Notetaking Styles and Effectiveness for a Middle School Population

Abstract

This research sought to inform the question: which type of notetaking method, Cornell, fill-in-the-blank, or student choice, will lead to better test results for middle school students? Which method will students prefer? A sample of seventh grade students participated for three weeks in this within subjects research study. Each week consisted of students being taught a notetaking method, students using the notetaking method while watching a video, then students being tested on information presented in the video 3 days later. The results of a T-test suggest that that there is a significant difference when comparing student choice notes to fill-in-the-blank notes and when comparing Cornell to fill-in-the-blank notes. However, further study on the topic of which notetaking style leads to higher test scores would be beneficial.