Page 50 - DENG101_Communication Skills-I

Unit 5: Note Taking & Note Making

5. Refl ect: Think about your notes and the information that you have just learned. Consider Notes

how the information can be applied, and how it fits with what you already know. Figure

out the significance of the information, and why knowing it is important.
6. Review: Review your notes frequently to so that you don’t forget the information. It is
advisable to set aside time several days each week to review and recite your notes. If you
do this, you will not have to worry much before the exam.

5.2.2 Outline Method

The outline method of note taking starts on the left-hand side of the paper. The most important
points are placed at the left edge of the paper. Less important points, which are typically ideas
that support the main points, are indented to the right. Each set of less important points is
indented more to the right. It is easy to see, at a glance, the level of importance of the different
ideas because of the distance between them and the major points.
An alternate form, which requires a little more thought, is to start with minor points to the left
and indenting as points get more important. The alternate outline form is best used in lectures
where minor ideas are used to build up to the most important ideas.
With either form, indentation is enough to show the importance of the ideas and the relationship
between them. If you would like something more concrete, however, you can opt for using
dashes, bullets or a Roman numeral and letter combination for further emphasis. For the sake of
speed and being able to focus on the lecture, you may want to consider adding the marks after
class when you review your notes.
As the name suggests, the Outline method is a outline of the material, divided into Main topics,
SubTopics, and details. Outline notes look something like this:
I. First main topic ____________________________

A. Subtopic ______________________________
1. Detail
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__________________________________
2. Detail
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__________________________________
B. Subtopic______________________________

The outline method of note taking has several advantages. The outline method not only shows
the content and main points of the lecture, but also shows the relationship between points. With
an outline, it is easy to identify the main points of the information, and reviewing can be as
simple as turning main points into questions. In addition, the outline is set up so simply that it
takes very little, if any, editing for notes to be easily understood.
A major benefit of the outline method is the ability to focus on the lecture. Outlining does not

require speed or great detail in the writing, both of which take away from your ability to listen
to what is said. Outlining does require that you pay enough attention to the lecture to be able to
outline the key ideas, which can help you retain more of the information.
There are some disadvantages to the outlining method. The outline method can be diffi cult to
use in science and mathematical courses because those courses need more of an ability to show
sequential relationships than outlining offers. Courses with fast-paced lectures may also be diffi cult
to outline, partially because outlining requires the note-taker to think about organization.

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