Research on Note-Taking: A Teachable Skill – Education & Teacher Conferences Skip to main content

Research on Note-Taking: A Teachable Skill

Over at the Cult of Pedagogy, Jennifer Gonzalez has a FANTASTIC post summarizing lots of research on note-taking.

Some headlines:

Note-taking is a skill we should teach.

Visuals improve notes.

Pauses for revision and reflection help a lot.

I should note: Gonzalez cites the well-known Mueller & Oppenheimer study showing that handwritten notes help learning more than laptop notes do. Long-time readers know that I don’t think this study supports that conclusion.

In fact: I think it suggests that the opposite is true. My argument is here.

Despite our disagreement on this one point, there’s so much to savor in this summary that I recommend it highly.

Enjoy!


Recent Blogs

When Retrieval Practice Backfires (and When It Doesn’t)
Andrew Watson
Andrew Watson

If you've heard about retrieval practice, you've probably heard this...

Beyond the Science of Reading by Natalie Wexler
Erik Jahner, PhD
Erik Jahner, PhD

There is something almost combustible about stepping into the reading...

Why Cognitive Science in Education Feels Fragmented—and How Self-Efficacy Helps
Andrew Watson
Andrew Watson

I've got good news: cognitive psychology has SO MANY practical...