Taking notes

[I wannabe a doc]

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Is their a better way to take notes? I always seem to be writing down everything the teacher writes on the board. My notes always seem to disorganized and its hard to memorize them. Also do you guys go over your notes after class or the next day?

 

[Asyouwereatrio]

Is their a better way to take notes? I always seem to be writing down everything the teacher writes on the board. My notes always seem to disorganized and its hard to memorize them. Also do you guys go over your notes after class or the next day?

It depends on your style...I personally write down "most" of what my prof says...and I have some sort of organization to my madness. I review my notes prior to my exams...in "chunks" that I would consider manageable.

 

[eldoctor]

Try recording the lecture (I use my ipod). I think it helps since I only end up writing what the professor writes on the board or REALLY emphasizes. This may be a little more difficult for classes like organic.

 

[ponyo]

I review my notes after class. Also, I do this thing where if I have time I rewrite my notes, and if not, I only write notes on one side of the paper so I can use the other side to add organizational or substantive comments.

Also if you don't already you should always read or at least skim the book before class! It saves so much effort and you understand the lecture way better.

Oh and I'm really anal and color-code my notes using different pens but that might be too much...

PS: it's illegal to record lectures without telling the professors, but most profs are ok with it if you ask. But why would you want to listen to it twice if you could get it down the first time? 🙂

 

[Janieve]

It really depends on your learning style. Taking notes is great in that it keeps you engaged in and listening to the lecture while providing you with a reference to what your professor deemed important. But some people do just as well listening to recorded lectures or just studying from the book.

What I've come to do is fairly simple. I take notes on everything the professor lectures about (I started doing this as a note taker for my school's Disability Resource Center), and then after class I review the notes to ensure they are coherent (again, because I was providing my notes for others). Later, when I was studying I would read over parts of the book to confirm/add to the lecture material and note these things in the margins of the class notes. Then, when I was reviewing the material the next day, I would rewrite the notes, incorporating the lecture material, book material, and connections to earlier concepts.

It sounds like it takes a long time, but it really doesn't:

CLASS
-Review notes immediately after class: 15 minutes (tops)
-Look over book for more in-depth information: 30 minutes
-Rewrite notes: 45 minutes
CLASS

So in total, that's about an hour and a half. But it saves a ton of time later because you've reviewed the material as you've learned it and clarified it for later reference.

You should check out some other note taking methods, though. Just do a search on google and you should come up with a bunch to try out.

And remember - the best method for one person might not be the best for someone else. You have to figure out what works for you.