Effective note taking is one of the keys to succeeding in Sixth Form. Students should devote a considerable amount of time reviewing information covered in lessons. It is very difficult to remember specific details from lesson to lesson without good notes.
The strategies below will help you improve the quality of your notes and give you guidance on how best to use them:
Make sure to take legible and accurate notes since it is not uncommon to forget key details discussed during class after it has ended. Frequently, students comprehend the teacher's lecture and think they'll remember everything, so they neglect to jot down specific details only to find later that they can't recall what it was they needed to remember. Students who keep accurate notes can review them later to revise key points, recall necessary detail, solidify knowledge and study up on concepts they didn't fully comprehend during the lesson.
Notes organised by date, class, and subject make it easier to locate specific information later. Always use a new sheet of paper for different lessons/ subjects, and at the end of the day take time to file or organise these in physical or digital folders. File dividers for different topics will be essential.
Since teachers usually cover a lot of information during each lesson, it can be hard to write down everything important they say. This is why we recommend using symbols and that you abbreviate long words and use short phrases in your notes when possible. Many students use the following symbols and abbreviations while taking notes: & (and), w/o (without), eg (for example), ie (that is). When utilizing abbreviations, create a key of your most commonly used abbreviations, so you will not forget what they are.
If anything is unclear either during a lesson or after class, make a clear note of the question you would like to ask and direct this to your teachers either face-to-face or by email - you must take responsibility for your understanding of topics as they are covered.
This is undoubtedly the most important step in the note taking process and should form a significant part of your independent study time.
In order to retain information discussed during lessons, it is best to review notes as soon as possible after the class itself. This will help you better understand the lesson, your notes, and it will enable you to focus on what you just learned for long-term retention.
You may even choose to 're-work' your notes so they are clearer and more usable for revision purposes later down the line.
You should review your notes a second time just before your next lesson. This will help refresh in your mind important topics and concepts, and prepare you for the next lesson. You should continue to review your notes on a regular basis between lessons and exams interleaving revision of current topics with those covered in the weeks and months before.