Studies have shown that you remember a bigger part of your curriculum if you look at your notes as an “ongoing” process. Your notes from one given lecture doesn’t stop on the specific day – you should read your notes multiple times. The learning and remembering process isn´t in the notes itself, but instead in the repeating and coupling the information.
The key here is making yourself familiar with the knowledge shown in your notes – so you can remember the information better. This should lighten the burden when you start preparing for your exams.
Try the following exercise[based on the Cornell-Method] for 14 days and see if it makes you better at remembering your notes and knowledge – each session should take no more than 10-20 min:
- Read your notes from todays lecture through in the evening + write 2-3 key sentences about the outtake from the lecture
- Read your notes from the same lecture again 3 days after the lecture – does the notes and your key sentences still make sense?
- Read your notes from the same lecture again one week after the lecture – can you connect this lecture to the new lectures you have taken in the same course?
- Read it through one last time 14 days after the lecture
The learning and remembering process isn´t in the notes itself, but instead in repeating and coupling the information.