Throughout my years of academics, my professors, peers, and even my family have all valiantly attempted to hammer me with all kinds of note-taking strategies. Of the multitude that they’ve tried to insist are the “best,” I’ve found that only one truly works for me. It’s referred to as “writing it instead of reading it”, but a better phrase for remembering this technique is, “he who writes it reads it three times”.
Personally, I’ve found this to be one of the most helpful tactics when it comes to revisiting old lecture notes and studying for challenging exams. Not only does it force you to actually go through your notes more than once, but it also helps you to retain that information via muscle memory, which is always favorable for tests! So write, write, write!
With midterms and exams fast approaching, I think that this is a very beneficial strategy to consider and eventually adapt for all of your studying sessions. Although note taking is different for everyone, I find this method of review to be a very underappreciated and little-known form of note-taking.
It’s a proven fact that the more you write down something, the better you retain it. So I personally think it’s something to keep in mind as midterms, projects, and hordes of homework continue to creep up as we hit the halfway mark of winter term. The sooner you implement it, the easier it becomes to study, and your GPA will thank you for it.
And another pivotal thing to keep in mind with midterms, exams, and projects drawing near: It isn’t going to be the end of the world if you end up not doing terribly good on something, no matter what it may be. There’s a ridiculous amount of pressure put onto students, high school and university alike, to perform exceedingly well on exams. But the truth is that, in the long-run, how you performed on an exam isn’t the be-all-end-all that most people think it to be.
Afterall, you don’t truly learn from immediate success, you’re only ever able to really gain something from failure. So learn to take your failures in stride, and be dutifully aware of what does, and doesn’t, contribute to your success in the future.