Taking notes

Joseph Condry

11 am.

September 27th Blog

1. When you type notes, you aren't really getting engaged with the lecture or the notes. You aren't physically writing the words down because when you do, something goes off in your brain that soaks up more information and retains it for much longer. When you write down notes, you can almost feel the speech and when reviewing it, you start to have the same ideas you had when you were first writing it down. When you read electronic notes, it feels almost foreign. 
2. Another danger of using it in a classroom, is that it is a major distraction. You are way more likely to use your laptop for other programs rather then an intended note taking device. Also another concern is not only getting distracted when taking notes, but also the fear of getting distracted while reviewing those notes, and ultimately not doing much. 

1. One of the biggest advantages of reading paper versus electronic is that when you read electronically, your eyes skip over words, searching only for keys. You retain much less, and because of this, people gain comfort when they seem to be reading faster. Also, reading paper allows you to annotate in your own handwriting, which found in the last question, helps you remember better anyways. 
2. These explanations are simple. On computers, there are just way too many words, sentences, numbers on the screen for us to not only fully read, but fully understand. So because of this, we scan and skim, finding key words that catch our eyes and then search once more. Also when you are actively taking note in the book while you're reading, you will retain and understand more always.