Note-taking system

Taking thorough systematic notes throughout semester is a way to make sure you are prepared for other major assessments such as exams.

Pulling all your notes together in a systematic way will help you to revise for exams and just get an overall view and grasp of the course content. Many courses are organised around topics which can be weekly or span a number of weeks. One approach is to collate all your notes for each topic, including lectures, tutorials, and set readings. At the end of each topic, write up a one page summary sheet which gives an overview of the main ideas from that topic. 

At the end of the semester, write up a one page master summary sheet for the entire course. The main idea here is summarising, which draws together all the things you have studied. These summary sheets become starting point for your revision, with the master summary sheet offering a schematic overview that enables you to work backwards through your notes to get to the details.

 
  • Adapted from: Northedge, A., (2005). The Good Study Guide London: The Open University.

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