Chapter 6
Listening, Note-Taking and Participation
In virtually every college class you take, or will take, you’ll need to master two skills to
earn high grades: listening and note-taking.
Note taking is important because your instructors are likely to introduce new material in class that your text may not cover and chances are that much of this material will resurface on quizzes or exams.
Some helpful tips for assuring that you will retain what is important from class are:
·
Tape
lectures, but be sure to ask the instructor permission first.
·
Choose
note-taking system that works for you. (outline, etc)
·
Be
aware that some or what the instructor say may mot be in the text
·
Since
writing everything is not possible, ask questions.
·
Make
it a habit to review notes with other students.
·
Speak
up! People tend to remember what they have said more than what others are saying to them.
LISTENING AND FORGETTING
Have
you noticed how easy it is to remember the words of a song? WHY?
(a) Often times the words in a song have a personal meaning to us
(b) Because the words in the song usually follow a tune and have a beat we can repeat over and over
(c) We relate the words in the song to something in our lives
Most forgetting takes place within the first 24 hours after you see or hear something. If you do not immediately review after class, if may be difficult to retrieve the
material you been given later. In two weeks you will have forgotten up to 70%
percent of the material.
USING YOUR SENSES IN THE LEARNING PROCESS
You can enhance your memory by using as many of your senses as possible while learning. How do you believe you learn most effectively?
TWO OR THREE OF THE CATEGORIES LISTED BELOW PROBABLY DESCRIBES YOUR PREFERRED WAYS OF LEARNING BETTER
THAN THE OTHERS
(a) Aural
(learn best by listening)
(b) Visual
(learn best by seeing)
(c) Interactive (learn best by discussing with others)
(d) Tactile (learn best by sense of touch, typing your notes)
(e) Kinesthetic (learn best by doing, participating, body in motion)
(f) Olfactory (sense of taste or smell contribute to your learning)
BEFORE CLASS: PREPARE TO REMEMBER
There
are a number of active learning steps you can take to make your listening and
note-taking more efficient.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THESE STEPS THE TEXT LIST?
(a) Do
the assigned reading before class
(b) Pay
close attention to your course syllabus
(c) Keep
an open mind
(d) Get
organized
(e) Prepare
to track your progress
DURING CLASS: LISTEN CRITICALLY
Listening
in class is not like listening to TV or listening to a friend. Knowing how to listen in class can help you get more out of what you hear.
WHAT IS SOME SUGGESTION THAT ONE MIGHT USE TO AID IN LISTENING?
Some suggestions to aid in listening are:
· Listen for the main concepts
and central ideas not fragment facts
· Listen for new ideas
· Decide whether what you heard is very
important, somewhat important, or not very important.
· Ask question and respect your own ideas and those of others
TAKING EFFECTIVE NOTES
You
can make class time more productive by using you listening skills to take effective notes, but first you have to decide on
a system that works and that you can understand. Here are some suggested systems:
(a) Cornell
Format (create a recall column on page of notes by drawing
a line)
(b) Outline Format (most widely used, Roman numeral listing
key ideas)
(c) Paragraph Format (writing detail
paragraphs summarizing topic)
(d) List Format (good for listing terms and definitions,
facts or sequences)
The Text Gives Examples of each of These Formats
NOTE TAKING TECHNIQUES
Whatever
method you use, remember “Don’t
try to write down everything”.
Instructors
using power-point or overhead transparencies generally will have important stuff in italics, bold or repeat the information
several times.
As
you take notes, leave space between lines so later you can fill in additional details that you might have missed during class.
Clear,
concise, organized notes help you stay focused on the main ideas of a lecture thus better preparing you to study only the
important information for exams.
AFTER CLASS: RESPOND, RECITE, AND REVIEW
Don’t
let the forgetting curve we talked about earlier take its toil on you (most forgetting
take place within twenty four hours after you see or hear something).
As
soon after class as possible, review your notes and fill in the details you still remember, but missed writing down in those
spaces you left between the lines.
One
of the best ways to remember information is to recite or teach it to someone else. You
will understand something better and remember it longer if you try to explain it.
Three important steps for remembering the key points in a class lecture are:
· Write the main idea in the recall column of notes
· Use the recall column to recite your ideas
· Review the previous day’s notes just before the next class session
These
three ways to engage with the material will pay off later, when you begin to study for your exams.
COMPARING AND RECOPYING NOTES
You
may be able to improve you notes by comparing notes with another student or in a study group.
Are your notes as clear and concise as other students? Do you agree on
the important points that should be included in the recall column?
Incidentally,
comparing notes is not the same as copying somebody else’s notes. You simply
cannot learn as well from someone else’s notes no matter how good they are.
Some
students choose to copy their own notes as a means of review.
PARTICIPATING IN CLASS: SPEAK UP!
Learning is not a spectator sport. To really learn, you must talk about what you are learning, write about it, relate it to past experiences,
and make what you learn part of yourself.
Participation is the heart of learning. When
we say something in class, we are more likely to remember it than when someone else
says it.
When
a teacher tosses a question your way, or when you have a question to ask, you’re actually making it easier to remember
the day’s lesson.
You
are more likely to participate if the teacher emphasizes discussion, calls on you by name and avoid criticizing you
for an incorrect answer.
Keep
in mind that most good critical thinking classes have not right or wrong answer. A good instructor simply wants you to give considerable thought to your answers and be able to support them with evidence.
“SO LEARN TO SPEAK UP”