Mindful Ink     Life, Living and Productivity

Last week, in my “Weeks of Hell” post I mentioned meta-notes. This is my own term, I’m sure someone out there has a better one, but “meta” means above or beyond and so it works here. Essentially, meta-notes are much like the study sheets I discussed before as it is a consolidation of the information you need to know.

What’s the difference?

Well, meta-notes are “notes about notes.” They are essentially those bits of information you’ll need for essays and exams picked out of the vast array of notes you take from class and texts. If it sounds a bit complicated (because it’s really not), let me give you an example:

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This is the third in a five part series across the blog Student Help Forum and Scholastici.us: Student Productivity Week. See Part IV tomorrow at Student Help Forum.

I have to admit something.

So far this semester, I’ve been a horrible productivity guru. Really. Just awful. This semester has been a train wreck since day one and I’m totally off the ball right now. Yes, there are reasons but that hardly matters. What matters is I am off the track and it is time to get back on. So, let’s make it a learning experience, shall we?

First… Scheduling

Kind of a core skill here. This is actually pretty under control, I’ve just not been following it well. I’m using GradeFix (a webapp I am totally in love with) and iCal which syncs with my phone nicely. Gradefix also feeds into iCal so everything is in one place.

However, since initially setting GradeFix up a lot has changed, and I need to update it desperately. So, step one. You can, of course, do this with any calendaring program. I use Gradefix because it organizes the time in very manageable blocks which I really like.

Notetaking Okay, now that I know I’m not going to lose track of what I’m going to do, it’s time to setup my study system. I tend to take notes in OmniOutliner, which is a Mac app that every Mac for the past few years has came with free. If using Windows, Onenote would be fine. Oddly enough, however, this semester I do not have a lot of classes where taking notes in class is all that practical - taking notes on books is far more so. This doesn’t really change anything though - just where I’m getting the info.An import part of notes, however, is reviewing them. I like the general setup of the Cornell method myself, but I’m not really all that anal about it. The important part is that you process these notes - you attend them. For me that means:

• noting the important terms (and defining them if necessary)
• noting the main points and possibly re-wording them
• researching the general topic loosely, as well as any attending ideas

I use Wikipedia pretty heavily here, as it generally gives me an excellent breakdown along with other useful links, etc. You can see an example of my notes in this image to the side. At the bottom of the column you can see a “Summary” where I kept keywords, etc. It was simply an embedded text file within my Curio file. Essentially, I keep a template in Curio and then paste my OmniOutliner notes into it. I use Curio (or Onenote) because it is a whiteboard setup - I can stick just about anything into it wherever I want - which appeals greatly to my learning style. The squares on the left are webarchive files, as opposed to links, because that way even without the net I have access to them. If I’m taking notes over an individual, I often find a picture helps and will usually include these in my notes as well as maps, other pictures, etc, when appropriate.

Also, as an aside, for those of you who like to take notes on paper as I often do while reading, as I find moving to a laptop and back too disruptive - you can use this dandy Cornell-esque printable template I made a while back. But afterwards, I still put them back into the computer at the end of the day.

So, now we’re at the second thing I must do. I need to go over and attend my notes. It’s best to do this immediately after class, or at least later in the day, but.. as I said, I’m behind. Still, there is value in this - reviewing notes a second time a few days later is very useful, because holes or obvious problems in your notes may be much more noticible with a bit of time on your side.

StudyingWell, lots of that to do too. I’ve got many, many, many pages to read and a lot of writing I need to get a handle on. As I mentioned earlier, reading is what I have a lot of this semester. A lot of it, unfortunately, quite boring. I mentioned, however, in my post over at Cal’s that the best way to do this is very simple - go to the library, sit down with the pen, the book, and some paper (maybe some tiny post-its) and get to it. I keep my phone handy if I need to look up a definition or need a bit more info, but I don’t let myself get bogged down in research as I’m going. I’ll read it once, see if I get it, and go from there. If I do need to look it over again (particularly problematic when going over academic papers) the second time through I will research as I go.I know, I know.. I even say on my book notes: “Do Not Stop to Look Things Up the First Time Through.” This just shows you not to take such commandments seriously. If it is something difficult like an academic paper, and you will be reading it twice - yes, do not stop to research as you go. But, most of your college reading you will not have the time nor inclination to read twice. Use your judgement here - if the subject keeps coming up and you really have no idea, take a moment to look it up. If you think you’ve a good grasp of the material, wait till afterwards.I know a lot of people suggest skimming heavily. And I’m sure for a lot of people, that’s a good idea. However, I’ve a number of plucky professors who like to drag vague details out of the text that I’d never remember in a million years and test me over it and so I’ve learned to do something else.

I do skim - first. I go over the chapter, reading first and last paragraphs here and there. I generally read the introduction and concluding paragraphs as well and then I go through, reading very carefully. I underline, mark, note and comment as I go. The upside? I can “re-read” an entire book in a few minutes when I’m done. I read the underlined bits, the comments, the notes and I’m generally pretty refreshed on everything I read. The sooner the better, obviously, but I’ve done this with books I’ve read months before quite successfully.

Quick tip - get a brightly colored pen to do this. I like a Pilot G2 - Red (.07) myself and, indeed, G2 .07’s are my pen of choice in general. The bright colors will stand out a lot more, and are easier to review with. You can also use a blue pen, if you must.

Afterwards, I use one of the aforementioned Cornell note sheets to map out what I just read. I’ll later type this up (as above.)

Depending on the class, later on I’ll make a Study Sheet generally to go along with any review they may give us, though for somethings (like languages) I’ll make one at the beginning rather than the end so I don’t have to flip around the book constantly as I work.

ConclusionSo there we have it - this is my “System.” I’m writing this on Sunday, and plan on getting up to speed today. Hopefully, by the time I’m posting this everything will be good to go.What’s your system? Should I change something? Share what you think in the comments!

In my article over at Study Hacks (The Intersection of Technology and Productivity) I mentioned the study guide. Now, the study guide is one of those things I go to great pains to produce and keep updated. It is, quite frankly, the most concise and practical implementation of the information you need to know.

But, you’re thinking, “I’ve got these 30 pages of notes I can use.” That, my friend, is no way to study. Even if you’ve been using the Cornell method, it is highly inefficient. Most classes contain about 75% throw-away information, and most people’s notes even more.

Not all classes benefit from study guides, but most do - any class where you must know rather than analyze (and obviously, good analysis requires knowledge.) So math, science, languages, history.. study guides work for all of them. But what goes into a study guide, how does one construct them?

Well, obviously that depends largely on what you need to know and how you best learn. I do best with charts, graphs, etc. I tend to be a conceptual learner and sheer memorization does not do a lot for me - seeing the relationships between the data is how I remember best. Others may just want lists. Some may want lots of pictures. It’s all about you, baby.

I wish I had kept more of my own study guides, but since I have not, I will share with you the one I created for this week’s German chapter.

The Study Sheet

As you can see, I’ve got a lot of info in this tiny space. I’ve a full list of this weeks vocabulary, the nouns color-coded by gender (color is a powerful tool, don’t neglect it. When dealing with many objects it is a quick visual cue to their category.)

I did mine using Curio and Apple Numbers. When using Windows I’d often use OneNote or Word. Generally speaking, you want at least two columns as most information tends to be in smaller bursts or bullets, and sentences are inefficient. And in both Curio and Onenote, you need to pay attention to where the page breaks and work around them. I believe both have a setting where you can see them.

At this point, you just fill it in it. Charts are great, as is boxing pieces of separate info. Feel free to put in a map, pictures, drawings or mind maps as well! But keep your goals in mind - what do you need to know. And if you know it already? Well, that depends…. these study sheets work great as general reference tools as well, you may want to include them. However, if you’re cramming for a test - better to stick what you don’t know.

Notely first caught my attention a few weeks back. Since then, I’ve been playing with it from time to time. Since it also has a Facebook application, this particular piece of student aimed software has real potential to take off. Looking around the site, with its video tour and demo account (a must for a good webapp, I feel. Don’t make me register just to see what it is.) The people over at Notely have a definite eye for detail. For those of you not wanting to read a detailed review, here’s the long and short of it: Notely is a damn fine app, and definitely worthy of a close inspection. If you’re already committed to some sort of calendar application, however, you may be in for a bit more trouble.

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