How important is note taking? EXTREMELY! The reality is people
are note-taking every class, in every meeting, and in everyday activities. But
what separates a good note-taker from a bad one? A good note-taker understands
what is the relevant information being discussed, while the bad note-taker is
not engaged in the lecture or presentation.
What it comes down to is how far you
want to go in the class that you are taking or how far you want to advance in
the workplace. If a student is precise in his/her note-taking… well you do the
math. Clark explains, “Note taking is a crucial skill for students in upper elementary
grades and beyond. High school and college students do a significant amount of
note taking during classes and while reading” (98). Makes complete sense…right?
As a college student how much time did you spend writing notes, revising them,
studying them and regurgitating them when it became exam time?
Note-taking is also a valuable research skill to have. If a
student is proficient in the skill s/he will be more likely to organize
information and understand the importance of what was discussed. So now that we
discussed the student’s role…what can the teacher do to reinforce note-taking
as a valuable skill? Well to start off, the teacher should teach students with
a “clear explanation, teacher modeling, guided practice ad explicit feedback”
(Clark). What this means is, students must demonstrate proficiency before the
teacher can expect them to perform independently.
As a teacher one should guide
the students every step of the way so they [the student] will understand the
importance while making it a necessity rather than a chore. Because what kid
likes chores?
“To extend the value of note-taking, teachers can show
students how to use their notes to apply new knowledge” (Clark). With that said
for a teacher what’s better than gaining new knowledge and expanding a student’s
vocabulary? That’s the ultimate goal for a teacher, for a student to get it and
then apply it. Mastery is key while note-taking can we all agree? I will leave
you with this statement:
If teachers can make the connection…the students can demonstrate
their knowledge.
Credits: www.googleimages.com
Did the text say anything about how note-taking reinforces learning? It's not just nice to have an annotated version of text to refer to when studying or writing an essay--note-taking actually reinforces the concepts in the memory of the note-taker. In fact, writing in any form while listening to a lecture can be beneficial--it doesn't just have to be notes. It can be doodling and still permit that person to listen actively instead of zoning out and daydreaming. I have attended more school than the average bear--four years of college, four years of grad school, now back in grad school for a different degree, and I can tell you, even if I just draw swirlies in the margin of my paper, I remember the speaker's words better than if I had to just sit there.
ReplyDeleteNote-taking was not so easy for me because I did not learn it from a teacher but a classmate. I think I will do some note-taking lessons at second grade this year just to see how they fare.
ReplyDeleteI think some students do not have the ability to take notes and they need from teachers to provide them with good strategies for that. This will help them for the rest of their lives specially in college level.
ReplyDeleteI think some students do not have the ability to take notes and they need from teachers to provide them with good strategies for that. This will help them for the rest of their lives specially in college level.
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