As a high school or university student, you are going to be taking a lot of notes. This is especially true if you are doing content heavy subjects, like biology or chemistry.
There are a lot of different notetaking methods around, and it’s up to you to decide which ones you prefer. Some suit some subjects and learners more than others! It’s important that your notetaking process is efficient, and you produce notes that are easy for you to refer to while studying. The more often you review your notes, the more likely you are to retain a concept in your long term memory.
If you want to change up your notetaking methods, or curious to know which ones are out there, keep reading!
Outline Method
This is a very neat and structured way to organise your notes. In this method, you start by writing out the main topic or idea. Then, you list any subtopics, followed by a supporting idea. You can break down the topic into many different subtopics, creating a hierarchy of information.
This method of notetaking is easy to do both by hand, and on a computer software, like Word.
Pros:
- Notes are easy to make (set up not required)
- They are quick and easy to review
Cons:
- Difficult to keep up with writing notes when the content is being delivered quickly.
- Requires a clear structure in the content
- Can be difficult to add to the notes
- Might be hard to navigate to specific information
Cornell Method
The Cornell Method was developed over 50 years ago, by a professor at Cornell University. It has become one of the most popular methods of notetaking.
To do this, your page needs to be divided into three sections. There are two columns: one for the main ideas, and one for the notes. There’s also a row at the bottom, which is used to write a summary.
Pros:
- Writing the summary will help you understand the topic better
- Organised and systematic method makes it easy to review the notes later
- Suitable for all subjects
- Helps extract the main ideas
Cons:
- Takes time to set up the page
Mind-Mapping
A mind map is a visual diagram connecting words, phrases, and concepts related to a topic, facilitating idea generation and comprehension. Typically centred around a main idea, it branches into subsections, each with supporting statements, offering a concise and visual representation of topic connections.
Its best used for subjects with a lot of information to comprehend, or ones where there’s lots of links between topics.
Pros:
- Helps break down large concepts into smaller ones.
- Easy to embed visual elements such as images and diagrams
- Easy to add more information to the mind map
Cons:
- May not be suitable for subjects with a lot of content – space on a mind map is usually limited
- Can be difficult to locate information if the mind map is too detailed
Charting Method
In this method, a table is used to classify information for various categories in rows and columns. It is quite specific in the type of scenario it can be used for – it is best used for recording facts and statistics that can be summarised in a table.
Pros:
- Great to use when needing to compare things
- Good for subjects that have a lot of facts or statistics
- Easy to review
Cons:
- Easy to run out of space in each box
- Use is limited to specific scenarios
Sentence Method
This method is best used for fast paced lectures and can be utilised for any subject. It employs sentences separated by lines, which allows one to rapidly transcribe a lot of information.
Pros:
- Can get a lot of information down quickly
- Easy to do
Cons:
- Difficult to edit and add to notes
- Can be difficult to locate information when reviewing notes
- Doesn’t show the relationships between concepts
- Doesn’t highlight the more important points
Boxing Method
For students that like to take notes on their tablet/iPad, this method is a good option! Of course, you can set this up on a sheet of paper too. It uses boxes to visually separate topics within a page, resulting in notes that are visually pleasing and easy to review.
Pros:
- Easy to locate information
- Great for visual learners
Cons:
- Can be difficult to draw boxes on paper
- Not always practical to be drawing up boxes
- Can run out of space to write in each box
T-Notetaking Method
The T-Notetaking method is a variation of the Cornell Method, and it is used for subjects that have a lot of formulas. It consists of two columns: On the left side you write the formula, and the right side gives a description of the formula and/or an example of it being used.
Pros:
- Makes it easy to find the formula you need
Cons:
- Writing descriptions for each formula may be a waste of time if you know them well
The Q/E/C Method
THE Q/E/C method is short for Question/Evidence/Conclusion and is designed to help you comprehend the content you’re learning through critical thinking. It encourages you to analyse and question what you are learning.
There are three sections in this method:
- Question: At a horizontal section on the top of your page, write a question related to the topic that you want to answer.
- Evidence: This is the main section in the middle of your page where you will write all the key content that you will use to answer your question.
- Conclusion: At a horizontal section at the bottom of the page, you can summarise your answer to the question you had, based upon the evidence you found.
Pros:
- This is an active method of notetaking which causes you to think about the content you’re learning.
- Gives you a better understanding of the topic
- Clear structure makes reviewing notes easy
- Creating such notes is good preparation for your exams
Cons:
- Time consuming notetaking method
- Not useful for subjects that require a lot of memorisation
- May cause you to oversimplify ideas
Hopefully this article gave you some ideas on some new notetaking methods that you can adopt! You should play around with a few and find out which ones work the best for you and your subjects. Changing up your notetaking methods occasionally is a great way to keep you motivated and can help you better retain information.
