The Mature Student's Guide to Writing

Jean Rose

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN:
  9780230297876
• eBook ISBN:
  9781350314986
• Edition: 3
• Topic: Study Aids
• Subtopic: Study Guides

Through its use of conversational and supportive tones, this popular guide puts readers at ease, assisting the transition to academic study. With clear explanations, summaries and exercises, it is an invaluable companion for the mature student. This third edition has much new content including a new chapter on writing a dissertation proposal.

Part One

The Big Picture

1Taking Notes

This chapter explains how to:

manage your notetaking in lectures

make useful notes from written sources

read and analyse academic material

INTRODUCTION

In lectures, some of us hope to rely on our memories and some of us try to write down absolutely everything. But unless you have a brilliant memory, the first method won’t work, and if you try the second, you’ll exhaust yourself and your notes might not make much sense. You need a method that picks up key points without having to write too much.

Note-taking from written materials involves a different procedure. You’ll be taking notes for an assignment and aiming to find just those things that will serve your purpose. So you need to analyse what you’re reading as you go along. The better you become at understanding a text, the better your notes will be and, consequently, the better your essays.

NOTE-TAKING IN LECTURES AND CLASS SESSIONS

In any class or lecture session, you need to spend some time considering what’s being said. Lecture sessions sometimes include brief periods of discussion too, so your mind needs to be free to follow these. What you need is a set of notes that give you outline information in a very readable format. So notes written in sentences aren’t going to make things easy for you. You’ll need to get into the habit of writing down individual words and phrases. Listen out for names, dates, technical terms and other key words. This might take a bit of practice.

*note down names, dates, technical terms and key words and phrases

Watch, first of all, for the way a lecture is structured. Some tutors start by telling you what will be covered. So if you’re told there will be three sections, mark them out as you go along. Your syllabus may also give you some clues as to the important areas to concentrate on, so check it out before the lecture and then listen out for key topics.

You might be given a hand-out showing the main areas of the day’s lecture. This is an invaluable guide. There may even be spaces for you to fill things in as you go along.

*think about the structure of a lecture and put headings in your notes

Quite often, the way a lecturer speaks can give a clue to important points: a tutor’s voice might rise, he or she might stress certain words very strongly, he or she might pause before an important point or even repeat a phrase or two. Note these down and either underline or ring them as you go along. You’ll probably want to leave out extras such as full descriptions and details of examples, because there just isn’t time to record everything.

It’s possible to use your page rather like a drawing-board, ignoring the printed lines if you find that easier. Spreading out your notes and leaving space on each page is especially important. After the lecture, or even months later or when you’re revising, you might come across something else you need to add. It’s infuriating if there’s no space. Not only that, a cramped page can be hard to read later. It can look very daunting, too, and there’ll be no clear sense of an overall structure.

*watch for clues from the way a lecturer stresses points

Here’s how Helen might have begun to make notes from a lecture on the Founding Fathers from her course on American Studies before she’d learnt some new and easier methods of note-taking:

Founding Fathers – America

Country gents / upper class / those in commerce – had influence & power – e.g. Thomas Jefferson (7,500 acres) & wife (11,000 acres).

The colony was governed separately from Britain – the Governor appointed by the Crown.

Governor app. a Council. Council app. local assemblies.

There was more representation of the people than in Britain because more land available.

N. States – 75% males voted

S. States – 50% ""

Most colonists were loyal to the British Crown. When there were difficulties, they blamed Parliament (not the King).

There were some tensions over taxes. Britain passed acts to recoup expenses – e.g. for British troops in N. America – to protect against Indians & French.

Colonists resisted the Stamp Act and the Townsend Act (which led to problems in Boston).

Below, you can see what Helen actually did, because, by the time she took these notes, she’d had a bit of practice in using a clearer layout that gives space to add things later:

The main things to notice here are:

•only a few key words are written down

•lines are drawn to link points

•there’s space to add more later

•these notes are very easy to read

It’s also possible to use mind maps (see Chapter 2), where you start in the middle of the page and work outwards. There can be a problem with using mind maps for lecture notes, however: it can be hard to link to a second page when you’ve filled one up. For this reason, I tend to favour Helen’s method of working down the page. Diagrams are good, too. Whatever method you use, you can add colour after the lecture to make things stand out. If you’re comfortable with drawing, it’s even worth adding pictures, since visual cues are really good memory-joggers. By the way, mind maps are very useful for other tasks.

It’s important to find a method that works for you in relation to the course you’re on and the type of lectures you attend. Trying out some new methods should help you discover what’s going to be best. Taking notes can be quite hard work, so it’s useful to adopt a good posture during lectures. Sit upright and you’ll remain alert and more able to spot crucial points in what you hear.

*try out different methods of note-taking in lectures

Before a lecture, it can be useful to devise a few questions about what will be covered. This can be especially helpful for getting your brain in gear so that it’s easier to absorb the material.

There will always be things you miss. So go over your notes on the same day if you can to fill in any blanks. You’re likely to be able to remember things while your memory is still fresh. If there’s time for a brief study session with a friend, you’ll probably come up with all the important points between you.

Here are some tips for getting the best value from a lecture:

beforehand:

•check your syllabus to see how this lecture fits in

•do some pre-reading on the topic

•write down three questions on the topic before the lecture

•talk to other students about likely topics

during:

•note key headlines on any handouts provided

•pay special attention to t...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Who Is This Book For?
• How to Use This Book
• If You Think You Might Be Dyslexic …
• Part One: The Big Picture
• Part Two: Writing for Different Purposes
• Part Three: The Nuts and Bolts of Good Writing
• Part Four: Moving On
• Appendix 1: Spelling Strategies
• Appendix 2: Common Confusions
• Answers
• Bibliography
• Index