Skip to Main Content

Reading to Retain Information

Graduate level classes require much more reading than other classes you may have taken. Reading critically, quickly, and with an eye to retain information is difficult. Here is a guide to some strategies that can help you sift and gather information.

Cornell System

Cornell Note-taking - SUNY Cortland

Mind Maps

Mind maps are a visual way of categorizing your notes. You can easily show relationships between concepts. There are a variety of online, collaborative tools to create, share and collaborate on mind maps. 

A mind map is a great way to identify gaps in your knowledge, or show areas that you are more interested in studying. A mind map is a great tool for refining a research question or research problem before beginning your research. It can be an excellent tool when creating an outline seems like too much for the time or task at hand.

Digital tools for mind maps: 

Coggle.it

Xmind

Mindnode

Outline

Note Cards

Note cards are a great way to organize quotations, concepts, key terms, and key people. More than a study resource, note cards can help you organize your paper, help you see where you need more evidence, and help you prepare to speak or write from memory. 

Add Visuals to Your Notes

A team of researchers at MIT reported in 2014 that the brain can successfully process images it sees for as little as 13 milliseconds. By contrast, the brain takes between 130 and 150 milliseconds—10 times longer—to make sense of single words or simple three-word sentences. Author and molecular biologist John Medina, in his 2008 book Brain Rules, cited a study finding participants who viewed (or listened) to text-based information remembered just 10 percent after three days. If they viewed the same information through a combination of text and images, they retained 65 percent three days later. Here are some ideas for adding visuals to digital or typed notes: 

  • Find images of authors you're taking notes on. 
  • Check for graphs illustrating trends you're discussing in class.
  • Add maps. 
  • Add relevant memes. 

Resources for adding drawings to handwritten notes: 

The Sketchnote Handbook by Mike Rohde - available through O'Reilly learning platform (ask your local public library if they subscribe to this resource. Oakland Public Library here in the Bay Area does)

The Art of Visual Notetaking by Emily Mills - available through O'Reilly learning platform (ask your local public library if they subscribe to this resource. Oakland Public Library here in the Bay Area does)

Visual Thinking: Empowering People and Organisations Through Visual Collaboration by Williemien Brand (available at UC Berkeley)

The Doodle Revolution by Sunni Brown