Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

If you’ve got some helpful mates on your course, there’s no harm in sharing your lecture notes afterwards or asking to see someone else’s. There’s always a chance that one of you has picked up something vital that the others have missed, or that you’ve come up with a good way of simplifying something that’s quite complex. It’s…

Revisiting your lecture notes soon after class is always a good idea. Reading through your notes helps to solidify your knowledge, and typing them up is the perfect way to make sure you understand everything. This method also makes it a lot easier to read through your notes when you come back to revise, and…

If you miss something that was said or find something a bit confusing (or were too busy thinking about your dinner again), just jot down what you can and leave a gap so you can add more information later. This will draw your attention to certain areas that need closer attention, and leave you some…

If you’re using a laptop or tablet for your note-taking, get rid of any possible distractions before class starts (generally we’d recommend taking notes by hand, but some people do prefer to type). Close all other tabs or programs you have running and turn the WiFi off so you’re not tempted to check social media or get distracted…

These are your notes – they aren’t going to be marked and the only person who needs to be able to read them is you. So, take some time to work out whatever shorthand code you’re comfortable with and roll with it. Shorten words like using ‘2’ instead of ‘to’, ‘too’ and ‘two’, ‘da’ for ‘the’, ‘w/’…

By underlining and using CAPITALS, it’s easier to identify key points in your lecture notes. If your lecturer is stressing something important, draw attention to certain words or phrases in whatever way will best help you remember it – but don’t get too distracted with your artistic creations. Using different colours and highlighters are also known to do the trick…

Hi there! Still with us? Even if you’ve managed the magic eight hours of sleep, it’s easy to lose concentration in a boring lecture. Beware that zoning out in class just means more time catching up on what you missed later on, or becoming frustrated because you don’t understand something. By staying focused in lectures, you’ll feel…

Wonder what to bring to lectures if you’re a slow writer or struggle a bit with university note-taking? Taking a dictaphone to record lectures is a good backup in case you’re worried about missing anything. You can re-live the fun and listen to your lecturer’s dulcet tones later on, making more notes in your own…

This is an easy mistake that most of us have made at some point when taking lecture notes. Not only is attempting to get everything down on paper pretty much impossible, but it also means you won’t really be listening to what’s being said or giving it time to sink in. The key is striking a balance – listen up,…