Individual Report: Study Skills for Higher Education, July 2020

This individual report, prepared for the Study Skills for Higher Education module at the London School of Commerce, examines the significance of note-taking and various methods students can utilize to enhance their learning and retention. The report begins by emphasizing the importance of note-taking, especially in the context of online learning environments, and how it aids in preparing for classes, improving listening skills, and creating a condensed record of study. It then delves into different note-taking techniques, including outlining, Cornell method, sentence method, mapping, charting, and box and bullet methods, providing a detailed explanation of each. The report concludes by summarizing the key findings, reinforcing the value of structured note-taking for improved academic performance and knowledge retention. The report is a valuable resource for students seeking to improve their study habits and achieve academic success, and it is available on Desklib.

Individual assessment

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
1 Significant of making notes......................................................................................................3
2 Identification of some of the method that can be used to take notes........................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Notes are main or crucial points that are written by students or individual to learn from
specific topic in future circumstances. There are various external changes that have lead to use of
online platform for teaching of students such as Zoom application. So it have increases
importance of making notes so that students can learned and easily revise topics as per their
preferences and needs. This report is an essay which covers two main points that is significance
or importance of taking notes and different method that can be used to take notes by students to
enhance their existing skills, knowledge for making optimum utilisation of opportunities.
1 Significant of making notes
Most of the students do not have habits to make notes that resulted in poor performance
and retention of information for longer time frame. Online teaching have created problems for
students as they are not able to quickly understand and retained information so they by making
notes can enhanced their skills for gaining competitive advantages and huge growth and success
in future carer (Morgan and Bates, 2020). Therefore various significance or importance of
taking notes during various steps such as before, after and during class can be explained below:
It helps students to prepare for class: Notes is one of the useful tool that helps students to
prepare in advance for class or topic that lecturer is going to teach. Students can easily review
pages that lecturer is teaching and effective understand content of each lesson. There are certain
topics, points or words that are unfamiliar or could not able to understand by individual so notes
helps them to identify and clarify as soon as lecturer start session. Thus, it contributed in deep
understanding of matter, resolve of doubt and queries and effective learning or good grades in
examination.
Enhance listening skills of students: It can be stated that notes taking contributed in improving
listening skills of students as they actively listen to whatever things that have been taught by
Lecturer within classroom. Students in order to note important point pay active attentions and
avoid external environment disruption thus it helps in collecting or gathering relevant and
qualitative material (Sadler and et.al., 2020). At the same time if students is unable to hear or
understand specific point than it can specific to lecturer and resolve its doubts.
Review and edits notes: Student that make notes after class can easily edit and review their
notes by comparing with their friends in order to have qualitative information for passing
examination. It also contributed in adding more points that have been missed by students while
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taking notes during class. Edit can be made by students by highlighter so that students can know
difference between actual point it have wrote and its friend.
Taking note make and look good to students: Note is one of the best and most effective
method in learning process at the same time helps in revealing person charatertsicks such as
attention and patience level to listen to lecturer (Dukhan, Cameron and Brenner, 2016). Thus, it
state Lecturer that students is paying more attention, time and effort or interest in learning new
skills so it became happy and satisfied to provide best knowledge to students.
Contribute in sharing knowledge with friend: Students can helps their friend or classmate that
are unable to attend zoom online class due to important reason. It helps in transferring of
accurate and correct knowledge from one individual to another without minimum chance of
errors and mistake thus making information meaningful.
Create condense or brief record of study: Those student that feel difficult to learn lot many
things at single time can make use of notes to retained large number of information for longer
time frame. As notes helps students to write important or main points in rough copy which can
be used in future circumstances (Martin and et.al., 2020.). Notes are well organised detailed of
various topics that are teach by different lecture during online classes thus helps in easily
reviewing and learning information whenever required.
Helps in grasping attention of students: It is another importance which illustrated that notes
helps in engaging mind of students as in order to write important point they devote their time and
energy listening to lecturer. Thus, notes taking keep body and mind of student’s actives to learn
and write important point that are useful for examination. At the same time it contributed
towards reducing confusion level among student about various topics that have been taught in
particular task. So, it helps in reducing stress level and active body, mind to write crucial points
in books for future requirements.
It can be analysed that there are significant in various process such as before, after and
during class because:
Before class: Notes are important to be made before class to know something about topic that
lecturer would teach in next class. Thus, it prepared students in advance and helps in getting deep
knowledge about topic, identify points or words that are difficult to understand so that they can
be asked to lecturer in zoom class (Marrs, 2018).
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During class: Students have to make notes during class to note extra points or detailed that are
given by lecturers which can be most useful for examination. Thus, it review notes that have
been prepared in advances so that more meaningful information can be added to it for better
outcome.
After class: It can be stated that notes are significant for after class also because it lead to
review and comparison, identification of points that have been missed by some students as
compared to others.
2 Identification of some of the method that can be used to take notes
Most important skills that need to be present in students is taking clear and effective
notes for used in future circumstances Notes helps in enhancing learning and listening skills of
individual that helps students to make optimum utilisation of available opportunity. Class room
notes are mostly unorganised, written in bad hand writing and unclear so students have to learned
most appropriate method that they can used to make notes in order to learned through digital
media or online class (Vorderman, 2016). Therefore, several method that can be used by students
to take notes are given below:
Outlining method: It is type of method which makes use of group related points or includes
points that have relationship with each others. So, first in it topic name is written then in subtopic
various detailed are written so that student has complete information about matter. It is sub
classified into group and highlighted in bullet points so that anybody can easily learned and
review information content in it for different purpose. Thus, it is best method that helps in
turning points into question as it is neatly and well organised for better understanding.
Cornell method: It can be stated that it is one of the most effective method that includes various
points in particular place such as main point, keywords, summary and study cues thus provide
ease and comfort to students in learning new things (Arco-Tirado, Fernández-Martín and
Hernández-Moreno, 2018). Therefore one of the positive point of Cornell methods is that it helps
in finding out main concept and idea of particular online class held by lecturer.
Sentences method: It is most useful method as it helps in dividing or extracting important point
of too big lesson so that students have knowledge about various content that is included in
chapter. So, it helps it learning lot of information and detailed about chapter by specific
particular point that are necessary and important. Thus, students by using sentence method can
simplify notes for further study and review in future circumstances.
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Mapping Method: It is most visual way to organise class notes and mostly useful more learning
relationship between topics as sign, arrow are used by students to connect subtopic with main
topic. It is best and instant method that helps students to quickly revise topic just at glance as it is
generally in form of diagram, pictorial or image. Therefore the central or main topic is written
than arrows are used to define subtopics of main topic so that students can easily learn and
remind.
Charting method: Students in order to effectively arrange their information make use of column
and fill detailed information in rows so that students can easily know about facts and figure that
are taught by teachers in various online classes (Tomlinson, 2017). Such as first column for topic
1, second column for topic 2 and third column for 3 topic and so on.
Box and bullet: It is last method of taking notes in which for every main idea or topic during
specific class a box is drawn to clearly specific student’s topic of particular chapter. At the same
time it includes bullet point that are used to support or describe in detailed about main idea or
point that have been highlighted in box.
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded from above report and analysis that Notes need to be make by each
students in order to learned things taught by lecturer for more time frame. Notes are best medium
to increase memory and learning skills of individual so student needs to make use of different
method to take notes. Therefore it can be stated that students have to devote their time to record
data or information before, during and after class for better understanding and learning.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Arco-Tirado, J. L., Fernández-Martín, F. D. and Hernández-Moreno, N., 2018. Skills learning
through a bilingual mentors program in higher education. International Journal of
Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 21(8). pp.1030-1040.
Dukhan, S., Cameron, A. and Brenner, E., 2016. Impact of mother tongue on construction of
notes and first-year academic performance. South African Journal of Science, 112(11-
12), pp.1-6.
Marrs, S., 2018. Some Notes on Teaching Welty. Teaching the Works of Eudora Welty: Twenty-
First-Century Approaches.
Martin, R and et.al., 2020. Field Notes on Pandemic Teaching: 1. Places Journal.
Morgan, D. N. and Bates, C. C. eds., 2020. Coaching Notes: Considerations and
Possibilities. The Reading Teacher, 73(5). pp.678-681.
Sadler, S and et.al., 2020. Field Notes on Pandemic Teaching: 2. Places Journal.
Tomlinson, M., 2017. Student perceptions of themselves as ‘consumers’ of higher
education. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 38(4). pp.450-467.
Vorderman, C., 2016. Help Your Kids with Study Skills: A Unique Step-by-step Visual Guide.
Dorling Kindersley Ltd.
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