Improving Your Note Taking

• Make clear and accurate notes
  Make sure to take legible and accurate notes since it is not uncommon to forget key details discussed in class after it has ended. Frequently, students comprehend the teacher’s lecture, so they’ll neglect to jot down specific details only to forget them later. Students who keep accurate notes can review them later to fully grasp key concepts during personal study time. Additionally, since during classroom lectures teachers frequently cover many topics, effective notes enable students to concentrate on specific topics.
  
  
• Come to class prepared
  Students properly prepared for class usually take better notes. Proper preparation includes completing assigned reading prior to class and reviewing notes from previous lectures. Students who do this can ask questions about confusing concepts and be prepared for new topics.
  
  
• Compare your notes
  To ensure your notes are as accurate and detailed as possible, compare them with the notes of other students after class is over. This is useful because your colleagues will frequently write down lecture details that you forgot or missed. This strategy will make classroom notes more thorough and precise.
  
  
• Minimize distractions
  Effective note takers avoid classroom distractions. This can include sitting in spots with fewer distractions and not signing up for classes with friends that you might want to make comments to during lectures. Some students sit in spots where it is difficult to constantly glance at the clock.
  
  
• Organize your notes
  Notes organized by date, class, and subject make it easier to locate specific lecture details. It is also a good idea to keep information from different dates and classes separated or beginning each class with a new piece of paper.
  
  
• Use abbreviations and symbols
  Since teachers usually cover a lot of information during each lecture, it can be hard jotting everything down. This is why it is a good idea to use symbols or abbreviate long words and write short phrases in your notes. Many students use these symbols and abbreviations while taking notes: & (and), w/o (without), eg (for example), ie (that is). When utilizing abbreviations, create a key of your most commonly used abbreviations, so you will not forget them.
  
  
• Write clearly
  Effective notes will be of no benefit if they’re unreadable. This is why it is important to use good penmanship when taking notes. It is also recommend to leave space in margins and near key concepts in your notepad, so you can add important details related to previous lecture topics in future lectures.
  
  
• Review your notes
  In order to retain information discussed during lectures, it is best to review notes right after class. This will help you better understand the lecture, your notes, and it will enable you to focus on what you just learned for long-term retention.
  
  
• Write down questions
  No matter how intelligent someone is, all college students will be confused and have questions during college. For this reason, it is a good idea to write down questions to ask after class or during subsequent lectures. You can also answer your own questions through a web search or using reference books.