While learning English as a second language, you will learn plenty of new things as you develop your reading, writing, and grammar skills in English. You may also get the chance to take some elective courses in subjects that interest you as you prepare to attend a Canadian university.

Taking good notes during your classes can help you remember what you are learning. Note-taking has been proven to strengthen memory of new concepts, making it easier to recall them in the future. In fact, according to the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, students who take notes often score better on tests.

How can you make the most of the notes you take in class? Use these note-taking tips to help you succeed in your English classes and beyond!

1. Stay Organized While Taking Notes in English for Academic Purposes Courses

If you’re taking English as a second language for King’s University College or one of CultureWorks’ many other partner universities and colleges, it’s important to keep your notes organized. Notes that are organized properly are easier to review later on when you’re studying. This can make your study sessions even better, helping you to learn new material faster.

You can organize your notes by keeping them all in one place, such as an organized binder or notebook. You should also write neatly so that you can understand what you wrote later on when you study. It will also help if you add proper titles to the top of pages. Adding titles will make it easier to find specific information you may want to review, such as verbs or sentence structure.

2. Don’t Try to Write Everything Down in Your English for Academic Purposes Courses

When taking notes it can be tempting to write down everything your instructor says in class. However, if you write everything down, you will cause yourself unnecessary stress. Although everything your teacher says is important, you don’t need to write it all down. Notes should be used to remind you of important lessons.

Here are some tips for knowing what to write down during your English for academic purposes courses:

• When your instructor says “you need to know this” or “this is important,” write the information down
• When your instructor repeats a fact several times, write it down in your notes
• Take notes of any main ideas or themes included in a lesson
• Anything your instructor spends extra time on, you should write down

3. While Taking Notes, Put a Question Mark Beside What You Don’t Understand

You may sometimes have questions about things you don’t understand in a lesson. For example, you might encounter a new vocabulary word or grammar rule. When this happens, try putting a question mark beside it.

This way, when you are reviewing your notes you can remember which subjects you should spend extra time studying. In addition, you can go back and ask your instructor for extra help on the topic. You can ask your instructor for extra help right away during class, or later on when class time is over.

Write in their explanation near your question mark, so that you can easily find it when you are studying.

Are you interested in enrolling in ESL for King’s University College or one of our many other partner universities?

Contact CultureWorks today to get started!