One of the most useful tools for truly learning various subjects is the physical act of taking notes. The process of writing ideas down, as various learning studies have shown, helps individuals to gain a deeper and more consistent understanding of the topic at hand. In our Literature class, we are continually using note-taking to study various subjects within literature, including plot, theme, and characterization among others.
I’m not arguing against the validity of notes in and of themselves – but in my opinion, a generic system such as the Cornell note-taking system is not sufficiently effective to be used in all situations. While it may be easier to comprehend on a quick look-over, I feel that it is actually limiting in helping students to comprehend their reading. Cornell notes place a large focus on identifying “main ideas” that may or may not actually cover the important details present.
I’m not arguing against the validity of notes in and of themselves – but in my opinion, a generic system such as the Cornell note-taking system is not sufficiently effective to be used in all situations. While it may be easier to comprehend on a quick look-over, I feel that it is actually limiting in helping students to comprehend their reading. Cornell notes place a large focus on identifying “main ideas” that may or may not actually cover the important details present.
Take, for example, the most recent “theme” notes. Where the previous sections were cleanly divided into vocabulary and related details, theme is a broader subject exploring primarily ideas as opposed to specific facts. In my experience, this led to a search for factoids to fit the Cornell format, which ultimately was a detriment to my understanding of the topic. It would be much better to allow for a variety of note formats to allow for these varying situations.
I agree with the idea presented here. I never understood the purpose of the column on the left, since all the ideas can be written in the main notes space. Actually, I do not like Cornell notes in general. I would much rather take notes with a more flexible format, or actually no set format at all. I believe that no set format will enhance our learning the best.
ReplyDeleteI see your point, and I'm actually 100% fine with you using a different notetaking system in the future. I like to use Cornell Notes to hold students accountable for reading. It's not a perfect system, but it works for my purposes. However, you know yourself better than I do, and other organizational systems are fine with me.
ReplyDeleteYes!! I completely agree. I dislike Cornell Notes because they often make me write down facts that I would not normally write down. Cornell Notes have so much space and I feel obligated to fill up almost the entire sheet. This results in shoddy notes and when it comes time for quizzes and tests, I rarely refer to my Cornell Notes due to all of the fluff in them. If I were able to use my own style of note-taking, then I would be much better prepared for future assessments.
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