How to Take Notes the Cornell Method

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This article was co-written by Megan Morgan, PhD. Megan Morgan is a graduate program advisor at the School of Public & International Relations at the University of Georgia. She received her doctorate in English from the University of Georgia in 2015.

There are 8 references cited in this article that you can see at the bottom of the page.

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The Cornell note taking method was invented by Professor Walter Pauk of Cornell University. This is a widely used system for recording lecture or reading content, and for reviewing and storing that content. Using the Cornell system can help you organize your notes, be more creative in your learning, improve your study skills, and lead you to academic success. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Table of Contents

Prepare a notebook

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Set aside a notebook for taking notes according to the Cornell method. Whether you’re using a notebook or clipboard in your resume, you’ll need to set aside a separate pad for taking notes. You will divide each page into sections; Each section is for a specific purpose.

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Draw a horizontal line at the bottom of the page. This line is located about ¼ of the page from the bottom, about 5 cm from the bottom edge of the page. You will use this section to summarize the notes above.

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Draw a vertical line on the left side of the page. This line should be about 6.5 cm from the left edge of the page. This section is for reviewing your notes.

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The widest part of the page will be where you take notes of the lecture or reading. The section to the right of the page has plenty of room to jot down important points.

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Search the internet for a sample Cornell notepad if you want to be quick. If you have to take a lot of notes and/or want to save time, you can find blank templates to take notes using the Cornell method, print the pages out, and follow the same steps when using the template.

Records

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Write the subject name, date, and topic of the lecture or reading at the top of the page. When done consistently, this step will help keep your notes organized and make it much easier to review content. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Take notes in the widest part of the page. Take notes only on the right side of the page when listening to a lecture or reading a text. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Record any information the instructor writes on the board or shows in a slideshow.

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Use notes to actively listen or read. Every time you come across an important point, write down that information.

Pay attention to signs that imply important information. When the facilitator says things like “The three most important effects of X are…” or “The two main causes of X are…”, that is likely information that you need to record.
If you are taking lecture notes, listen for points that are emphasized or repeated, as these are often important points.
These suggestions are also true in case you read a passage of text and come across sentences similar to the examples above. Textbooks often bold or repeat important information in charts or graphs.

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Simple notes. Imagine your notes are the outline of a lecture or reading. Focus on capturing key words and important points so you can keep up with the lecture or reading – you still have time to reread and fill in the blanks afterwards.

Instead of writing out complete sentences, use bullet points, symbols (such as “&” instead of “and”), abbreviations, and any other symbols you can think of to take notes. . ^{[4] X Research Sources}
For example, instead of writing out a whole sentence like “In 1703, Peter the Great founded St. Petersburg and built the city’s first structure – the Peter and Paul fortress”, you only need to write “1703—Peter founded St. Pete & build Peter & Paul Fort.” The shorter the wording, the easier it will be for you to keep up with the lesson and still capture the necessary information.

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Record the main ideas, not illustrative examples. You need to write down the main ideas in the lecture instead of trying to copy all the examples the instructor might give to illustrate the ideas. ^{[5] X Research Sources} Rephrasing main ideas not only saves time and paper space, but also forces you to connect the ideas presented and your own expression, so you will also find it easier to understand. remember more content.

For example, if the teacher says (or the book says): “When building the city of St. Petersburg, Peter hired engineers, architects, shipbuilders and other workers from European countries to work. The immigrant intellectuals and skilled workers created a multicultural atmosphere, partially fulfilling Peter’s goal of turning this Russian city into a “window on Europe,” don’t copy. such verbatim!
Record the information in your own words, for example: “Peter hires engineers, architects, shipbuilders, etc. from all over Europe – his plan: St. Pete = ‘window to Europe.'”

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Leave a space, draw a line or turn to a new page when switching to a new topic. This will help you organize the lesson content in your head, and easily find the different sections when you need them. ^{[6] X Research Source}

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Record your questions while listening or reading. If there’s something you don’t understand or want to learn more about, write it down quickly in your notebook. Such questions will help clarify what you are learning and are also helpful for future review.

If you are documenting the history of the city of St. Petersburg like the examples above, you could write “Why couldn’t Peter the Great hire Russian engineers?”

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Edit the notes as soon as possible. If there are parts of your notes that are difficult to read or seem unreasonable, correct them while you still remember the content clearly. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

Review and expand the notes section

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Summarize the main ideas. Immediately after the lecture or reading is over, draw out the main ideas or important facts from the notes on the right. Make a succinct note in the left column – use keywords or short phrases that convey the most important information or concepts. Reviewing the content of a lesson or reading in a day will greatly improve memory. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

Underline the main ideas in the right column for easy identification. Bold or highlighted with color also helps if you are a visual learner.
Cross out unimportant information. One advantage of this approach is that it helps you identify key information and eliminate unnecessary information. Work on finding details that you might not need.

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Write down the questions in the left column. After taking notes in the right column, think of possible questions in the test and write them in the left column. These questions can be useful learning tools later on. ^{[9] X Research Source}

For example, if in the right-hand section you write “1703—Peter founded St. Pete & built Peter & Paul fort,” in the left column you can write the question “Why was Peter & Paul fortress the first structure of St. Pete?”
You can write advanced questions to which the answer is not in the notes, such as “Why did this happen?” or “What if…?” or “What are the effects of…?” (Example: “How did moving the capital from Moscow to St. Petersburg affect the Russian empire?) Questions like these will help you dig deeper into the content of the lesson.

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Summarize the main ideas at the bottom of the page. The summary will help clarify any information you have recorded. Recording the main content in your own words is a great way to double-check your comprehension. If you can summarize the page, it means you understand the content of the lesson. You might ask yourself, “How would I explain this information to others?”

Usually, the instructor will begin the lecture by giving a general idea of the content of the day’s lesson, such as: “Today we will discuss A, B, and C”. Similarly, textbooks often include an introduction that summarizes the main points that will be covered. You can use such generalizations as a guide for taking notes, and think of them as the summary you’ll write at the bottom of the page. Write down any additional details that you consider important or feel that require special attention as you study.
The summary of a page usually only needs a few sentences. The summary may also include formulas, equations and charts as appropriate. ^{[10] X Research Source}
If you find it difficult to summarize any part of the lesson, reread your notes to see where to look more closely or ask your instructor for more information.

Use notes to learn

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Re-read your notes. Focus on the left column and the footer summary. These sections contain the most important points you will need for the assignment or test. ^{[11] X Research Source}

If you like, you can underline or highlight the most important parts as you review them.

Advice

The Cornell note-taking system is most effective when applied to subjects that are arranged in well-defined topics and presented in sequential or logical order. If the subject frequently changes topics or modes, you may want to find another method of note-taking. ^{[13] X Research Source}

Steps

Prepare a notebook

Records

Review and expand the notes section

Use notes to learn

Advice

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