Should we be posing questions and writing answers rather than taking traditional notes?
I’ve been reading a lot of academic books recently, which has lead me to think about aspects of how we learn and retain information.
Like many people, I come from a traditional “note-taking” background. For me, that involves noting key points, definitions and quotations, in my often unreadable scrawl that aspires to be handwriting.
Even if they are readable, or neatly formatted and stored on computer, my notes rarely see the light of day again. They are filed away somewhere never to be really used. Perhaps their real worth is only as a record of achievement: that some topic or chapter can be considered read.
I’ve recently come to realize that what I need is a better way to learn and remember the important concepts and ideas, not just more notes!
Questions and Answers
The solution I’ve recently been trying, is to write down questions that represent the topic or idea being presented as I’m reading a chapter or paper. Then once complete, write answers to those questions from memory. Answers should be written in a form as you would explain it to someone else.
This process has a number of real advantages:-
- The process of recall helps one remember.
- What wasn’t understood so well becomes apparent, pointing to what needs to be relearned.
- The questions (and answers) approach works well with a flash card system to reinforce ones understanding and memory of the topic over time.
Write down questions that represent the topic or idea being presented. Later, write answers to those questions from memory in a form as you would explain it to someone else.
Since trying this approach, I’ve been surprised how effective it has been. I’m understanding and learning concepts better, identifying more effectively what I don’t know or understand, and remembering it better!
[To help remember better, I’m using the free spaced-repetition flash-card program - Anki].
An Experiment
From today, I am going to use this approach exclusively for the next 45 days and report back on my successes and failures.
