^■Psdav, February 27,1979
Good Notes Equal
Good Grades
THE CLARION
An important factor in getting
good grades in college is your
ability to take clear, well-
organized class notes. Listening
carefully to the instructor's
lecture and writing down the
important points is the key to
successful notetaking. The
process of listening and writing
at the same time will also help
you understand. A few basic
techniques can help.
The purpose of class notes is to
record the instructor’s lesson in a
manner that will allow you to
review and understand the
material afterwards. Your ob
jective, therefore, is to outline the
main and supporting ideas and
facts so that they are clear and
understandable.
Write rapidly in your own form
of shorthand. Don’t try to take
down everything — keep to the
main points. Develop your own
style of abbreviating and con
densing the important data.
Some people leave out vowels, for
instance, or use only the first
syllable, and omit articles and
obvious verbs. Common ab
breviations and symbols found in
most dictionaries can often be of
great help.
Instructors’ teaching methods
will differ. You’ll have to be alert
to each one’s style and
organization. Often they start
each class with an overview or
outline and use it as a framework
for their lecture. This, of course,
is a good reason for being punc
tual.
Outlines, diagrams or lists that
instructors write on the board are
usually important. It is a good
idea to record these in your
notebook, unless you know that
the same material is already
covered in your textbook.
Indenting and spacing will help
make your notes more readable.
Start a new line out to the left for
an important heading. Indent
subheads under this and so on.
Start a new page for each class,
with the date and topic heading
the page. When a new major topic
or division is introduced, begin
another new page so that you will
have enough room to record the
appropriate material under it.
A lined 8V2 x 11” notebook is
recommended. On the front cover
you can paste your work
schedule, as well as your name,
address and phone number in
case you ever misplace it. You
can keep all your class notes, and
the instructor’s handouts, in this
one book by tabbing sections for
6ach course. You can also add or
filete notes or fresh paper as you
need to. Most students, by the
*ay, find that notes made in pen
are much more legible and
durable than those in pencil.
It is best to write on the right-
hand
pages only. You can then
"lake your own study, review or
textbook notes on the left-hand
pages.
Jot down questions as they
ccur to you jn class and hold
for the appropriate
They might be an-
ered or become unimportant in
•ew minutes. But if not, you’ll
Pith them answered
®"her in class or later.
Be alert to the instructor’s
tone, emphasis or questions.
These may be clues to things that
will appear on an exam. For
example, if Professor Smith
says, “Five important reasons
for the treaty were....” or
“Remember now....”, you can be
sure those are things to be
recorded.
Class lectures and textbook
assignments do not always
parallel each other. Your class
notes will reflect the instructor’s
approach to the topic, but you
might find it helpful to make
additional notes from your
textbook on the lefthand page
across from your class notes.
Design your notetaking system
so that you have sufficient room
to record the instructor’s
material, your reading notes
AND your review notes on one
page or two opposite pages.
Remember, review your class
notes as soon as possible after the
session has ended.. In this way
you’ll be able to correct, clarify
or fill-in "where necessary. This
review time will also be critical
in helping you remember the
class material when it is fresh in
your mind.
One style of notetaking,
developed at Cornell University,
has been very helpful to students.
On every right-hand page, draw a
vertical line from top to bottom,
2‘ 2 inches in from the left side. In
class use the large 6 inch column
on the right for recording the
lecture material. After class and
during study times, use the
smaller left-hand column for
making your own review notes.
By marking down the key word,
idea or fact, it can help you
remember what you are studying
and help you review for exams.
Some students find it helpful to
use a colored marker or pen
during review to underline the
important words or phrases.
Completing textbook or
reading assignments before each
class will help minimize
notetaking in class. You will
know whether the material under
discussion is in the text or not.
You will already have underlined
the important ideas in the book,
so you won’t have to duplicate
these points when the instructor
makes them. Instead of taking
down these same facts write
“refer to textbook chapter,”
Typing or rewriting notes is
normally a waste of time, if they
are legible, accurate and com
plete it is much more productive
to spend your time reviewing the
notes, reading your text and
keeping up every day and every
week with your studies.
Anyone
interested in
being
business
manager for
THE
CLARION
please get in
touch
with Debi Crane, Box 144, phone
877-4484.
Old Time Comedy
FREE POPCORN
$4.50
March 2,4, 9 & 11
COLONiAL INN
884-2105
La Boheme-
A review
By Donna Mulford
Love. Sorrow. Jealousy. The
National Opera Company
brought these abstracts to life
February 15 in Dunham
Auditorium.
The opera performed was La
Boheme, a drama by G. Poccini.
The joy of love and the jealousy
that sometimes accompanies it
was expressed in a conflict
between two artistic young men
and their girlfriends.
Living together in poverty, four
young men try to spend a
cheerful Christmas Eve. One of
them secures some money and
they decide to go to a restaurant.
Rodolfo, a young writer, stays
home to finish an article. He
meets a pretty neighbor who
comes asking for a light for her
candle. They fall in love, but
Rodolfo's jealousy comes bet
ween them. Mimi, the young girl,
has a constant cough and later
dies.
The words are hard to un
derstand at first because hearing
someone speak a Ime and sing
one are two different things.
After awhile though, the lines
become more understandable
and the singing-talk seemed
normal. The constant teasing
between the young men brought
laughter to the audience and the
death of Mimi in the end brought
a few tears.
Mimi was portrayed by an
actress whose clear voice
brought the timid character’s
emotions to the surface. Her love
for Rodolfo, her loneliness
without him and her sickliness
were shown not only through her
acting but by the inflections in
her voice.
The National Opera functions
to give young singers experience,
to let the public hear an opera in
its own language and to show the
young people of North Carolina
the opera as an art form. In La
Boheme, it functioned also to give
a look at the amusement and
tragedy of life.
Mike Douglas
says:“Ifyou
know CPR*,you
never know when
you’ll save a life.”
‘Cardiopulmonary
resuscitation training
is available through
your local Red Cross
Chapter. Call.
NevwscBOer 4 The Adverlising Coonol
BREVARD COLLEGE student, David Center, tees off
spring.
CALENDAR
FEB. 27-MARCH 13
TUESDAY, FEB. 27
5:45 p.m.-6:45 p.m., Methodist Student Movement,
S.U.
8:15 p.m.. Life and Culture Series: Reid Gilbert,
Dunham
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 28
10 a.m., Life and Culture Series: Reid Gilbert,
Dunham
6:30 p.m., Delphians, West Beam Study Parlor
THURSDAY, MARCH 1
5:30p.m., Westminister, Weaver Room
6:30 p.m., Student Association, McG 118
7:00p.m., Social Board, McG 138
7:00 p.m., General Judicial Board, McG 118
8-11 p.m., Day Students Bingo, McG 118
SATURDAY, MARCH 3
9-12 p.m., SGA Fifties Dance, Dunham
SUNDAY, MARCH 4
7:30 p.m.. Contemporary Church Services, F.U.M.C.
Chapel
MONDAY, MARCH 5
7 a.m., Christian Council Prayer Breakfast, Weaver
Room
5:30 p.m., P.T.K., Rutherford Room
8:00 p.m., F.C.A., S.U. Lounge
TUESDAY, MARCH 6
6-8 p. m., Art Series, McG 125
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7
5:30 p.m., Kappa Chi, Weaver Room
6:30 p.m., Delphians, West Beam Study Parlor
THURSDAY, MARCH 8
5:30 p.m., Westminister, Weaver Room
6:30 p.m., S.G.A., McG 118
7 p.m., General Judicial Board, McG 118
7 p.m.. Social Board, McG 138
FRIDAY, MARCH 9
7:30 p.m., Masquer’s Magic Show, Dunham
SUNDAY, MARCH 11
7:30 p.m., Christian Contemporary Church Service,
F.U.M.C. Chapel
8:00p.m., S.G.A. Movie: “Oh, God”, Dunham
MONDAY, MARCH 12
7 a.m., Christian Council Prayer Breakfast, Weaver
Room
5:30 p.m., P.T.K., Rutherford Room
7-8 p.m., Spanish Club, Library Seminar Room
TUESDAY, MARCH 13
5:45-6:45 p.m., Art Series, McG 125