Summarizing and Note Taking

1. Summarizing and Note Taking Effective Classroom Strategies

2. Classroom Instruction That Works Effective Classroom Strategies

3. Summarizing and Notetaking • Requires that students distill information into a concise, synthesized form and focus on important points. • Research emphasizes the importance of breaking down the process of summarizing into a structure that can be easily understood by students. • Verbatim note taking is the least effective note-taking technique • Students should be encouraged to revisit and revise their notes after initial recording them. • They should use different formats and make notes as complete as possible. Effective Classroom Strategies

4. Summarizing and Note Taking • Both require students to distill information into a concise, synthesized form. • Effective learners are able to sift through a great deal of information, identify what is important and then synthesize and restate the information. Effective Classroom Strategies

5. A summary is … • A summary is a comprehensive but brief statement of what has been stated previously in a longer form. • A summary is a wrap-up----a general picture of the information--- much like TV networks produce at the end of a year. • Summaries provide a quick overview of a subject without having the reader wade through a lot of facts and details. Summaries help readers and writers boil information down to its most basic elements. • Encyclopedias, almanacs, and digests provide good examples of summaries. Effective Classroom Strategies

6. Note Taking Effective Classroom Strategies

7. Research and Theory on Note Taking • Note taking is closely related to summarizing. To take effective notes, a student must make a determination as to what is most important, and then state that information in a parsimonious form. Effective Classroom Strategies

8. Verbatim Note taking is, perhaps, the least effective way to take notes • When students are trying to record everything they hear or read, they are not engaged in the act of synthesizing information. Effective Classroom Strategies

9. Notes should be considered a work in progress • Once students initially take notes, teachers should encourage them to continually add to the notes and revise them as their understanding of content deepens and sharpens. This implies that teachers should systematically provide time for students to go back over their notes—reviewing and revising them. Effective Classroom Strategies

10. Notes should be used as a study guide for tests • If notes have been well designed and students have systematically elaborated on them, they can provide a powerful form of review for students. • Interestingly, fewer students than might be expected take advantage of notes to this end. Effective Classroom Strategies

11. The more notes that are taken, the better • “Less is not more” • A strong relationship exists between the amount of information taken in notes and students’ achievement on examinations. Effective Classroom Strategies

12. Classroom Practice in Note Taking • Teacher-prepared notes: One of the most straightforward uses of notes. These notes provide students with a clear picture of what the teacher considers important. Also, they provide students with a model of how notes might be taken. Effective Classroom Strategies

13. Format for Notes (no one correct way to take notes) • Informal Outline: Uses indentation to indicate major ideas and their related details. • Webbing: Uses the relative size of circles to indicate the importance of ideas and lines to indicate relationships. • Combination Notes: Each page of notes is divided into 3 parts by a line running down the middle of the page and a horizontal line near the bottom of the page. The left side is reserved for notes. The right side using webbing or some sort of visual representation of the information. Finally, the strip across the bottom is reserved for summary statements. Effective Classroom Strategies

14. Cornell Notes Effective Classroom Strategies

15. History of Cornell Notes • Developed in 1949 at Cornell University by Walter Pauk. • Designed in response to frustration over student test scores. • Meant to be easily used as a test study guide. • Adopted by most major law schools as the preferred note taking method. Effective Classroom Strategies

16. First & Last Name Class Title Period Date Topic Questions, Subtitles, Headings, Etc. Class Notes 2 1/2” 3 to 4 sentence summary across the bottom of the last page of the day’s notes Effective Classroom Strategies

17. Subject: Why take Cornell notes? Date: P R O C E S S M a i n I d e a s ( i n p u t ) P R O C E S S M a i n I d e a s ( i n p u t ) ( o u t p u t ) ( o u t p u t ) Can be used to provide an outline of chapter or lecture. Organized by main ideas and details. How can Can be as detailed as necessary. Cornell notes Sequential -- take notes as they are given by instructor or help me text in an orderly fashion. organize my After class, write a summary of what you learned to ideas? clarify and reinforce learning and to assist retention. Can be used as study tool: Which side for 1. Define terms or explain concepts listed on left side. diagrams? 2. Identify the concept or term on the right side. Can be used to provide a "big picture" of the chapter or Why use lecture. concept maps? Organized by main ideas and sub-topics Limited in how much detail you can represent. Simultaneous - you can use this method for instructors who jump around from topic to topic. After class, you can add questions to the left side What are the Can be used as a study tool -- to get a quick overview benefits to me? and to determine whether you need more information or need to concentrate your study on specific topics. Effective Classroom Strategies

18. Summary is added at the end of ALL note pages on the subject (not page) • Summary added AFTER questions • are finished • Summary should answer the problem stated in the subject. Effective Classroom Strategies

19. Effective Classroom Strategies

20. Rubric for Feedback Effective Classroom Strategies

21. Table share-out of Note taking strategies • Chart strategies from group • Post chart • Report out in 10 minutes, one strategy • I will compile all strategies Effective Classroom Strategies