Successful

Lecture Note
Taking Strategies
Dr. Robert A. Kenedy
Assistant Professor
York University
Faculty of Arts
Department of Sociology
Academic Advisor, 219 Founders College
York University, Toronto
Outline
• Introduction
• Lecture Preparation Strategies
• Lecture Note-taking Strategies
• Lecture Note-taking techniques
• Conclusion

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 In the Lecture
•What makes you listen to certain parts
of the lecture more carefully?
•How do you cope with the quantity of
information?
•Do you have a particular method?
•What is it?

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 After the Lecture
•Are you happy with your notes?
•Why / Why not?
•If not, what can you do about it?
•Has PowerPoint helped in any way?
How?
•In what ways is PowerPoint not helpful?

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 Preparation Strategies
•Have you read the course outline?
•What’s the title of the lecture?
•How does it relate to the other titles in the series?
•What does it mean to you?
•What do you know already?
•(How) does it relate to real life issues?
•Have you read any of the preliminary reading?

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 Note Taking Strategies
•Be prepared: activate your schema
•Don’t try to record everything
•Work in pairs to share tasks
•Develop a system of short hand
•Listen for cues for important points
•Ask the Instructor to slow down!
•Try out different strategies

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 Practicing note taking strategies
- SQL2R
A balance between listening carefully and taking notes is
needed. The SQ3R strategy used for effective reading Survey,
Question, Read, Recall, Review can be adapted to SQL2R:
Surveying
Questioning
Listening & Note taking
Recall
Review

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies:
Surveying-Signposting
Surveying: listening for signposting:
•I’ll begin by
•Well,
•The first of these settings,
•One of the key questions
•There are 3 main theories….
•So now we’ve come to ….
•To sum up, what we’ve looked at so far

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies-
Questioning
Questioning before the lecture can be helpful, ask
yourself:

• How does it fit in with the course?

• What do I already know about this topic?

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies-
Questioning
During the lecture ask yourself:

•What are the main points?

•What is informative?
•What is analytical?
•What is the lecturer's opinion?

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 Note Taking Strategies

•Unless you have a superb memory, you’ll

forget much of what you’ve heard and made
notes on. Try to Recall and Review over coffee
after the lecture, with one or two others. It’s
more enjoyable, efficient and effective as it can
promote fruitful discussion. Make it a regular
post lecture slot.

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies-
Recall

Quickly draw a quick mind map, spider diagram

or flow chart summarizing what you all

remember – what were the main points?

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies:
Review
Review
•Make questions about the parts you couldn’t
remember (there’ll be fewer if you work together)

•Review your notes to answer the questions & fill in the

gaps.

• Make a list of those bits you didn’t understand & re

read your notes

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies-
Types of Notes
If you find that PowerPoint handouts restrict you, try
recording your notes in another way:

• Linear notes: with headings & sub-headings; points

are numbered sequentially

• Mind maps: suit visual thinkers

• Flow diagrams: suit logical thinkers

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies-
Linear Notes
Example:
Prepare for the lecture: After the lecture
Do prep reading/thinking Talk it over with friends
Read through the lecture topic Note what you do know/still don’t
know
Sort out note paper pencils etc
Summarise it
In the lecture Re-write brief neat notes (if nec.)
Be active (Ref.http://www.ex.ac.uk/dll/stud
Listen for cues yskills/note_taking_appendix_a.h
Use shorthand/symbols tm)
Use tape/buddy

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Practicing Note Taking Strategies- Mind
Map Notes
An example of notes in the form of a mind map

http://www.mind-map.com/EN/mindmaps/how_to.html

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 Practicing Note Taking Strategies-
Flow Diagram Notes
An example of notes in the
form of a flow diagram

Liverpool Hope University http://www.hope.ac.uk/gnu/stuhelp/notes4.htm#Note

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Note Taking Strategies- Lecture
Details
Also record on each page:
• Course title- abbreviations
• Lecture title
• Lecturer name or Initials
• Date
• Page number
• Sub topic? (Helps you locate topics)
This can help you to avoid plagiarism & keep track of your notes 6
months on

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Post Lecture Summary Notes
Date
Course
Lecturer
Overview: what was the lecture about?
Key vocabulary:
Key concepts/theories:

Issues/questions to be raised in seminar:

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Note Taking In Lectures-
Abbreviations
e.g. for example
c. about approximately
i.e. that is thro/thru through
etc. etcetera: and so on ref. reference
N.B. note imp important
Q. question sit. situation
eval evaluation
No. number
analy analysis
probs. problems diff/diff.y difficult/difficulty
p./pp page/pages diff.t different
1st first
max. maximum

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Cornell Method
REDUCE YOUR NOTES INTO
THE FEEDBACK COLUMN.

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Note-Taking Tips
1. RECORD DETAILS.
2. REDUCE NOTES AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
3. RECITE YOUR NOTES IN COMPLETE
SENTENCES.
4. CHECK ACCURACY IMMEDIATELY.
5. REFLECT, USING A VARIETY OF
ACTIVITIES.
6. REVIEW IMMEDIATELY AND ON-GOING.

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 Academic Success Series
Sources:
• Adapted from Brian Poser Presentation (SC&LD), York University.
• Ellis, Dave (2000). Becoming a Master Student: Tools, techniques, hints, ideas,
illustrations, examples Methods, Procedures, Process, Skills, Resources and
Suggestions for success. 3rd ed. Houghton Mifflin Co. U.S.A.
• Gardner & Jewler ( 2003). Your College Experience: Strategies for success. 5th
ed. Expanded Reader. Wadsworth Publishing Co. Belmont CA.
• Van Blerkom, Dianna. (2004). Instructors Manual for Orientation to College
Learning. 4th ed..Wadsworth Publishing Co. Belmont CA.
• http://www.yorku.ca/cdc/lsp/index.htm
• Other Internet Sources.

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