Taking Effective Lecture Notes – Outside the Classroom

Taking effective lecture notes is more than the strategies you use in the classroom.  Here are some ideas to improve your notes that you will do outside the classroom:

Read the textbook before class.  This will help you with the vocabulary and the basic organization of the material.  You will have an idea about the topic of the lecture.  (You might consider reviewing the book after class too!)

If your professor uses power point, print and review the slides before class.  Then take notes either directly on the slides, beside the slides or separate notes.

If you professor posts the lecture on line, print and read before class.  You should still take separate notes and then combine them with the printed lecture.

Review your notes as soon as possible after EACH class.  While you are reviewing do the following: make corrections, add words to make the information more clear, be sure you understand everything, add information from the textbook if pertinent.

Quickly review the previous notes as you wait for the current class to begin.

Use a variety of strategies to LEARN the material in your notes.  This is much more intensive than REVIEWING your notes.   Remember to use strategies that are concrete and active.

Periodically review ALL of the notes that will be on the next exam.

Remember that you are responsible for your learning and that most of it will happen outside of the classroom.  Each lecture builds on the previous knowledge, so constant review is necessary.