1 Learning from Lectures Dr. Hanan Al-Kadi Assistant Professor- Physiology Department College of Medicine- KAU

2 Objectives  To help students to get the most out of lectures.  To encourage students to be more reflective and interactive learners.

3 Why bother to attend Lectures?

4 Lectures…  Provide an overview or summary of a certain area/topic  Clarifying difficult concepts  Cover and link areas not well-covered in standard text books  Talk about relevant research topics and new discoveries  Communicate the lecturer enthusiasm for a subject which stimulates interest.

5 Reasons for not getting the most out of lectures

6 What the experts say:  You are unable to cope with the volume of information because it is all new to you.  You quickly go into ‘information overload’ and give up taking notes.  You do not recognise or understand some of the new terminology  Lack of any grasp of a new subject/topic reduces your ability to make decisions about selecting relevant and important information for your notes.  You are distracted easily by other students who are talking.  The lecturer’s style may not match the way you take in information.

7 Most of these problems can be solved by:  Pre-lecture preparation  Improved note-taking skills  Improved listening skills  Developing an active approach to learning

8 How do you get the most out of lectures?

9 Getting the most out of lectures  Before lectures  During Lectures  After lectures

10 Pre-Lecture Preparation  Look up the course syllabus.  Know the lecture topic/ objectives in advance.  Go through the outline of the lecture (how much you already know?).  Try to read about the topic if the subject is new to you, or complete assigned readings.  Be there on time (don’t miss the beginning of a lecture) Why?  Sit in the front contact with lecturer).

11 Making effective use of pre-lecture note and downloads  You can go through them and highlight with a coloured marker important information.  You can also make your own comments or questions in the margin.  You can highlight key terminology (and put a definition alongside if necessary).

12 Spending time preparing for lectures is time well spent:  it will ensure that you learn more when you go to the lecture.  and that your note-taking is more effective and meaningful.

13 During the Lecture  Be there or beware  Effective listening  Deciding what to write down (note taking mechanics).

14 Be there or beware  Instructors vary as to the type and amount of information they provide about what's important, if you're not in class, you won't get any of it.  If you borrow a classmate's notes, you could be missing important information, and the information you do get has been filtered by someone else's background knowledge, note taking skills, and attention span.

15 Effective Listening  Listen actively. To become an active listener, you create an internal conversation between you and the instructor as s/he is lecturing.  This includes actively anticipating and questioning what the lecturer says, and sorting or categorizing the information being presented.

16 Note-taking and in-class skills  Develop and use a standard method of note-taking including punctuation, abbreviations, margins, etc.  Do not try to take down everything that the lecturer says. Spend more time listening and attempt to take down the main points.  Listen for hints as to important points, transition from one point to the next, repetition of points for emphasis, changes in voice inflections, enumeration of a series of points, etc.  Be alert to cues about what the professor thinks is important.  Copy down everything on the board.

17 Note Taking Mechanics

18 DO... Use loose-leaf paper. Be sure to date and number pages. Make sure that you can read what you record. Make it easy on your eyes and write on only one side of the page. Leave plenty of space between topics so that you have room to edit your notes. edit your notes as soon as possible after class. Find and fill in any missing points, underline and highlight titles and important points, and summarize the main points of the lecture.

19 DON'T...  Don't depend on someone else's notes. Your notes are unique to you.  Don't habitually tape lectures. Taping more than doubles your lecture time and can become a barrier to developing note taking skills.  Don't cause or tolerate distractions. Move or tactfully ask those making noise to be quiet.  Don't assume for any reason that going to class is unnecessary.

20 The Benefits of Taking Notes  Lecture notes provide a written summary of a spoken presentation that can be used for later review.  Lecture notes help you remember the course material.  Note-taking encourages you to write the material in your own words which will help you to comprehend and retain information.

21 Are you a lecture Sponge?  A sponge learner is ready to soak up information from lecturers.  This is an ineffective way of learning.  If you listen to a lecturer without actively taking notes or participating in some other activity, you’ll be doing well to remember 20% of what’s been said?

22 After Lectures What to do with the information after lectures?

23 Organize and review your notes as soon as possible after the lecture  While the lecture is still fresh in your mind, you can fill in from memory examples and facts which you did not have time to write down during the lecture.  Immediate review results in better retention than review after a longer period of time.  Unless a student reviews within 24 hours after the lecture, his retention will drop; and he will be relearning rather than reviewing.

24 Summary… Before the lecture During the lecture After the lecture

25 prepare for lectures - find out what is in the books on the subject so that you are aware of what you do not need to note in the lecture. form an opinion about the subject of the lecture. set yourself questions and leave spaces to have these answered during the lecture Before the lecture

26 listen to 'make sense' rather than to make notes. listen for 'signposts' about what is coming next or for summaries of key points. listen for answers to questions you set in advance, write yourself questions so you can trace answers and information after the lecture. make brief notes of essential points. During the lecture

27 read your notes and fill in any gaps discuss the lecture with other people consider how the lecture changed or developed your opinions of the subject label and file your notes After the lecture

28 Take Home Message Getting the most out of lectures is a skill we have to learn to save our time

29 References مراجع و مواقع Study skills & tomorrow’s Doctors, David Bullimore, Saunders Publishers, 1998.

30 Stella Cottrell The Study Skills Handbook £

31 - كيف تذاكر, برنامج كيف تذاكر رون فراي, الطبعة الخامسة, مكتبة جرير. -Websites: Search the internet: Key words: Learning from lectures Getting the most out of lectures Study skills Note taking and in-class skills Editing lecture notes

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