Focused Notes

What are Focused Notes?

AVID’s focused note-taking process embodies research-based best practices for note-taking and using notes for learning and other applications. The five stages in the process apply to a number of formats for notes and work with all ages of note-takers.

First, the note-taking process must be taught. Most students don’t know how to take notes and, without understanding the “why” behind the process, are likely to look at the stages of the focused note-taking process as needless extra work. By providing explicit instruction in the “how” of focused note-taking and by allowing for practice during class time, educators can maximize student buy-in and demonstrate the usefulness of the process.

Much of the focused note-taking philosophy rests on the shoulders of work done by German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus in the late 1800s. Ebbinghaus studied memory and retention of learning and concluded that the key to learning was deliberate, mindful repetition. The more times and the larger variety of ways learners interact with information, the more likely they are to understand and remember. This research underscored the work of Walter Pauk, who devised the Cornell Note-Taking system in the 1950s. Cornell Notes provide designated space for each stage of the focused note-taking process to take place, but the steps of the process can occur with any type of notes.