CORNELL METHOD: MY MOST FAVOURITE NOTES TAKING STRATEGY
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Do you also possess a weak memory? Do you also keep forgetting things? And does it bother you that you are unable to recall most of the topics you read yesterday?
Well, this would happen with me too during my prep, and it turns out that everyone has the same story to tell.
People are wired to forget stuff. It is one of the best coping mechanisms. We can only retrieve the things that strike us the most. For mundane routine things, our mind has no space for it.
So, how to ensure that you keep things intact in your mind?
The answer is ‘by taking notes’.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀:
There are two main advantages to taking notes. Firstly, when you take notes, you actually create muscle memory along with the neuronal memory. The things that you write are stored for a prolonged time in your brain in contrast to the ones you read because while writing, you need a lot of focus and purposeful attention.Secondly, the notes also help you review the subject later on with comparative smoothness and speed. Since the notes contain only the essential points, it conserves a lot of time and energy.
𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀
1. Whether a candidate should make the short notes or the detailed ones?
To settle this matter once and for all, let me clarify this in unequivocal terms.
The word ‘note’ itself indicates a short and concise descriptive or audio record of a longer piece of written or audio communication.
Therefore, the notes ‘are’ always short and hence ‘must’ be kept short.
What is the purpose of making detailed notes? For that, we already have a book full of information, don’t we?
2. Whether we should take the notes in bullet points or sentence format?
You can make notes in whatever format you use. Some candidates can recall the whole sentence from a bullet point, whereas some struggle with it and hence write full sentences.
I would personally recommend you to write notes in bullet points. The practice would challenge you to recall the idea and enhance your memory through training.
3. How much detail should be added?
I would say you need not add any detail that you think is not worthy of attention. Anything you consider essential should be added while unnecessary information should be avoided.
But do not forget to include the central argument or the analysis of the topic. If there is a comparison with any other part, event or theory, do add it there.
4. Should the notes be in my own language or I can copy the book as well?
Well, you can borrow from the book, but do not depend heavily on it. Use your own creativity and try to use as simple a language as possible. Remember the Feynman Technique?
Read more about it on Feynman Technique on my blog.
5. Should I add quotations and references in my notes?
Of course, you should. The notes are the right place to put these things. Rather, I would suggest you to keep adding and revising your notes. If you find any new information worth keeping, quickly add that into your journal. And maintain a separate journal for each subject. If you lost it, you would only lose notes on one subject, not all.
6. Should I make notes from the books or the notes of academies or teachers?
You should read a book first, and make the notes from it. The notes by the academies or teachers are the secondary sources. If you think any additional information is added into it, then you must take that information and incorporate them into your own bullet point notes.
7. Should I take notes while reading the book?
No. Never. Do not take notes while reading the topic. This will only distract you and will divert your focus to notes taking only. Instead of comprehending the topic, you will be more worried about taking notes.
Therefore, I would suggest you to take notes only after you have read the topic thoroughly. You may start taking notes in the second reading, followed immediately.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱:
This is my preferred strategy to make notes.
When I read any book, not just CSS related stuff, I follow this technique.
In the Cornell Method, you divide the 75% of the page into two columns. The left column where you write the title of the topic occupies roughly1/3rd of the page and the right column where you write the crux or the content of the topic take up 2/3rd of the page. The remaining 25% of the page at the bottom will be reserved for a summary of the core concept.
In the left column, you should write the topics or the sub-topics, the most repeated questions, or any other pointers that hint to the topic.
In the right column, jot down the main ideas into bullet form. This will be the section where you put all the essential information like statistics, dates, numbers, main arguments, causes, impacts, and analysis. You can also add your thoughts on the topic in this section.
In the bottom or summary section, you have to summarise the whole topic or use it for adding up information later on.
In the picture with this blog, you can see a sample of the cornel method.
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