Compare Notes

You might be able to improve your notes by comparing notes with another student or in a study group, SI session, or a learning community, if one is available to you. Knowing that your notes will be seen by someone else will prompt you to make them well organized, clear, and accurate. Compare your notes: Are they as clear and concise as those of other students? Do you agree on the most important points? Share with one another how you take and organize your notes. You might get new ideas for using abbreviations. Take turns testing one another on what you have learned. Doing so will help you predict exam questions and determine whether you can answer them. Comparing notes is not the same as copying another student’s notes. You simply cannot learn as well from someone else’s notes, no matter how good they are, if you have not attended class.

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If your campus has a note-taking service, check with your instructor about making use of this for-pay service, but keep in mind that such notes are intended to supplement the ones you take, not substitute for them. Some students choose to rewrite their own notes as a means of review or because they think that their notes are messy and they will not be able to understand them later. Unless you are a tactile learner, rewriting or typing your notes might not help you learn the material. A more profitable approach might be to summarize your notes in your own words.

Finally, have a backup plan in case you need to be absent because of illness or a family emergency. Exchange phone numbers and e-mail addresses with other students so that you can contact one of them to learn what you missed and get a copy of his or her notes. Also contact your instructor to explain your absence and set up an appointment during office hours to make sure that you understand the work you missed.