Michael Austin

University 150

Elizabeth Isenkul

September 15, 2014

Transition to College Writing

Throughout grade school into middle school, teachers had their own unique ways to take notes. They expressed how important it is to have good notes because in the following year, the teacher will expect me to have good note taking strategies. All the way from elementary school until college teachers would upload a PowerPoint and told me to copy it word for word. I did not take notes well enough in high school to be able to have success in college. Professors in college all have various ways me to take notes in able to succeed in their course. Upon different variables, diverse note-taking strategies are key.

Depending on the subject, the professor will have a different way of telling me to take notes. During my Interpreting European history course, my teacher will lecture while placing a slide on the board. We must write down what is on the board and the key points he talks about. In this class I outline, listening and then writing in bullet points in an organized pattern based on space indentation. I place major points farthest to the left, then indent each more detail point to the right. Levels of importance are indicated by distance away from the major point. This strategy helps me determine what the most vital points are, so i can focus on those.

My Environmental Science professor uses a different approach to teaching. She will place a PowerPoint on the but tells us not to copy everything up there but to listen to her lecture, then pick and choose which information is most valuable. In this class I use the mapping technique. This format helps me to visually track my lecture regardless of conditions. Little thinking is needed and relationships can easily be seen. It is also easy to edit my notes by adding numbers, marks, and color coding. During review I restructure the thought processes which force me to check understanding. Also, I write down the most important bolded vocabulary words from the PowerPoint. My notes are very organized and by using colors and various marks I know which information to study more.

Although I may like one strategy, changing to different techniques depending on the subject is the way to success. Changes in study habits must vary to be successful at the college level. Being a great note taker in college will pay off so it is mandatory to have strategies setting me up to achieve my goals in graduating.