The art of taking notes while studying: Effective strategies for every type of learner

Now think briefly about how you take notes during class. Are you using a specific system? Does this system work for you? What could be improved? How could notes taken online during a presentation, section, or seminar be different compared to the classroom?

Customize how you take notes during synchronous and asynchronous learning (slight adjustments)

First, we differentiate between synchronous and asynchronous teaching. Synchronous courses are live with teachers and students, and asynchronous lessons are material recorded by the professor that students watch at another time. Sometimes asynchronous lessons can include a recording of a live Zoom session with teachers and students.

With that distinction in mind, here are a few tips on how to take notes during both types of lessons:

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Take notes live during lessons (synchronous lessons)

During a live lesson, take notes while the presentation or discussion is ongoing. Try to do this during breaks in the presentation or discussion so that you don't miss the next piece of information. It's something you're probably already used to in the classroom.

Take notes when you watch recorded lectures (asynchronous lessons)

Recorded lectures and class discussions can be paused, but we recommend that you watch videos in their entirety the first time without pausing them. This allows you to see the full range of material as you take notes and prevents you from being tempted to write down every word the instructor said (which is typically less useful for learning than notes where you've processed the instructor's words as you listened). You can write down the time marker if you think you need to return to fill a gap, which may be unnecessary once you've watched the video in its entirety. We also encourage you to watch videos at their regular pace, as if you were sitting in a synchronous presentation or discussion. You can then take notes as you would normally during these activities. If you increase the speed, note that research shows that the benefit decreases beyond 1.25x.

Test yourself

When you watch recordings, check yourself and your attention level frequently as you watch. Are you really listening carefully? Are you recording the material? Do you need a break? When you decide when to watch asynchronous footage, make sure you set aside enough time to watch videos, take notes, and take breaks.

When available, annotate lecture slides during the lecture

Whether you're taking a live lesson or watching a recording, if you have access to lecture notes or slides from the teacher, you can annotate them during the lecture. Having the slides as a basis makes it easier to supplement them with information you'll learn during the lecture and with your own questions. These notes can be useful to take with you to sections and office hours so you can clear up any confusion about the material.

Consider writing notes by hand

Typing notes on your computer is convenient, but keep in mind that research has shown — for those who can — that we learn better when we write notes by hand. When we write notes by hand, we transcribe less and interpret more. In other words, we don't write down the teacher's words literally, but we translate the concepts into our own words, which shows that learning is already taking place. Some students find it helpful to type their handwritten notes during the review and expand on what they've written. Others add something to their handwritten notes. Writing notes by hand can also be a welcome change from typing on your computer while studying.

Review your notes

Plan to review your course notes regularly. Put a check mark next to the material that you really understand well and place a question mark where you need to review or expand on alone or with the help of an instructor. You can also use color coding to identify these categories. Looking at your notes right after the lecture is a good way to mark any areas of confusion that you're immediately aware of, but make sure to return sometime after your lecture to see if you've retained your understanding of the material. Looking over your course notes just before class can be a great way to prepare for class and at the same time allow yourself to locate parts of the lecture that you want clarified when class is taking place or when you go to office hours.

Write down questions

During lectures and during the exam, write down questions that you can research yourself or ask the instructor, a friend, or a tutor. Asking questions allows you to synthesize your knowledge of the material and expand your learning by observing areas of confusion or misunderstanding.

Here are some common and effective note-taking techniques:

Cornell notes

The Cornell method for notes is designed to help you keep track of the wider concepts in your course, while also taking specific notes about what your instructor is saying. Typically done by hand, the Cornell Method involves drawing a line around the edge of your paper and dedicating one page to taking notes as you would normally do, and the other to including questions and other guiding information intended to help you organize your thinking as you review the material.

outline

Outlining is the note-taking method that most students use intuitively. It involves writing down information as if you were reconstructing the professor's outline for the lecture as you listen. Your goal is to create bullet points for each idea and organize them in such a way that main concepts serve as headings and the associated sub-points start from them. The disadvantage of this method is that it works best when students can easily identify the “main concepts” in a course and less well when the material is not naturally organized in this way.

Mapping

Mapping involves creating a concept map from the ideas presented in the lecture. It works well for spatial learners or in situations where the main concepts of the lecture can be easily condensed and organized. It may be less useful in complex lectures as it focuses primarily on key ideas (typically there isn't much room to provide details in a concept map!).

Set method

The sentence note method simply involves writing an individual sentence for each point that you want to register in a lecture. It works well in situations where you can't structure because you don't intuitively understand the structure of the material and can't differentiate main ideas from sub-points based on the instructor's style.