Note Taking Skills

Note taking and note making is one of the most fundamental and important tasks that students must do. It cannot be doubted that a student that takes notes during lectures is more likely to achieve a higher grade compared to a student that does not. However, note taking might not have the positive effect the student wants if it is not done properly. “What to note down, how much to note down and how detailed the notes should be, takes time to develop” (Open University Malaysia [OUM], 2011, p. 92). Thus, this essay will focus on explaining the different methods of note making, how to take notes from printed materials and ways to develop good note taking skills during lectures. But first, an important question needs to be addressed. Why even take notes in the first place?

This is without a doubt an easy question to ask, considering the fact that most students have access to the lecture notes and text books which might be heavier than they would prefer it to be. However, it is a common misconception, made by countless number of students, to be under the impression that their text books would cover everything they need to know (Coacher, 2011). Everything that might be evaluated in assessments might not be in the textbook and it is unlikely that one would recollect everything discussed in every lecture of each module. Therefore, note taking is infinitely more important than what most students would have been considering it to be at first and it would save a great amount of time as well. Also it might actually be more complex than one would have previously imagined. This is because there is more to note taking and making than just writing down important points.

As aforementioned, there are several methods in which notes can be made or taken. And it is likely that the method which one student will prefer would not be the same as the method another student would be comfortable with. This is because, at an underlying level, no two human beings would process and