Note taking in class....how do you do it.

[Valcorie34]

Sounds like a dumn question on the surface BUT... Do you take notes by hand or type them in class? Do you you use a method like cornell or outlines?

So far I have taken notes by hand and I must say it is harder for me to pay attention while I am scrambling to write it all down. I am debating setting up evernote or one note and typing it all. On the surface it seems good, and then i would have a searchable data base of notes by keyword. Has anyone tried it? How did it work for you?

Do you learn better, and have better retention when you actually write it?

[Skittles767, RN]

Personally I love Evernote. I type my notes outline style in class with color coding and everything, I also record my lectures on my phone. I don't worry about missing anything if im typing ill just stop just because I rarely refer to my notes but rather my highlighted text. But the simple act of typing keeps me focused in class which is much better than the alternative sleeping student.

Later at work I will listen to my lectures in one ear phone over and over again since the teachers basically just read the powerpoints.

When I do look at my notes I love evernote for it. I can access my notes on the phone application which is awesome! Or if my computer is dying I can type the notes shorthand on my phone then access them on my computer.

Hope this helps! Good luck!

[Julius Seizure]

When I was in school, I did neither.

I noticed that my professors lectures and powerpoints were very very directly straight from the textbook. So rather than write what they were saying, I followed along in the textbook and highlighted the parts that they emphasized. Occasionally I wrote short notes, usually in the margins. Then to study, I just went over the chapter in the text book and paid attention to what I had highlighted.

I graduated with honors, so I guess it worked Saved me a lot of hand cramps and paper, too.

[PattieTarr]

I've started my first semester of pre-reqs so far. But, right now I am taking notes off the powerpoints in class, then I rewrite my notes, combined with notes from the book. Rewriting helps me to retain it, and then I use the new notes to study from. So then lecture and book is all in one place.

I'm also going to make flash cards. I learn from visual and repetition.

Once I have my first test I'll know if it works or not.

[direw0lf, BSN]

I will be recording lectures because I have an hour to commute, might as well listen over, with teacher permission. I usually print out the power points and take notes on them next to the slide we're going over, and write down page numbers by the slide for additional info. Our school has small classes so teachers mostly wait for us to be done writing.

For science classes, I would make note cards next and memorize key points. I don't think that will be good enough for my nursing classes. This is more like a way of thinking and not memorizing everything, it seems. I have to learn how to take my notes and apply the ideas to other situations too.

[cosmicnurse]

I do all my reading prior to class and make my own notes from the material I have read. I then have a second corresponding notebook which I use to write down class notes ( usually in a rush during lecture). When I am back home, I compare my lecture notes with my own notes to bridge any gaps. I label each weeks notes by week which helps me study when the unit exams come around too. But basically the more you write the more you tend to remember. Simply reading and highlighting the text book is not sufficient and that information tends to fade from my memory really fast.

[pmabraham, BSN, RN]

Good day:

I use Goodnotes and a stylus to take hand written notes during class. What I like about Goodnotes is that I can take notes on imported PowerPoints as well as going out and grabbing images on the Net to bring life to the notes.

Thank you.

[PinkEagle]

Personally, I find that I retain information better when I physically write it down. I used to hand-write my notes, then type them that evening. This year, I'm using the Livescribe, which is a pen that records your writing on an iPad or iPhone and can transcribe it into text which you can email or export to Evernote. I absolutely love it since I still get to hand-write, but can print copies, record pieces of lecture into my notes, and add tags and additional notes.

I need to buy this!

[NurseGirl525, ASN, RN]

For the last year, I hand wrote everything. My freaking hand and fingers hurt like crazy from all the notes. I decided to embrace technology this semester. I got a laptop and type all of my notes. I record the lectures on my iphone 6+ and then save it on my laptop. I have onenote. I then download the powerpoints and listen to the lecture and type what is important. Saved my hand and me time in lecture. Embrace the technology!!!

[ponymom]

I kept two sets of notes per each class and wrote everything down. I also recorded lectures in order to make sure I got everything. Any handouts were also added to if needed to clarify a point. I also copied pages from books to add to my notes if they were pertinent (illustrations and the like).

My class notes were darn near illegible to anyone else but myself; it was all shorthand scribble in order to get down the info.

At home, on breaks/lunch while at work, in the barn between chores, on vacation, etc., I carefully transcribed things into my 'good' notebooks in order to both retain the info and be able to actually study legibly from it. It was pretty time-consuming, but it worked great for me. My 'finished' notes were pretty nice.

I still have my notebooks, as I can't bear to get rid of them! I worked so hard on them and I'm still kind of proud of them.

[debbiedoo99]

Hi. I am JUST new to this site. I saw you leave a post about studying for anat. about a website you went to http://www.mhhe.com and to click on student edition>study partner>essential study partner. So I found myself there, and the link/s seem to be clickable, but nothing is happening. I'm trying to find a way to make this class easier for me. lol No one in our class has textbooks yet because the store ran out, so I'm using the internet. TY for any help, Debbie

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

I had an instructor for this linguistics class who strongly advised taking actual, physical, notes. Our brains retain information better due to the act of transferring the info from our heads to the pen and paper.

I personally have always taken handwritten notes. Back in my music-studying days, I had a music history prof who went a mile a minute--in scope and in depth. The woman was absolutely brilliant. I taped her lectures, took notes in class but listened to the lectures later to fill in gaps my hands couldn't write fast enough for.

I also had two separate notebooks for each class, at least for lecture-heavy classes like hard sciences and the aforementioned music history classes. One for use in class, the other to copy my notes into nice perfect, legible outlines after class. :)

[barcode120x, RN, NP]

In first and 2nd semester, I typed my notes. I would read the chapter and type up an outline while reading. During lecture, I typed what I thought was important from the powerpoint as well things my professor said that was not on the powerpoint. During my 3rd semester, powerpoints were available to us so I simply just added to the powerpoints during lecture instead of retyping everything. I still read the book but I did not do typed outlines like before.

4th semester was a complete turn around. The above works great for memorization as in fundamentals and pharmacology. I forgo'd the typing and went straight to reading and highlighting the book. During lecture, I hand wrote all my notes, followed along with the book, and added more notes to the book. There's just something about writing things down that makes me recall the information faster and better. I found this the best way to study for me.