Cultivate Academic Success With The Cornell Notes System
There are thousands of credible teaching resources dedicated to helping us learn more effectively, but when pursuing a larger learning objective, effective note taking can be the difference between failing to fully grasp the material, and walking away with a thorough and enlightened understanding.
Taking notes is an important skill and is especially useful when practicing (or otherwise learning) a language. Research has shown that writing down new information can help with retention. Our world is getting faster and more complex, and it is becoming more and more important to utilize our attention and time as productively as possible. Taking notes is a brilliant way to double-dip on the brain’s learning tools, in part because it combines active listening with processing, comprehension, and regurgitation.
One of the most well-renowned and popular formal guidelines for taking notes is called The Cornell Notes System, developed by Cornell University professor Walter Pauk in the 1940s. This method continues to be used by practical learners around the world because of its simple but powerful approach.
This method continues to be used by practical learners around the world because of its simple but powerful approach.
Divide your paper into three sections: two columns, with enough space beneath them for a paragraph. The top right column is where you will take your initial notes while actively engaging with the material you are interested in learning. The top left column is where you will rehash main ideas or leading questions after the lesson to help direct and solidify your understanding of the source material. The row at the bottom is used to summarize as you later reflect on the most important information. Your notes should be succinct.
1. Record: During the lecture, use the note-taking column to record the lecture using telegraphic sentences.
2. Questions: As soon after class as possible, formulate questions based on the notes in the right-hand column. Writing questions helps to clarify meanings, reveal relationships, establish continuity, and strengthen memory. Also, the writing of questions sets up a perfect stage for exam-studying later.
3. Recite: Cover the note-taking column with a sheet of paper. Then, looking at the questions or cue-words in the question and cue column only, say aloud, in your own words, the answers to the questions, facts, or ideas indicated by the cue-words.
4. Reflect: Reflect on the material by asking yourself questions, for example: “What’s the significance of these facts? What principle are they based on? How can I apply them? How do they fit in with what I already know? What’s beyond them?
5. Review: Spend at least ten minutes every week reviewing all your previous notes. If you do, you’ll retain a great deal for current use, as well as, for the exam.
To gain a better visualisation about the Cornell Note Taking System works, click here.
Alternatively, reference Oxford Learning to gain several ideas on how to effectively note take. Clear note-taking practice carries over into improved writing, memorisation, and overall comprehension. No matter which note-taking method you end up choosing, you and your child can both benefit from learning about your brains, while simultaneously gaining an understanding of how to utilise these shortcuts for efficient learning and application.
