Note-Taking Functions and Techniques

This experiment investigated three newly classified note-taking functions: encoding (take notes/no review), encoding plus storage (take notes/review notes) and external storage (absent self from lecture/review borrowed notes), relative to three note-taking techniques (conventional, linear, matrix). Results pertaining to note-taking functions indicated that encoding plus storage was superior to encoding and to external storage for recall performance, and superior to encoding for synthesis performance. External storage was also superior to encoding for synthesis performance. Results pertaining to note-taking techniques indicated that matrix notes produced greater recall than conventional notes. Results were explained by variables relating to repetition, generative processing, the completeness of notes, and the potential of note-taking techniques to facilitate internal connections.