptop and/or iPad. Thank you

It's a dying art. And I applaud you for keeping analog alive.

I personally print out the slide decks at the local FedEx Kinkos (in color) and write on them. It's expensive but that's what I'm used to and it works for me. But I will warn you that this is not the most efficient way of going about basic sciences. However, if you make the time sacrifices, I see nothing wrong with the analog method today, and I personally think it is more organized.

 

[RockClimberMed]

I took hand written notes every single day for the first 2 years. Mostly just to stay focused during the actual lecture...never went back to them for anything. Worked out well for me.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

You can always digitize your notes, but if it works for you, go for it.

Why Writing by Hand Is Better for Memory and Learning

Engaging the fine motor system to produce letters by hand has positive effects on learning and memory

www.scientificamerican.com

 

[LizzyM]

In all likelihood, you will need some device that you will use to connect to the internet as many resources the school will require you to use will be digital. Your school should be able to tell you what type of device is recommended.

 

[mistafab]

I took hand written notes every single day for the first 2 years. Mostly just to stay focused during the actual lecture...never went back to them for anything. Worked out well for me.

I did the same thing.

I'm someone who takes notes to learn, but never reviewed notes to study. I never kept nor looked back at previous notes. Worked well for me.

 

[RangerBob]

It took me only one day to give up trying to take notes on blank paper. There was just no way to write everything you needed like many undergrad teachers might allow.

I then printed out the slides at FedEx Kinkos or whatever it was called back in 2010, but this got expensive and it wasn’t uncommon for the slides to get updated last minute. So that lasted only a few weeks.

Everyone else seemed to just type notes in the notes section of PowerPoint. I found ithat very unhelpful as there’s a tendency to type everything that is said and not synthesize/reorganize the info. Plus research shows the note writer doesn’t learn much with that system anyway.

So I tried an art/graphics tablet (Wacom made them back then). I coupled it to a program that would import the PowerPoint files and could take full advantage of the graphics tablet (the variable pressure made it more aesthetically pleasing). The tablet pretty much fit right on my laptop keyboard.

I still think printer color slides on paper was the most pleasant/best for learning. I enjoy using a real pencil. But you can’t learn if you’re missing slides.

The tablet was the next best thing. These days you might be able to just annotate directly on the screen if you get a good iPad and their graphics pen. I imagine a lot has happened in 16 years.

 

[olofmeister]

It took me only one day to give up trying to take notes on blank paper. There was just no way to write everything you needed like many undergrad teachers might allow.

I then printed out the slides at FedEx Kinkos or whatever it was called back in 2010, but this got expensive and it wasn’t uncommon for the slides to get updated last minute. So that lasted only a few weeks.

Everyone else seemed to just type notes in the notes section of PowerPoint. I found ithat very unhelpful as there’s a tendency to type everything that is said and not synthesize/reorganize the info. Plus research shows the note writer doesn’t learn much with that system anyway.

So I tried an art/graphics tablet (Wacom made them back then). I coupled it to a program that would import the PowerPoint files and could take full advantage of the graphics tablet (the variable pressure made it more aesthetically pleasing). The tablet pretty much fit right on my laptop keyboard.

I still think printer color slides on paper was the most pleasant/best for learning. I enjoy using a real pencil. But you can’t learn if you’re missing slides.

The tablet was the next best thing. These days you might be able to just annotate directly on the screen if you get a good iPad and their graphics pen. I imagine a lot has happened in 16 years.

Lol I have a feeling this is exactly what's going to happen for me, thanks for sharing

 

[blackcatstudies]

I took hand written notes every single day for the first 2 years. Mostly just to stay focused during the actual lecture...never went back to them for anything. Worked out well for me.

You never studied your notes?

 

[RockClimberMed]

You never studied your notes?

no