Essential Study Skills Wikispace: "Cornell Notetaking System"

As you have already seen, taking effective notes while reading a text or listening to a lecture is an important part of active reading. This resource will teach you about about one strategy for effective note taking, called the Cornell Note Taking System. After you have read through the document once, try reading it again and practice your active reading by implementing the Cornell System. 

The Cornell Note Taking System was designed by Dr. Walter Pauk more than 45 years ago. It is named after a well-known Ivy league university in the US called Cornell University.

The Cornell Note Taking System is used in universities all over the world.

It has Five Steps which begin with R:

1. Record
2. Reduce
3. Recite
4. Reflect
5. Review


Cornell_steps.JPG

The first step: Record See Example, (Wong, 2012, p.265)

  • Read a chunk of text and decide what is important information for your notes.
  • Use the heading and subheadings as your outline headings
  • Double space between headings
  • Under the headings, number your details
  • Use phrases or short sentences to summarize the information
  • Put smaller details under the numbered details as bullet points
  • At the end of the notes write a summary paragraph

record_stage.JPG

Second Step: Reduce See Example, (Wong, 2012, p.267)

  • Copy the headings from the Notes to the left column
  • Reread your notes and write study questions: "Why . . .?" " Name the reasons for . . ."
  • Define key words
  • DON'T write too much!
reduce_stage.JPG

Third Step: Recite 

  • Explain the information in your own words (cover the right column)
  • Answer the questions you wrote in the reduce column (left)
  • After you finish a section check the record column (right) and see if you missed anything
  • Mark the information you want to return to later


Fourth Step: Reflect

  • Think about the information you have recorded, reduced and recited
  • LIne up the Recall columns and write a summary of the main ideas
  • Write mnemonic devices, graphs, charts, pictures on the back of your pages


Fifth Step: Review

  • Review your notes after the reflect step
  • Keep reviewing your notes throughout the course



Last modified: Friday, January 5, 2018, 11:48 AM