When it comes to learning complex topics, which way of taking notes works best? Is typing faster than writing by hand? Any advice would be helpful.
I’ve heard that writing things down helps your brain remember better compared to typing. Something about the physical act of writing being more memorable.
I think I’ve read a few articles about this. Writing notes by hand has been shown to improve retention compared to typing. I think NPR had a story about it last year.
I usually handwrite my notes when learning something new, but I almost never review them after. The act of deciding what to write down actually helps me remember. Later on, I create flashcards in Anki for key points and review them daily. That’s been super helpful for me.
Here’s a good article I found: https://www.learningandthebrain.com/blog/students-simply-cannot-improve-handwritten-notes-vs-laptop-notes/
bernarddeacon said:
Here’s a good article I found: https://www.learningandthebrain.com/blog/students-simply-cannot-improve-handwritten-notes-vs-laptop-notes/
The article’s interesting, but I’m confused by one part. It mentions that students who typed had more words, which helped them remember better, but doesn’t that go against the original study’s findings? People who type tend to transcribe more, but writing forces you to process the information. Typing can help if you’re consciously trying to summarize, but word count alone doesn’t seem like a good measure of effectiveness.
There’s research (I can’t remember the source) showing that handwriting helps because it forces you to process the information more. But just taking notes isn’t enough. You have to actually do something with them, like review or summarize, to make it stick.
Studies suggest handwritten notes are better for short-term recall, but typed notes are more useful for long-term revision. Handwriting makes it easier to remember without rereading, while typing is helpful for organizing your notes for later review.
I found a good read on this topic: https://www.postandcourier.com/moultrie-news/opinion/notating-the-write-way/article_2877b830-5f6d-11ef-b46c-d74ec413e0ea.html?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
I handwrite my notes during class, then later type them up as a way to review and organize the information. This process helps me a lot.
Tsu said:
I handwrite my notes during class, then later type them up as a way to review and organize the information. This process helps me a lot.
Same here. I handwrite first, then type and organize using Obsidian. The act of typing up the handwritten notes gives me another chance to review the material.
Here’s a study I found on this topic: Mueller, P. A., & Oppenheimer, D. M. (2014). The Pen Is Mightier Than the Keyboard: Advantages of Longhand Over Laptop Note Taking. Psychological Science, 25(6), 1159–1168. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797614524581?journalCode=pssa
As someone with ADHD, I handwrite when I need to remember something. If I type it, it’s usually because I don’t need to remember it as much.