Note-taking is the method of stringing the main and subordinate concepts in a logical framework so that the whole topic/chapter is available to us in a nutshell. It is advantageous to students. Its purpose is to understand, remember and recall what we have read/heard in class. Many students find note-taking difficult because it means listening or reading with total concentration and knowing how to distinguish between important and unimportant concepts. It helps to master active note-taking so that we can learn the topic the very first time, without postponing it to a second reading.
In first year, a little before my preparatory holidays began, my mother had to undergo a major surgery. Being the eldest, I had to manage the house and did not get the time to revise my textbooks for the exams. It was my luck that I had made notes and studied them through the year. I barely had to skim them before each paper and write them. This was my first experience with reading entirely from notes, for the exam. However, I found I could recall every concept and example vividly as I attempted the questions.
Mistakes
Most students either record every word uttered by the professor, or just a few words, which do not make sense later. They buy cyclostyled notes from the previous year’s notes and read these to clear their exams. Obviously, they get lacklustre marks.
Taking notes actively during class helps students focus and understand the topic well. Note-taking aids retention. The skill should be developed as early as possible because, as we move higher in our studies, we are expected to read, grasp and remember more complex, more numerous textbooks/reference books. Note-taking helps in mentally consolidating the inputs.
Process
The goal of note-taking should be to record on just one sheet, the concepts one by one with their sub-points along with relevant examples/figures/statistics, and so on. One glance at the notes which have knitted all the concepts together into a relationship, refreshes one’s memory. Visual representations or graphic organisation of concepts aid better recall. Given below are some possible frameworks taken from the Internet, for exemplification.
The first is a Fish bone which helps record factors/features/causes and effects, and so on, of a topic.
The second is the Web concept ,also called the Spider web concept because it looks like one, names the main concept of a topic at the centre of the web, and has web threads going outwards from the middle in different directions to name all subconcepts.
The third is Mind mapping , a popular technique which can capture one or several chapters on one page.
Besides, we can use tree diagrams, tables or flow charts depending on the requirement. You might be familiar with these.
Benefits
The advantage of note-taking is that we can record all important concepts of a topic on just one sheet. For revision, we need to study merely 12 pages of notes representing 12 topics. Human beings think in images; so, visual/diagrammatic notes are easily recalled. It is a skill worth mastering. Constant practise in the early stages ensures mastery. The more you take notes while reading/listening, the more will you understand and remember them.
The writer is former Professor of English from IIT Bombay. vineykirpal@gmail.com
