Medical School Devices and Note Taking

[Mgurdzie]

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I am preparing for my first year of medical school, and I am wondering what kind of devices and note taking styles people have chosen. I am interested in getting a tablet like an IPad or a surface pro and downloading good note or notability. I was wondering if people had any input on what worked best for them. Interested to hear if people still take handwritten notes daily as well.
Open to all suggestions as I am hoping to purchase a new device (laptop/tablet ect) soon.

 

[boulder48]

Have a similar question but a year behind you. Have you found any note taking strategies you like? Any devices or platforms you recommend?

I'm most familiar with Mac and am going to be getting a laptop (either Mac or PC). I have also heard a tablet is nice. What's been your experience? Thanks!

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

My strategy was always
-don’t take notes in class
-review slides right after class, taking handwritten notes
-put info from handwritten notes into quizlet
-use learn mode in quizlet until know everything cold

I think that most literature advises against using a device to take notes.

Advantage of Handwriting Over Typing on Learning Words: Evidence From an N400 Event-Related Potential Index

The growing implementation of digital education comes with an increased need to understand the impact of digital tools on learning. Previous behavioral studies have shown that handwriting on paper is more effective for learning than typing on a keyboard. ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Handwriting or Typewriting? The Influence of Pen- or Keyboard-Based Writing Training on Reading and Writing Performance in Preschool Children

Digital writing devices associated with the use of computers, tablet PCs, or mobile phones are increasingly replacing writing by hand. It is, however, controversially discussed how writing modes influence reading and writing performance in children at ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Only Three Fingers Write, but the Whole Brain Works: A High-Density EEG Study Showing Advantages of Drawing Over Typing for Learning

Are different parts of the brain active when we type on a keyboard as opposed to when we draw visual images on a tablet? Electroencephalogram (EEG) was used in young adults to study brain electrical activity as they were typing or describing in words ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

That being said, I would recommend quizlet. Retrieval based memory strategies are likely to be more impactful than the benefit from writing notes. If you need tech for note taking, I would recommend Lenovo and IPad

 

[deleted1079620]

2nd year, our school “gives” us a laptop and I bought the cheapest basic iPad with Apple Pencil. I use it for taking notes during lectures and keeping pdf textbooks because they’re more pleasant to read on the iPad.

Mostly I don’t take many notes and I do anki on my laptop and use it for exams.

 

[boulder48]

Good suggestions. Especially regarding info retention.

Personally I’m torn on devices: whether a 2-in-1 laptop/tablet (PC) is smart, or if I should get a new MacBook (OS I’m used to) plus a cheap iPad in the rare instance I use a stylus to draw/annotate. Main use case might actually be for a second screen if studying on the go.