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In this case, you’ll have two columns instead of a big blank sheet, but either way, you need to write or type what you learn. Record – The record part of note-taking is universal. Below we’ll explain each concept and show you how it impacts and improves your note-taking. These basic concepts are all you need to take better, easier-to-review, and more organized notes. Taking Cornell Notes boils down to five basic concepts: Record, reduce, recite, reflect, and review. You must listen for the main ideas and ensure you get all the main concepts and keywords and any questions you may need to answer as you study and find a way to boil that information down to just a few sentences for your summary. Not only will you write down what you are learning, but you’ll have to use the data later as you review, so critical thinking is essential. In addition to the handy format, Cornell Notes uses a process for note-taking that helps you remember the information better.
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Finally, at the bottom, you will summarize your notes briefly so you can review the whole page in a minute or two. These sections will be for your keywords and questions on the left and notes from the class with main ideas and essential concepts on the right. Below that, the main body of your page is split into two vertical columns, roughly 30% of the page on the left and 70% on the right. Cornell Note-Taking Method The Cornell Note Taking Method breaks your pages into four basic areas.Īt the top is a large section for a title and the date. However, most of the page is dedicated to the information collected during the class. The keywords and questions area lets you expand upon anything you need to delve into more deeply. By breaking the page into four primary sections, not only is the information neatly organized, but it is also easy to review. This well-respected system is easy to learn. Cornell University Education Professor Walter Pauk created the Cornell Notes system in the 1950s to help students organize and summarize the notes they take in classes.
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