MISS M.

O SADIQ

ASSISTANT LECTURER

1.0 TOPIC: NOTE TAKING AND NOTE MAKING

1.1 OBJECTIVE:

At the end of the class;

Students should be equipped with the necessary skills required to take and make detailed notes.

Students should be more enlightened on how to use relevant data to make notes.

Students should have developed new reading habits from their knowledge of this topic.

Students should know the importance of writing and keeping notes.

1.2 PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE​:

This is the first topic for the semester and it’s essential for entry level students, so that they can

develop and build on their existing skills as it's relevant in every class and also when learning

independently.

1.3 BODY OF LECTURE

NOTE TAKING​ is simply when you extract important information from a text or a discussion

and reword it for easy reference. It is useful especially when you are not familiar with the

subject, topic or hearing a new word.

To take a detailed note, you must understand the topic so as not to alter the original thoughts of

the speaker or writer. Over time it has been proven that writing and keeping notes can help you

recall what you have learned.

NOTE MAKING​ is when you collect raw data taken from a text or discourse and proceed to

organise and connect the relevant information with new materials relating to the topic and create

a note based on your understanding and interpretation. Note making is different as it is

tailor-made by you and for you.

It is important to note that note taking is not transcribing, which means that when taking notes

the student or audience is expected to listen and jot down or summarise the important points in

the way he/she understands, instead of writing what the speaker or lecturer has to say word for

word. Transcribing defeats most of the purpose of taking notes and it doesn’t make one a good

learner because you are more concentrated on the words and not the point the speaker is trying to

pass across.

You can either be an Active note taker or a Passive note taker. AN ACTIVE NOTE TAKER

already has an idea of what to expect from a lecture or text, is in search of answers about the

topic and writes notes mostly in his/her own words. A PASSIVE NOTE TAKER underlines

direct words, does copy and paste of the original authors work, writes everything that is said and

usually has no questions about the lecture or source of information.

WHY TAKE NOTE?

In order to take or make an effective note, you must at least have a reason. There a lot of reasons

of which I will highlight some below

⁃ To avoid plagiarism: in order to avoid writing what the author or speaker has said,

one can rephrase what has been said or read.

⁃ To have a personal record of what you’ve learnt.

 ⁃ To summarise a main point of what you read, saw or heard.

⁃ To aid your memory: if you summarise in your own words it will be easier to

recall better especially during examination.

⁃ To add to your knowledge of a subject.

⁃ To add to an argument or prove a point.

⁃ It helps one to concentrate better during a lecture or while reading. If you are

distracted you might miss important details, so taking notes makes one a more active learner.

Although this is not a legitimate reason why one should take note but some take note due to peer

pressure. Meaning they take notes because every other person is doing it.

TAKING NOTES IN LECTURE

It is impossible to listen, think, read and write notes at the same time, so it is best advised to just

leave every other thing and listen in order to understand. When lecture is going try not to copy

notes if the slides or handout is available, listen for clues that will help you to organise your

notes, identify key words and be an active listener. In the situation where the slides and handouts

are provided before the class, you can write your points on the handout and for dyslexic students

who might find it difficult to keep up with note writing you can consider having a mini-recorder

so you can replay and listen at your own pace when you are free.

Put in mind that what you do before and after lectures is as important as what you do during the

lecture, if you can prepare well before reading a text or going for a lecture you will find it easier

to understand because you are prepared and you will have a better idea of the topic and what you

should look out for. To prepare before a lecture you can just try and get an idea of what it’s
about. After the lecture you can put aside some time to summarise and revise what you have

learnt.

NECESSARY STEPS IN NOTE TAKING:

⁃ Identify the theme: this requires reading and looking over the topic or lecture to

understand the context or main theme. Once you’ve gotten a good understanding of the theme,

you can go ahead to write it down in the way you understand which can either be longer or

shorter than the original piece but the subject matter must not change.

⁃ Identify the main and subordinate points: this simply means reading the main text

from paragraph to paragraph in order to differentiate the main point from its subordinate using

one's discretion.

⁃ Use short forms of writing: in order not to be tempted into writing word for word

as the writer or speaker, it’s encouraged to make use of abbreviations, paraphrase when taking

notes.

⁃ Identify how you want to take the note (handwriting or typing) : it’s important for

one to know which system works best for them and which system best suits the situation in

which they need to take note. They both have their pros, For example, one cannot use a computer

to take note in a maths or engineering class because it might slow them down while trying to

input formulas and hypotheses but the computer memory can be backed up, information can be

searched and extensive research can be done using the computer. Also while some people are

fast writers, some are even faster when they type on the computer, while we have people who

make use of both so it’s advisable to go with what works best for an individual.
 ⁃ Jot down important keywords, names, dates that you can easily refer to later.

⁃ Take organised, clear and structured notes so that you can easily read and

understand later. Using bullets can help organise your note and also picking a format and

sticking to it all through will make the note neat.

METHODS OF NOTE TAKING AND NOTE MAKING

There is no perfect method for this. The best method is the one that works best for you. I have

below the popular methods of note taking and note making.

• The Linear note

• The diagram/mind maps

The Linear Note:​ this method of note making summarises using paraphrase, half sentences,

sentences, outlines and abbreviations to express the main point heard or read. This note can be in

list form and is usually neat and has nice subheadings and is as well in a logical order. This is

usually the best method when taking notes from an oral source as you can easily listen and

record your own understanding of the text. It has plenty of room for details.

In most cases this method is used for journal writing and also for powerpoint notes because

powerpoint notes are usually the outlines of the main topic and you can develop them as the

lecture progresses.

An ​Outline​ organises the information in a structured manner, it forms a skeleton of the text or

lecture that can be easily understood at a glance. Although this method is simple, it cannot really

serve students in science and engineering where a lot of graphs, formulas must be drawn, in this

case another note taking method is used.

The purpose of the ​Outline​ is to show both the main idea and the sub topics at a glance. Each

identified main point forms a subordinate point and it is arranged using alphabets, numbers and

Roman numerals to differentiate the main division from its sub. For example Roman numerals

I,II,III,IV,V represent the most general level while A,B,C,D,E is used to indicate its sub division.

It is the most commonly used system of outlining. Each division must be indented more than the

preceding division, although if the entry is of the same level it can be indented using the same

number of spaces. Also every subdivided section must have at least two parts as the reason for

outlining is to get a large topic into smaller bits.

Example:

I. Title

1. Subject

a. First sub subject

b. Second sub subject

2. Subject 2

a. First sub subject

b. Second sub subject

II.

The Diagram / Mind maps:​ as the name implies that ideas are presented using diagrams I.e in a

visual way. It is when you connect ideas using maps and charts which is a combination of words

and images where you start in the centre with a key word representing the concept. This

particular method is popular in the sciences and engineering in drawing graphs and structures as

it shows the relationship between elements. It helps to visualise ideas, good for showing
structure, organising ideas and encourages creativity in problem solving. It is useful for people

who like to work visually.

Although some people do not like this style because of how technical it looks, it has its own

advantages:

⁃ It shows the main points at a glance as the map is on one page.

⁃ It clearly shows the connection of ideas and where ideas are not complete.

⁃ It keeps the points grouped together.

To make a mind map you put the subject in the centre and use one branch per main point which

radiates outwards, you show the connection of points on the joining branches, label every branch

and make sure there’s enough space to add detail.

NOTE TAKING/ MAKING AND READING HABITS

An active student that takes note taking seriously tends to develop good reading habits such as;
 • At the end of the lecture they tend to compare notes in order to be sure they have

not missed anything important, such as definitions of key terms, by doing this they might find a

thing or two that they couldn’t get during the lecture.

• An active student will form a reading group where they explain to themselves

their own understanding of what they’ve read or heard.

• They ask questions while making their notes, based on the other sources they’ve

been able to consult and are more enlightened.

• They make use of other resources to solidify, review, and question what they

have. Such resources include: the library, approaching the lecturer during office hours, the

internet and self testing.

1.4 CONCLUSION

Note taking is an important skill that cuts across every field of life that involves learning as it is

not possible to grasp and understand what is said or read at once. It is important to master this

skill and its mechanics in order not to be lagging behind. It is also important to note that

abbreviations shouldn’t be used for official purposes outside of personal consumption. What you

learn while making notes from notes taken will be mastered for a long term because it was

developed independently.

1.5 ASSIGNMENTS AND PRACTICE QUESTIONS

1. What is the purpose of taking notes?

2. What are the things to consider when taking notes?

3. How do you know what note taking method is best for you?