Cornell Notes: Take Effective Notes(models.substack.com)
models.substack.com
Cornell Notes: Take Effective Notes
https://models.substack.com/p/-cornell-notes-take-effective-notes
3 comments
To me, it defeated the greatest benefit of taking notes, which isn't being able to reference them but the fact that writing down important information seems to help with memory retention. If I'm having to think about structuring my notes, then that's less likely to happen.
In fact, might it be better to take unstructured notes, and then restructure them later?
In fact, might it be better to take unstructured notes, and then restructure them later?
That actually makes quite a lot of sense.
Step 0: Take unstructured notes
Steps 1-3: Cornell method
Personally, this is my preferred approach. I feel uncomfortable making final notes the minute I have just learned something new. It's like your bubble of knowledge has to expand and connect to other thoughts and ideas in your head, otherwise my notes feel so superficial and incomplete.
I started using this just to test it out when I started studying compci a year ago.
It works relatively well for me, though I have become extremely relaxed in the way I use it.
When I started I would write much more in the "recall" column. Now when I write in the note section, I add to the recall section if it makes sense for the note (so, not always - before I would always try to write in the recall column even for things where it didn't make sense to). I also skip the summary bit out of pure laziness.
It works alright. It's become more of a routine study thing more than anything. But I do think it helps me order my thoughts, creating questions in the recall column is a useful exercise I feel.
It works relatively well for me, though I have become extremely relaxed in the way I use it.
When I started I would write much more in the "recall" column. Now when I write in the note section, I add to the recall section if it makes sense for the note (so, not always - before I would always try to write in the recall column even for things where it didn't make sense to). I also skip the summary bit out of pure laziness.
It works alright. It's become more of a routine study thing more than anything. But I do think it helps me order my thoughts, creating questions in the recall column is a useful exercise I feel.
I've never regretted the "unstructured data" approach to note-taking. I write furiously fast, and copious note-taking has enhanced both aided and unaided recall. It works very well during didactic teaching sessions (as opposed to conversational, Socratic teaching). I happen not to be a fan of Socratic teaching anyway.
The summarization portion is probably the main advantage over the other note taking methods IMO.