Most EAP courses include something virtually note-taking. It’s an expanse I’m e'er a chip unsure virtually how to instruct … Is it ameliorate to instruct a specific note-taking technique? To larn students to experiment amongst a few? Or simply to stick to explaining full general principles in addition to allow them uncovering their ain preferred format?
Recently, I’ve constitute myself on the other side of the classroom equally I’ve started studying for a part-time MA. It’s given me lots of nutrient for thought from a student’s perspective in addition to the chance to play around amongst dissimilar approaches to studying, including notetaking.
I should in all likelihood start off past times admitting that my note-taking inwards lectures has been minimal to non-existent. All my lecturers utilization PowerPoint presentations, the slides are available online in addition to oftentimes equally a printed handout equally good in addition to there’s by in addition to large some other handout in addition to a reading listing to receive got away too. So beyond the strange scribble on a handout, I haven’t genuinely felt the demand to receive got notes. I’m simply making certain I file all the handouts for time to come reference.
When it comes to reading though, I’m rattling aware of the demand to receive got notes, particularly when you’re reading to write. I’ve e'er banged on to my students virtually the importance of note-taking when y'all read to conk along a tape of ideas that y'all mightiness desire to utilization amongst all the relevant reference data thus y'all don’t waste product ages trying to runway something downward in 1 lawsuit again later. I also stress how useful note-taking tin travel inwards transforming the ideas you’ve read into your ain vocalism in addition to incorporating them into your educate of thought that volition then, hopefully, assistance y'all slot them seamlessly into your writing. I know that thus many of my students sideslip into plagiarism or patch-writing simply because they’re writing their essay amongst the beginning text opened upward inwards front end of them in addition to it’s all likewise slow simply to re-create the words across. If y'all procedure the data equally y'all read in addition to interpret it into notes, thus one-half the project of linking ideas together in addition to weaving them into your ain declaration has been done already.
But what’s the best format for doing that? Well, I’ve had ii sets of assignments to consummate thus far, ii pieces of coursework mid-term in addition to ii to a greater extent than over the Christmas interruption in addition to I approached each using a dissimilar technique …
Evernote
I’ve been using Evernote for a spell instantly for keeping notes on diverse work-related things, thus it was the outset format I turned to when I was preparing for the outset laid of assignments.
Pros: I was doing some of my reading on the educate to in addition to from academy (an hr each way, twice a calendar week in addition to I found, 1 of my best times for reading), some I was doing at habitation in addition to occasionally, I did a chip inwards the library too. This meant that beingness able to brand notes either on my tablet or on my desktop in addition to having them automatically synced was genuinely useful. Plus the notes are all neatly filed in addition to slow to refer dorsum to inwards future.
Cons: There’s lots of flicking virtually betwixt windows, both if you’re reading in addition to making notes on the same device in addition to when you’re using notes to write from. Although during writing, I got circular this past times having my notes opened upward on my tablet spell writing on my desktop. I also constitute it quite hard to larn on overview of fundamental ideas when faced amongst lots of screens of similar-looking, small, dark text. I could in all likelihood experiment amongst dissimilar fonts in addition to colours, but that’s fiddly when you’re making notes on a tablet.
Post-its
My instant laid of assignments were during the Christmas break, thus I was working almost solely at home. And amongst a longer essay which involved a review of the literature inwards a item area, I took a dissimilar approach. As I was reading (quite a chip from books this time), I noted downward fundamental points that mightiness travel relevant on post-it notes in addition to stuck them on the page equally I went along (including those all-important page numbers!).
Then when I’d done a large chunk of reading, I used my wardrobe doors to suit the notes into themes in addition to to gild them.
Pros: It was fun! I withal uncovering it much to a greater extent than natural to write notes past times mitt than using my fiddly tablet keyboard in addition to rearranging the notes thus I could meet the shape of the essay emerging was a genuinely prissy means to organize my ideas; moving things about, spotting gaps, doing a chip to a greater extent than reading, adding to a greater extent than notes, taking materials off that wasn’t genuinely relevant. I was almost tempted to halt at that holler for in addition to simply submit a photograph of my notes! But genuinely it did assistance the writing procedure too, getting upward to hold off at the notes, taking 1 off to include it, thus sticking it dorsum up, checking that I hadn’t missed whatsoever fundamental points.
Cons: It only worked because I was at habitation for the whole process, it wouldn’t receive got been practical if I’d been trying to read in addition to collect post-its on the train. And I realized equally I took them downward that they won’t travel rattling practical to shop for time to come reference, thus at some point, I’ll in all likelihood sit down downward in addition to type them upward into Evernote anyway!
So what are my conclusions … well, outset in addition to foremost, I’d say that experimenting is definitely good, it helps y'all travel out what approach industrial plant best for you. If I were didactics EAP classes in 1 lawsuit again inwards the future, I’d definitely larn students to endeavour out dissimilar techniques in addition to to brand submitting their notes purpose of some writing tasks … in addition to non simply equally a tiresome page of bullets points either!
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