The Cornell Notetaking System is a great productivity method that will shave down your study time and help you study more effectively.

Do you have a notetaking system? It’s something that’s not only crucial to your success in school but will also cut down your studying time.

When I was a young student, I just took down notes like every other student.

I’d write down what the teacher wrote on the board in point form and occasionally make a summary of it.

But this isn’t the most efficient way of taking notes and it’s also not the best way to study.

And I’m sure many of you do it this way too.

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What is the Cornell Notetaking System?

But recently, maybe a couple of years ago, I learned of this new system called the Cornell Notetaking Method.

This system uses active recall, which makes note-taking and studying way more efficient.

And it’s effective, too!

This method was created by Cornell University education professor Walter Pauk in the 1940s.

He is regarded as “one of the most influential professors in the field of developmental education and study skills."

The Cornell Notetaking Method is great for students who need a system or someone who wants to improve theirs.

Students who want to try something new because their current system is flawed will also benefit from the switch.

How to use the Cornell Notetaking System

So, here’s how you can use this system to take notes for/in class.

• Grab a piece of paper and divide it into two columns.
• Write your notes on one side.
• In the other column, write down clues or quiz questions immediately after the class. These are meant for reciting, reviewing, and reflecting. They’re essentially active recall (read more about it here) questions that will help you remember the information better.
• Use the second column to study your notes within the day (the sooner the better) by writing short summaries (1-2 sentences) for each page of notes.
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The Cornell Notetaking System is good in that it forces you to review your notes immediately after class via writing summaries for them in simple English.

Not only will this increase your understanding of the topic, but it will also get you to actively study it.

The way that many students take notes encourages passive remembering.

Though this is okay for short-term memorization, it is not effective for long-term memorization, which is what you should strive for when studying.

Additionally, you can take the fourth part of this method further by applying the Feynman Technique to it.

The Feynman Technique is a learning method that forces students to break down their understanding of concepts and define them in a way that a layperson could understand them.

I wrote about this method in another post, so if you are interested, you can click here to read it.

Conclusion

The Cornell Notetaking System is a method that will help you work smarter, not harder.

It will save you time and increase the effectiveness of your studying.