3. RULES/STEPS AND FEATURES OF NOTE-TAKING FROM BOOK (TOWARD RESEARCH) AND DURING LECTURE

1.       Reading for a term paper or for a research paper means exploring many books and as we have seen earlier, note-taking helps to keep track of all relevant contribution during lessons. In the same vein, while listening to a lecture, absolute concentration is vital before a meaningful jotting could be done.

2.       The purpose of reading and listening must be established. You only note or jot something when you have established the purpose and then you know what is the key point to take note of.

3.       Interpret the located key points in your own words. That you are able to paraphrase a writer’s or a lecturer’s key points, shows that you understood what he is talking about.

4.       Make a complete note of all your jotting. You may use short hand to grasp all the points from what you are reading as well as the lecturer’s points, if you did not develop your short hand to complete words or sentences, you may forget what they stand for in few days. The particulars of the book read should also be jotted immediately to avoid forgetting them: name, author, title and publisher.

5.       In lecture situation, lecturers don’t start immediately giving key points at onset of the lecture. So, note-taking should begin several minutes after the lecture has started. So, it requires that one should listen attentively.

6.       A learner should also be watchful for speaker’s cue words like first, second, in addition, however; and sentences like now, I shall deal with, let me be more precise here, etc. such expressions are linked to key points of the topic.

7.       Change in speaker’s pitch and pause - raising or lowering of his voice, slowing his pace, being silent, etc., help to mark off important points from the flow of words and listeners should respond to these signals.

8.       The notes should be relevant – that is, it should be concise by focusing only on key points.

9.       To keep track of every jotting, each lesson should be properly headed with the name of the course, the lecturer’s name and the date of lesson.

10.     Writing during lectures should be by listeners code i. e. words could be abbreviated, short hand could be used and sentences could be shortened – but care should be taken to write the complete note immediately after the lesson/reading to avoid forgetting the meaning of the coded words.