Note taking involves briefly writing down key points from lectures or readings. It is important for retaining information. There are two main techniques - outlining and mind mapping. Note making involves systematically organizing notes from written materials. Key aspects are identifying important points, rephrasing them, using abbreviations and symbols, and structuring notes with headings and subheadings. Sample notes are provided on robots to illustrate the process.

1. NOTE TAKING AND NOTE MAKING
Note Taking
NoteTaking is a method of writing down rapidly, briefly and clearly the crucial items of a
lecture, a meeting or a paper reading. Studies show that we tend to forget a good part of a
lecture within 24 hours. Unless one has an excellent memory, one should take notes for
future references. In the current scenario when information is flooding from every quarter,
note-taking has got an added importance. Whether you are a high school student or a
university scholar or a professional, the ability to take effective, meaningful and
comprehensive notes is an important skill. Good notes save our study time as they facilitate
us review them for reuse during test preparations, assignments and meetings. While taking
notes, two major questions related to note-taking, – what to write and how to write – should
be kept in mind.
What to Write
One has to be a bit choosy at the time of taking notes. Only the most important items should
be included. Your notes need not contain everything. If you try to take elaborate notes, then
at the time of a test or term paper, you will have to go through all that extra thingsto get some
important information. Your focus while taking notes should be two-fold. First, ‘what is new
to you?’ There is no use in writing down facts you already know. Second, ‘what is
relevant?’,that is, what information is most likely to be of use later. Focus on the points
which are directly related to your reading. The detailson which you should pay special
attention are – dates, numbers, titles, names of people and books, theories, concepts,
definitions, arguments, diagrams, speaker’s conclusion, comments of the other listeners as
well as your own interpretation, doubts or questions. Examples, idiomatic expressions and
minute details should be excluded.
How to Write
The four R’s of note taking are record, reduce, reciteand review. Use them for a holistic
approach. You mayuse either a linear or a patterned format to note down the main points, key
words and phrases. Use abbreviations wherever possible; leave out the short words such as
‘the’, ‘is’, ‘to’etc. However, remember that ‘no’ and ‘not’ are important words. Although
note taking techniques should be user specific, you may use the following guidelines for an
effective note taking:

2. 1. Outlining: Outlining is an effective way to take notes in ahierarchical structure. You may use
alphabet, numbers, Roman numerals or bullets/dots to indicate the structure. For lectures,
however, outlining has some limitations. The speaker does not necessarily maintain connection
between ideas, consequently, there is a risk of losing the relationship between what the speaker
just said and what he/she said before.
Sample 1: Take down notes of a lecture delivered in the classroom on the topic of ‘Tense’
using the Outlining technique of Note-Taking.
Topic: Tense& Its classification
Lecture Day, Date & Time:
1. Present Tense
a) Pr. Indefinite (I played
b) Pr. Cont. (I am playing)
c) Pr. Perfect (I have played)
d) Pr. Perf. Cont. (I have been playing since/for…) – doubt in use of since/for
2. Past Tense – struct. & uses
a) Past Ind. (I played yesterday)
b) Past. Cont. (I was playing)
c) Past Perf. (I had played)
d) Past Perf. Cont. (I had been playing play since/for…) – doubt in use of since/for
3. FutureTense – struct. & uses
a) Fut. Ind. (Iwill/shall play)
b) Fut. Cont. (I will/shall be playing)
c) Fut. Perf. (I will/shall played)
d) Fut. Perf. Cont. (I will be playing play since/for…) – doubt in use of since/for
Queries of the class:
a) Use of since/for & will/shall – to be discussed in detail in the next lecture.
b) Reference book: High School English Grammar & Composition by Wren & Martin
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3. 2. Mind-Mapping: Mind-mapping may be a better option to keep track of the connections
between ideas. Write the main topic of the lecture in the centre of a blank sheet of paper. As a
new sub-topic is introduced, draw a branch outward from the center and write the sub-topic at
the end of the branch. Then each point under that heading gets its own, smaller branch off the
main one. When another new sub-topic is mentioned, draw a new main branch from the center
and so on. If a point is under the first heading but you are on the fourth one, you can easily draw
it in on the first branch. Likewise, if a point connects to two different ideas, you can connect it to
two different branches.
Sample 2: Take down notes of a lecture delivered in the classroom on the topic of ‘Tense’ using
the Mind-Mapping technique of Note-Taking.
Topic: Tense& Its classification
Lecture Day, Date & Time:
1. Present Tense use ofsince/for? 2. Past Tense
1a. Pr. Ind. 2a. Past Ind.
1b. Pr. Cont. 2b. Past Cont.
1c. Pr.Perf. 2c. Past Perf.
1d. Pr.Perf.Cont. 2d. Past Perf.Cont.
Book: Wren & Martin
3. Future Tense
3a. Fut. Ind. Use of will/shall?
3b. Fut. Cont.
3c. Fut.Perf.
3d. Fut.Perf.Cont.
Note: From lecture and examination point of view, both the techniques of note taking should be
discussed in the class and students should be made to practice them with relevant illustrations.
Tense

4. Note Making
Note making is another study skill to write down relevant key points of a written material in
order to use them at a later date. This is a more serious and organized method of recording notes
than note taking. Notes are taken down rapidly and hence, they may lack proper planning and
structure. Note taking is usually followed by note making, where you devote some time to your
earlier jottings to systematize them and preserve them for future use. Note taking is more suitable
while listening to lectures, presentations or for meetings, while note making is more appropriate
for a written text.
Purpose:
We generally make notes to read a book or to write an article, a research paper or to prepare an
essay. You put things into your own words or summarize them as well as to highlight the
key points. Note making is highly useful at work places too, as it helps not only in writing
reports but also in recording the main points of an already written report. At the same time notes
can be preserved for future use like revising, forwarding or recalling information. Note-making
is thus a crucial exercise that is performed not only for others but also for self.
Mechanism:
When one starts with note making, the two most important aspects that one has to consider are –
which points should be included and which should be excluded. While making notes keep the
following pointsin mind:
Skim the text briskly to grasp its gist, purpose and key points. At the same time take
notes for further use.
Read it again, this time more carefully, to find out the development of idea, the main
divisions/chapters/sections of the text and their mutual relationships.
Write down the main points and the sub points in the order as they appear in the text.
Rephrase the main points and sub-points into shorter phrases or may be into single words.
Use schematizing – using tables, charts or diagrams – for organizing scientific and
technical material which may be in the form of classification, figures etc.
Use standard abbreviations to save time. First few letters of words and phrases can be the
functional abbreviations that may be easily understood later also. For example Volume –
vol; usually – usu; approximately – approx; somebody – sb; especially – esp; secretary –
secy; that is – ie; compare and contrast – cf; namely – viz; west – w; joul – j; oxygen – O;
pages – pp; with effect from – wef; kilogram – kg; computer – comp; month – mth;
magnesium – mg; specific gravity – sg;
Signs and symbols are useful tools for making notes. Some of them are: dollar - $; at the
rate of - @; number - #; and - &; percentage - %; key point - *; euro - €; copyright - ©;
trade mark - ™; not equal to - ≠; infinity - ∞; registered - ®; ohm - Ω; plus minus - ±;
less than or equal to - ≤; greater than or equal to - ≥; almost equal to - ≈, identical to ≡;

5. house - ⌂; female - ♀;male - ♂; increase -↑; decrease -↓;s cause: →; results: ←; less than
<; greater than - >.
Don’t forget to give the key with full forms of the abbreviations and symbols.
Give the notes a proper title to help you recall the main theme as well as the gist.
Structure your notes in a hierarchical manner by inserting headings followed by sub-
headings, supporting points and may be supporting sub-points.
Provide a proper sequencing to the points. You may use capital letters – A B C – for
headings, small letters – a b c – for sub-headings and Roman numerals – I II III – for
supporting points and so on. The arrangement may be altered or reversed as per the need
of the text.
Decimal system of sequencing is another method of arranging the points systematically.
Study illustration given as under:
1____________
1.1___________
1.2__________
1.2.3__________
The numbering 1 and 2 comes in the margin and subsequent number in decimals outside but
along the margin.
Sample:
Read the follow passage carefully and make notes on it. Also supply a suitable title to it:
A robot can be defined as a mechanical gadget that performs functions normally ascribed to
human beings. Karel Capek introduced the word robot while Sir IssacAssimov coined the word
robotics which is a science of dealing with robots.
The study of robotics includes, selection of material of proper quality for the components,
design, fabrication, design of electronic circuits, computers and computer programming and its
control. The science of robots is still in developing stage and a lot of research is being pursued
for making robots more suitable for working.
Depending upon the area in which robots are to be used, robotics is a multi-dimensional field
that includes disciplines such as biology, medical science, psychology, agriculture, mining,
various branches of engineering, outer space etc. At present Robots are mainly used in industries.
These industrial robots are reprogrammable and perform a variety of jobs through programmed
motions.

6. Basically there are two types of robots: fixed and mobile. A fixed robot is attached to an
immovable platform. It is similar to a human being standing or sitting in a fixed position while
doing the work with hands. On the other hand, a mobile robot moves from place to place. The
mobility of a robot is due to wheels or legs or other crawling material provided to it. A mobile
robot can be given a human shape. However, the actual shape has nothing to do with real
functioning of the robot.
Title: Robot: A Human Machine
NOTES:
A.What is a robot?
a) Def. of a robot
i)A mech. Gadget
ii) performsfunct. ascribed to human beings.
b) Words ‘robot’ & ‘robotics’
i) robot by Karel Capek
ii) robotics by Sir IssacAssimov
B. Study of robotics
a) matl. for compo.; circuits; fabri.; design; comp. prog.
b) research
i) study in dev. stage
ii)res. – pursued for better robots
C. Uses of a robot
a) multi-dimensional uses
i) biology, medical science, psychology, agriculture, mining, various branches of
engineering, outer space
ii) At present mainly used in industries
D. Types of robots
a) fixed
i)immovable
ii) similar to a human a fixed position
b) mobile
i) mobility due to wheels, legs or other crawling material
ii) can be given a human shape
Summary: Robotics – A latest branch of computer programming for making electronic gadgets
do various functions. The science of robots is still in developing stage, research is on.

7. Key to abbreviations: Def.: definition; mech.: mechanism; funct.: functions; matl.: material;
fabri.: fabrication; prog.: pragramming; dev.: developming; res.: research; comp.: computer
Questions:
A) Note Taking
1. What is note taking?
2. Write a short note on the Mind-Mapping technique of note taking.
3. Imagine yourself to be listening to a lecture on the topic of Nouns. Take notes of the
lecture using any one of the techniques of ‘Outlining’ or ‘Mind-Mapping’.
B) Note Making
1. What is note making?
2. Write a short note on the usefulness of note making.
3. Make notes on the given passage.