Learning how to learn
ACTIVE LEARNING AND EFFECTIVE
NOTE MAKING
Groundhog Day lessons
• Groundhog Day: a film where
Bill Murray relives the same day
over and over again
• Groundhog lesson: where a
teacher teaches the same topic
over and over again
• Why:
• students have failed to learn
how to learn 
Have we done this before Sir?
• Why do goldfish never get bored
in a bowl
• They cannot remember
• We humans can but…
• Sights, sounds, sensations exist
in short term memory for 30
seconds
• Memory: our ability to
learn something, then store
it, retain it and recall it
when needed
• Without a conscious effort
we will forget
How to acquire memories
Your memory is like
a wheat field
Memories – brain pathway
• Long term memory is made by creating synaptic
pathways connecting neurons in the brain
• Memory is a path of brain cells
• We remember by re-treading that path
So you want to remember?
Creating academic
memories requires activity
There are three simple steps to
better remember things
1.
2.
3.
Active listening in the first
place to create a path
Effective note taking to
create beaten down pathway
Revisit past learning by
rereading class notes,
regularly ie at least fortnightly
Passive v Active listening
Learning first requires listening
What happens if your mind is
switched off in the classroom
Active listening requires
1.
2.
Silence: to allow the other
person to speak and be heard.
Concentration: bringing all
your mind to hear and
understand what the other
person is really saying
Active listening is made easier by
adopting effective note making
tactics….
What did I just say…
Passive note taking
Traditional note taking
Copying words off the board is
passive and almost pointless –
class PowerPoints can be
downloaded
Most people can copy and think
about something completely
different at the same time
Far better to opt for active note
making
Cornell method ( adapted)
2 Questions and keywords
Cornell method: widely used in Ivy
League colleges
• Divide a page into three areas
1 Notes:
key points made in lesson
3 Summary of key points
Notes area
Topic
Key points in this area.
Use
• Headings
• Short sharp simple
phrases
• Abbreviations and
symbols
Date
In the notes area add
• a topic and date for reference
• key ideas made during a lesson
Notes
• Have headings
• Are clear and concise
Add underlining and colour after a
lesson for emphasis
Experiment with colour and underlining
Use colour for emphasis eg
Underlining adds emphasis
• red for a disadvantage or weakness
• green for an advantage or strength
• strengths and weaknesses
• strengths and weaknesses
• strengths and weaknesses
Add keywords, points to follow up and notes
for further reading here
Questions and keywords area
Use the left-hand column to record:
• Key words and their definition
• Questions raised by the talk, for
follow-up
• Notes from research undertaken
after the lesson
Summary area
After class, use the bottom column
to write a brief summary of the
notes on the page
Taking quicker notes: use symbols
∆
Change in
>
Greater than

Leads to
<
Less
than
Increase
%
percentage
Decrease
Σ
Therefore

Good
Sum or
total
Because
x
Bad
Taking quick notes: use abbreviations
Common abbreviations
• Cf: compare
• Eg: for example
• Min: minimum
• Max: maximum
• Etc: and so forth
Specialist abbreviations
• BoE: Bank of England
• PED: Price elasticity of demand
• DD: demand
• SS: supply
• EMP: equilibrium market price
• Govt: government
• Cet par: all other things being
equal
So what
Creating long-term memories is a
process
• Step one: active listening and
note making during lessons
• step two: additional notes and
annotations after lessons
• Step three: persistent and
consistent rereading of notes
Standing homework:
• add extra notes
• add colour and underlining
• create a summary
• Reread last lessons notes before
class
• He read notes taken in all
lessons at least fortnightly