PhD is overwhelming and most of the scholars have similar experience and opinion. Most of the time, there is lots to do such as seminars to attend, research to do, lab work, exams and so on. If there is way out that could simplify life, you would surely be up for it and one way is to understand and adopt a simple and useful technique of note making.
Before we go in the detail of understanding the techniques of note taking that can be adopted, consistency within the class and organised habits are the pre requisites for success. Each note taking technique has its own pros and cons and you have to choose what works best for you.
Digital Note taking technique:
Laptops and tablets have surely simplified the life of many of the scholars. Not only during the lectures but also to identify important areas and components of the books and journals. It is obvious that typing and storing notes is far easier than writing and preserving. These days we have special note taking software’s that help you to organise and store notes at one particular place. Though speed is surely an advantage of digitally taking notes but sometimes it may not be as beneficial. It is so because, usually when typing, scholars end up writing all they hear or read without actually understanding and adding a critical perspective to it from their own intellect. This sometimes restricts constructive thinking and logical ability.
Manual Note taking technique: despite the increasing popularity of the digitized mediums of taking notes, some students still prefer methods that are conventional and getting used for ages, the pen and paper method. This method works very well for seminars, lectures or mathematical and statistical purpose writing. There are surely certain cons associated with this method as well. The most significant being that it is time consuming and involves getting hassled sometimes. Organising notes can also be a task, more so if you are one of those people who take in a lot of details and to find the right notes for the right purpose can also be a task.
The best way can be to use a good and judicious mix of both these techniques in a way that you are able to use the digital method where time deficit is a concern and wherever you need to apply your critical thinking and better understanding of the concept you move towards the age old pen and paper technique
