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Note-taking Skills. Unit 2. This unit aims to help you to:. 1- take notes from lectures and similar learning resources in an efficient and effective way. 2- store notes efficiently. 3- exploit your notes for successful study. Exploiting Learning Resources:.
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Note-taking Skills Unit 2
This unit aims to help you to: • 1- take notes from lectures and similar learning resources in an efficient and effective way. • 2- store notes efficiently. • 3- exploit your notes for successful study.
Exploiting Learning Resources: • The most useful resources for learning namely reading materials are : • Books and journals articles. • But there are not the only learning resources that are available to students in higher and further education.
Note-taking: • We will probably want to note down important points from what we read or hear, either at the time or shortly afterwards.
The purpose of note-taking: • 1- help our memory. • 2- remember something exactly ( the phone numbers) • 3- in academic study, we might want to quote something from a book or article accurately. • 4- take careful note of source details ( authors’ names) • 5- in listening to a lecture, we do not have to note down everything exactly. Here, we have to write down only the main idea, and we have to be more selective.
Efficient note-taking: using symbols and abbreviations • We use symbols and abbreviations to safe time. • Symbols and abbreviations can be of three kinds:
Prediction/anticipation • It is useful to try to anticipate or predict what a writer is going to say in an article, book or chapter, using information given in the title, your background knowledge of the topic and so on. • Obviously, the same applies to listening to a lecture. This can help a lot in making what you will hear relevant and meaningful to you. • Do task 6/page 43
Discourse markers ( the ‘signposts’) • One of the most useful ways to understand a spoken or written input (source) is to be aware of the way it is structured or organized. • If the structure is a map, discourse markers are like signposts (to point out the direction). They serve as signals for the meaning and structure of the lecture, text etc. • They tell us how ideas are organized.
Functions of discourse markers: • 1- The discourse makers may be used for LISTING( firstly, secondly, in the first place…) • 2- they may be used to show the CAUSE AND EFFECT( so , because, therefore..) • 3- they can indicate that the speaker is going to illustrate his ideas by giving an EXAMPLE • (for example, for instance, let’s take…) • 4- they may introduce an idea which runs against what has been said-CONTRAST( but, nevertheless, on the other hand…)
5- they may be used to express a TIME RELATIONSHIP ( then, next,while…) • 6- they may be used to indicate how important something is- EMPHASIS(it is worth noting, a key issue is…) • 7- they may be used to REPHRASE what has already been said, or to introduce a DIFINITION( in the other hand, by this I mean…) • 8- speakers may add another related idea- ADDITION ( as well, in addition, not only…but also..) • 9- they may be used to express a CONDITION. ( if, unless, assuming that..) • 10- a very important kind of discourse marker is a SUMMARY( to summarize, if I can just to sum up, it amounts to this…)
Lecture organisation (the map) • Map : is the overall organisation of the lecture. • Good lecturers often help us to be aware of their talks.
Indicators of lecture organisation • 1- Good lecturers: • Tell their audience what they are going to tell them. • Tell their audience what they have told them. A- start with an overview (main points). B- what to expect the lecture will discuss. C- review the main points of the lecture in a final summary.
2- Some lecturers start with an anecdote to amuse the audience or catch its interest. 3- Some like to conclude with just one important point that they want their audiences to think about. 4- some will show the structure of their talk with an overhead transparency (OHT) or a handout.
It is very important for the listener to try to figure out not only what the information is but also how it is organized.
Cues to main points, subordinate points and digressions • 1- Speakers cue their main points in different ways: • A- use discourse markers, such as: • I would like to emphasise…. • The general point you must remember is…. • It is important to note that…… • The next point is crucial to my argument.
B- Stressing , or by repeating. C- facial expression or gestures. D- Write key points on a visual display, e.g. blackboard, whiteboard, flipchart, OHP (overhead projector) or computer (PowerPoint). 2- Examples and points of lesser importance are cued by discourse markers, such as: I might add…. Just to illustrate this point……
3- Sometime speakers digress by mentioning unimportant things to give more spice, variety, or interest to the talk. Digression can be cued by discourse markers, such as: By the way….. I might note in passing that…..
Note-taking methods for extended spoken inputs • 1- Linear notes (Figure 1.3 in Unit 1) • 2- Diagram notes (branching note) (Figure 1.4 in Unit 1)
