Note taking the use of note taking skill in english listening

The purpose of the graduation paper is to study the use of note-taking ofthe second-year English major students at ThuongMai University.. LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURETable 1: English listen

The purpose of the graduation paper is to study the use of note-taking ofthe second-year English major students at ThuongMai University The author hasalso cultivated in his mind the idea of providing the students with a rich source ofinformation and future research priorities concerning the theme "the use of note-taking skill in English listening" Methodologically, note-taking studies wereresearched by questionnaire survey and interviewing students The search notesfocused on the theory underlying note-taking and the findings of the previousstudies Note-taking performs a crucial function in improving English listeningskill.

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Foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisorMrs Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc for her continuous support for my study, for herpatience, motivation, enthusiasm, and immense knowledge Her guidance helped

me in all the time of research and writing of this graduation paper

Besides my supervisor, I would like to thank ThuongMai University andEnglish Faculty of ThuongMai University for creating favorable conditions for

me to do my graduation paper

I’d like to send my sincere to my family for their support during thedevelopment of this graduation paper

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS v

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES vi

Chapter 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Previous studies 2

1.3 Aims of study 3

1.4 Research subjects 3

1.5 The scope of study 3

1.6 Research Methology 3

1.7 Organization of the study 4

Chapter 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 5

2.1 Listening comprehension 5

2.1.1 Definition of Listening comprehension 5

2.2 Note-taking 6

2.2.1 Definition of Note-taking 6

2.2.2 The importance of note-taking while listening 7

2.2.3 Effective note-taking techniques while listening 8

Chapter 3: DATA ANALYSIS 16

3.1 Result from survey questionnaires for the second-year English students Major of ThuongMai University 16

3.2 Analyzing from the students’ interview questions 28

3.2.1 Students’ attitude toward listening skill 28

3.2.2 Students’ attitude toward taking notes while English listening 28

CHAPTER 4: SOME SUGGESTED TECHNIQUES 30

4.1 Improve English listening skill 30

4.2 Use symbols and abbreviations 31

4.3 Use Mind Maps 34

4.4 Use Cornell method to take notes 35

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4.5 Other techniques 36

4.5.1 Make clear and accurate notes 36

4.5.2 Use Colors 36

4.5.3 Write phrases, not full sentences 37

4.5.4 Take notes in your own words 38

4.5.4 Organize your notes 38

4.5.5 Underline, circle your notes 38

4.5.6 Think while you take note 38

CONCLUSION viii

REFERENCES iv

APPENDIX xi

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LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURE

Table 1: English listening level of second-year English major at ThuongMaiUniversity 16Table 2: Frequency of taking note while listening to English of the second-yearEnglish student majors of ThuongMai University 18Table 3: Frequency of students in trying to write down everything tape orlecturers said 19Table 4: Frequency of students in using symbols and abbreviations to take noteswhile listening to English 19Table 5: Students using mind map in their notes 21Table 6: Frequency of students in leaving a space between entries to fill in itmissing information while taking note 22Table 7: Frequency of students in using two-column method to take notes 23Table 8: Frequency of students in reviewing and editing your notes after listening 24Table 9: Self-rate note-taking skill in English listening skill of students 26

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Diagram 1: English listening level of second-year English majors at ThuongMaiUniversity 17Diagram 2: Frequency of taking note while listening to English of the second-year English student majors of ThuongMai University 18Diagram 3: Frequency of students in using symbols and abbreviations to takenotes while listening to English 20Diagram 4: Frequency of students in using mind map to take notes 21Diagram 5: Frequency of students in leaving a space between entries to fill in itmissing information while taking note 22Diagram 6: Frequency of students in using two-column method to take notes .24Diagram 7: Frequency of students in reviewing and editing your notes afterlistening 25Diagram 8: Self-rate note-taking skill in English listening of students 26

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Figure 1: Prestyn Kylie (2015, April19) some abbreviations for taking note 9

Figure 2: Mind mapping information and advices, how to make a mind map 13

Figure 3: Two - column method to take notes 14

Figure 4: List of Abbreviations 32

Figure 5: List of Internet Acronyms 33

Figure 6: An example of a mind map 34

Figure 7: An example of the Cornell note-taking method 36

Figure 8: Using different colors to take notes 37

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Chapter 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 1.1 Rationale

Today, English is the most commonly used language in the world It is thelanguage of science, technology, technology, commerce and information acrossthe globe English has become a compulsory subject in most schools in Vietnam,especially in universities During the course of learning English at Thuong MaiUniversity, especially in the field of listening in the second year, I myselfdiscovered that if Vietnamese people can master the listening skills, the problem

of settling listening to English will be overcome

Listening is an important part as well as an essential means of language

acquisitions In the mid twentieth century, Bloomfield (1942) ever declares that:

“One learns to understand and speak a language primarily by hearing and

imitating native-speakers” Although this saying a little looks down on the

written language, it is true to assume the indispensable role of listening skills in

learning English Lundsteen (1979) also affirms that listening is the first language

skill to appear In chronologic order, children listen before they speak, speakbefore they read, and read before they write From this point of view, theimportance of teaching listening can well be seen and it is now regarded the firstand foremost skill to be acquired in learning a new language

In fact, English Faculty of ThuongMai University offers listening courses toall the students of English Faculty However, the second-year students are notprofessional listeners, so obviously they do not have a wide knowledge aboutnote-taking skill Furthermore, they do not know how to take note fast, what tonote, etc They tend to write as much as they can This not only takes long timebut also go too far from the main idea Sometimes, they note the less importantinformation and leave behind the main purposes of the speaker All of problemsabove lead to an unexpected result

Together with many others skills in listening skill, note-taking plays veryimportant role because this stage supplements memory to have a better listeningskill However, note-taking is not a simple skill It requires very highrequirements Students have to analyze, choose information and note down

while listening for speaker Besides, the speed of speaking is faster than thespeed of writing, student must be fast to catch up with the speaker's idea Thus,

it seems harder work for the second-year English majors at ThuongMaiUniversity

All the above reasons have inspired me to choose the subject: A study on theuse of note-taking skill in listening skill of the second-year English majors atThuongMai University and suggested solutions

1.2 Previous studies

“Note-taking and Information Retention and Recall” - A thesis submitted

to the College of Communication and Information of Kent State University inpartial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts byGary E.Meacher (May, 2012) This thesis offers a framework for thedevelopment of Notable He supposed that notable is a versatile tool thatfunctions in varied note-taking environments Considerations for differentlearning styles and activities that aid in information retention and recall areuniquely utilized throughout the application Ethnographic research wasconducted on middle school students to gain insight into their learningenvironments, including the classroom, lecture styles, note-taking tools,organizational methods and social interactions amongst teachers and classmates

"Notes on Note-Taking: Review of Research and Insights for Students and

Instructors" by Michael C Friedman (Harvard Initiative for Learning and

Teaching Harvard University) This literature overview is designed as a resourcefor both students and instructors to gain insight into what education researchreveals about note-taking He said that note-taking is an acquired skill thatimproves student learning and retention of information in a variety of domainsand subjects Importantly, comprehension and production processes (which bothrequire working memory resources) are needed simultaneously for optimallearning to occur, making effective note-taking difficult to accomplish Themethods of assessment for notes can be relatively subjective or inconsistent fromone study to the next, which makes it difficult to uniformly capture what makesfor high-quality notes

1.3 Aims of study

The study has purposes:

 To find out the use of note-taking skill in listening skill by second yearEnglish majors in improving note-taking skill in listening class

 To suggest some techniques to improve note-taking skill of the year English majors of ThuongMai University

second-1.4 Research subjects

 How to take note while listening to English by the second year Englishmajors at ThuongMai University?

1.5 The scope of study

English listening is a big theme However, because of the limited time and

my knowledge, in this graduation paper, I only focus on the use of note takingskill in listening of the second year English majors at ThuongMai University andsome techniques to improve note-taking skill for them The study limits itself atpresenting how to take note while English listening of the second-year Englishmajors of ThuongMai University Moreover, I concentrate on improving notetaking skill in listening class accessed in the view of students

1.6 Research Methology

 With a hope that I could research successfully the topic "A study on theuse of note-taking skill in listening skill of the second-year English majors atThuong Mai University and suggested solutions" the following methods are used

in the research process:

 Firstly, interviews 300 second-year English majors of ThuongMaiUniversity

 Secondly, survey questionnaires for 300 second-year English studentsMajor of ThuongMai University

 Finally, in order to accomplish the graduation paper, a flexiblecombination of methods is used, which embraces collection, categorizing andanalyzing of data, and description of result

1.7 Organization of the study

The study is divided into four parts:

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION presents the rationales, aims, researchsubjects, scope, methodology and organization of the study

Chapter 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND - deals with the conceptsincluding listening and note taking skill in listening skill, types of listening, andthe roles of note taking skill in listening skill

Chapter 3: DATA ANALYSIS – shows the results of the survey and acomprehensive analysis on the data collected

Chapter 4: SOME SUGGESTED TECHNIQUES

Chapter 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 2.1 Listening comprehension

2.1.1 Definition of Listening comprehension

Listening is considered as one of the most important parts of the oralcommunication The term is used in order to make oral communication effective.There was an idea that “Students spend 20 percent of all school related hours justlistening If television watching and one-half of conversations are included,students spend approximately 50 percent of their waking hours just listening Forthose hours spent in the classroom, the amount of listening time can be almost

100 percent” Obviously, it is believed that listening is a significant and essentialarea of development in a native language and in a second language, therefore,there have been numerous definitions of listening and listening skill

According to Howatt and Dakin (1974), listening is ability to identify andunderstand what others are saying This process involves understanding aspeaker’s accent and pronunciation, the speaker’s grammar and vocabulary andcomprehension of meaning An able listener is capable of doing these four thingssimultaneously

Rubin (1995) conceived listening as an active process in which a listenerselects and interprets information, which comes from auditory and visual clues inorder to define what is going on and what the speakers are trying to express

Purdy (1991) defined listening as “the active and dynamic process of

attending, perceiving, listening, remembering and responding to the expressed verbal and non-verbal needs, concerns and information offered by the human beings”

Carol (1993) described listening as a set of activities that involve “the

individual’s capacity to apprehend, recognize, discriminate or even ignore”

Wolvin and Coakley (1985) points out that listening is “the process of

receiving, attending to and assigning meaning to aural stimuli” This definition

suggests that listening is a complex, problem-solving skill The task of listening

is more than perception of sound This view of listening is in accordance withsecond-language theory which considers listening to spoken language as an

active and complex process in which listeners focus on selected aspects of auralinput, construct meaning, and relate what they hear to existing knowledge(O’Malley & Chamot, 1989).

Recently, Imhof (1998) stated that listening is “the active process of

selecting and integrating relevant information from acoustic input and this process is controlled by personal intentions which are critical to listening”

Rost (2002) confirmed, “Listening is experiencing contextual effects‖ which

can be translated as ―listening as a neurological event (experiencing) overlaying a cognitive event creating a change in a representation”, etc

2.2 Note-taking

2.2.1 Definition of Note-taking

Note taking is to record and capture the essence of information, Moreover,recording the key points of information from another source, such as an oraldiscussion, lectures, books, and other sources in a systematic way In otherwords, learners have to gather the information together in a way that makes sense

to them, and choose the appropriate method that suits their needs

According to Shelley O'Har, "Taking notes involves active listening, as well

as connecting and relating information to ideas you already know It also involves seeking answers to questions that arise from the material.”

And Walter Pauk and Ross J.Q Owens supposed that "Taking notes doesn't

simply mean scribbling down or marking up the things that strike your fancy It means using a proven system and then effectively recording information before tying everything together."

According to Monereo,C , note-taking is the hegemonic study activity at

university and the main ground for education interaction between teacher andstudents This observation has given rise to an increasing and interest in studyingstudents' note-taking and its impact on learning

So in my opinion, note taking is an essential skill for university students, buttaking notes and integrating information from many sources, including textbooks,labs, online discussions, lectures, and/or seminars, can be challenging Take time

to explore different note-taking methods in order to determine which methodworks best for you and your course requirements.

2.2.2 The importance of note-taking while listening

Taking notes is a skill we all use, to some extent, recording usefulinformation, and identifying key points within it, as a part of organizing the dailylife Hence, learners need to develop this skill Good notes should be accurate,clear and concise Taking notes helps the learner to maintain a permanent record

of what they have listened to

K Dietsche, submitted these tips for a project in 2000 –DGJ“As an adult

student, and mother of three college-aged children, experience has taught me the importance of good study skills and habits Not only can a student “survive” college with these skills, they can actually do quite well I took the opportunity to write this paper with my children in mind Learning how to take lecture notes effectively is the first step college students need to make the transition from high school to college easier.”

According to Walter Pauk, people lose their retention at the following rates:

College states, “The taking of notes facilitates learning When one takes notes he

attends to what is said and done; he analyzes and thinks rapidly about what he sees and hears; and finally he records his observations Attending to, analyzing, and doing something about a class lecture means the student is actively engaged

in those activities that are essential to effective learning.” He goes on to say that

notes are “the cues that stimulate recall”.

College academic and learning skill centers actively promote the use of taking in lectures to improve a student’s learning capabilities:

note- Note-taking is one way to enhance listening, and using a systematicapproach to the taking and reviewing of your notes can add immeasurably toyour understanding and remembering the content of lectures (Berkeley College)

 Effective note taking is an essential part of any successful academicstudy program It is a high level skill, involving such complex cognitiveprocesses as analyzing, synthesizing, writing, evaluating, and reviewing Butmore than anything else, it requires active listening (University of Texas atAustin)

2.2.3 Effective note-taking techniques while listening

2.2.3.1 Learn to abbreviate and use symbols

Another important thing that should be taken into account in taking notes isthe use of abbreviations and symbols Wallace (1984) indicated that this strategycan save a lot of valuable time Learners should avoid the counterproductiveeffect of using abbreviations and symbols that they would not be able tounderstand later Learners should be careful in the use of this aid to quick notetaking

Fisher and Harris (1994) found that students perform note-taking moreefficiently when they are allowed "to encode information" using abbreviations.McKeachie (1994) suggests that abbreviating of spoken information leads to anincrease to the number of words in working memory and improvement of subjectretention Boyle (2001) concluded that use of abbreviations decreases hands andeyes engagement and enable to record spoken information more efficiently.Moreover, abbreviating the spoken word increases the attention andconcentration span, and provides more time for students to comprehend classmaterial They can process spoken information into written form faster and itenhances retention of the information and can lead to improvement in overallorganization of their notes In addition, a higher writing speed allows more time

to pay attention to handwriting legibility and style to make notes legible andreadable

Figure 1: Prestyn Kylie (2015, April19) some abbreviations for taking note

To sum up, abbreviations and symbols are, like other elements in notes, “a

means to an end, not an end in themselves” (Jones, 2002) What is the use of

abbreviations and symbols, if they do not help students to do his/her work better?For the students to fully get benefits from note-taking, a system of abbreviationsand symbols that is logical, connected and unequivocal should be developed onhis or her own

The main method for writing brief notes is to write only the key words thatconvey the necessary meaning that you need These key words can often beabbreviated or symbolized Walter Pauk suggests the following:

 Leave out periods in standard abbreviations

ISU = Illinois State University

 Omit vowels from the middle of words Retain only enough

consonants to provide a recognizable skeleton of the word

demy = democracy

demt = democrat

 Spell out short words Time won’t be saved by shortening a word that isalready short

ex.: in, at, to, for, but

 Leave out unimportant verbs

ex: went, came, be

 Leave out a, the, and other unimportant adjectives

 Use symbols for commonly recurring connective or transitional words

2.2.3.2 Use mind maps in taking note

The term ‘Mind-map’ was coined in the late 1960’s by Tony Buzan “A mind

map is a graphic technique provides a universal key to unlock the potential of the bran It harnesses the full range of cortical skills: words, images, number, logic, rhythm, color and spatial awareness.”, stated by Tony Buzan (2012) Moreover,

a mind map captures and helps in recording, memorizing and connecting theinformation in a visually expressive manner

In other words, the map involves a combination of words and images.Additionally, Buzan encouraged the use of at least three colors, symbols, andcodes to highlight or represent ideas Furthermore, he argued that the approachworks best if people relax and their minds go free and be unrestrained byconventional thinking Mind mapping is claimed to be effective in helping people

to visualize, structure and classify ideas

Buzan has identified the foundation structures of a mind map, although theyare open to individual interpretation:

 Start in the centre of the page with a keyword or phrase It may also help

if you can conceptualise the topic as an image

 Then use lines to extend out from the centre in a radiating pattern Thelines closest to the core of the mind map can be thicker than those at theperiphery

 Select key words and phrases, and position each word in its own space,separate from others, on one of the extending lines Each line is the same length

as the key word or phrase

 Each line branches off from the earlier line to form another sub-concept orsub-level of detail Nevertheless, all extending lines at the periphery link back tothe mind map core

 Make effective use of color, incorporating at least 3 colors throughoutyour mind map The colors you select can develop into your own code ofmeaning Here a certain color is used to connect key words and phrases in arelated topic and/or sub-topic area within the mind map

 Use images, symbols, and codes, where relevant, throughout your mindmap These may contribute to your own mind mapping style

 Demonstrate emphasis and associations with the use of colour andinterconnecting lines Alternatively, use your own techniques for emphasis andshowing associations between ideas

Figure 2: Mind mapping information and advices, how to make a mind map

2.2.3.3 Two - column method to take notes

Kathleen T McWhorter said that "This note-taking method is valuable for all

learners Draw a vertical line from the top of a piece of paper to the bottom The left-hand column should be about half as wide as the right-hand column In the wider right-hand column, record ideas and facts as they are presented in a lecture or discussion In the narrower, left-hand column, note your own questions as they arise during the class When you go home and review your notes, add summaries of major concepts and sections to the left-hand margin This method allows you to quickly review an outline or overview of a lecture by reading the left-hand column and to study specific information and examples in the right-hand column."

Figure 3: Two - column method to take notes

2.2.3.4 Review and edit your notes

Academic skills centers and other authorities on effective study skillsconsider reviewing and editing class notes to be the most important part of notetaking and essential to increasing learning capacity

 It is extremely important to review your notes within 24 hours

 Edit for words and phrases that are illegible or don’t make sense Writeout abbreviated words that might be unclear later

 Edit with a different colored pen to distinguish between what you wrote

in class and what you filled in later

 Fill in key words and questions in the left-hand column.

 Note anything you don’t understand by underlining or highlighting toremind you to ask the instructor

 Consider rewriting or typing up your notes

Ann Dillon supposed that "Leave a space between entries so that you can fill

in missing information Always review your notes after class for accuracy If

something isn't clear, find out what you missed and add it to your notes”.

To sum up, taking note while listening to English plays very important rolebecause this stage supplements memory to have a better listening skill However,note-taking is not a simple skill Students have to analyze, choose informationand note down while listening Besides, the speed of speaking is faster thanwriting’ speed, student must be fast to catch up with the speaker's idea So, it isnecessary for them to improve note-taking skill

Chapter 3: DATA ANALYSIS3.1 Result from survey questionnaires for the second-year English students Major of ThuongMai University

In this chapter, with data collected from the survey questionnaires, acomprehensive analysis will be presented It is the studying about the use ofnotes-taking in English listening through the data from the questionnaire by themeans of pie charts and columns, laid our corresponding to the sequence of thequestions and draws out immediately conclusions at each figure

Question 1: How do you rate your English listening?

Very good Quite good Good Normal Bad

of most second year students in English at the normal level

Question 2: How often do you take notes in listening lessons?

Table 2: Frequency of taking note while listening to English of the second-year

English student majors of ThuongMai University

10

43 35

12

Very frequently Frequently Occasionally Rarely or never

Diagram 2: Frequency of taking note while listening to English of the

second-year English student majors of ThuongMai UniversityRegarding question 2 which related to frequency of taking note whilelistening to English of the second-year English students major of ThuongMaiUniversity, I can see that only 10% of students very frequently take note whilelistening to English, 43% of students frequently take notes while listening toEnglish, 35% of students occasionally take notes while listening to English and12% of students rarely or never take notes while listening to English