Vol. 14(16), pp.

580-589, October, 2019

DOI: 10.5897/ERR2019.3812
Article Number: BBC9AF362112
ISSN: 1990-3839
Copyright ©2019
Author(s) retain the copyright of this article Educational Research and Reviews
http://www.academicjournals.org/ERR

Full Length Research Paper

Impact of note taking during reading and during

listening on comprehension
Hüseyin Özçakmak
Department of Turkish Language Education, Faculty of Education, Hatay Mustafa Kemal University, Turkey.
Received 30 August, 2019; Accepted 10 October, 2019

This study aims to determine possible impact of note taking during reading and listening on Turkish
Language prospective teachers’ comprehension success. Moreover in the study comprehension scores
of the groups were investigated in terms of academic score and gender variables. Study was designed
in causal-comparative research. The study was conducted with 72 s graders studying at the Department
of Turkish Language Teaching at Education Faculty of Hatay Mustafa Kemal University. The
Comprehension Achievement Test was employed in the study to determine reading and listening
comprehension achievement scores of the students. In the study, an informative text containing 640
words and named as “Childhoods of the Famous Scientists” was used. At the end of the study it was
found that Listening-Note Taking groups’ comprehension scores were statistically more successful
than Reading, Reading-Note Taking and Listening groups. There was a positive-way relation determined
between the students’ comprehension scores and their academic grade point averages. And in terms of
gender there was no statistically significant difference between female and male students.

Key words: Note taking, listening, reading, comprehension, gender, academic score.

INTRODUCTION

Note taking is a skill that is frequently applied during as shortening important information for later use and
school years. Note taking, mostly used from primary writing in symbols rapidly; in other words, as creating
school to university years, is preferred in everyday life external memory. According to Piolat et al. (2005), note
after university as well. When it is regarded in terms of taking is a complex activity that requires one to
timing, note taking is a skill that has two components. understand and choose information and necessitates
The first one is about the moment when note is taken, written production processes. Moreover, Zhang (2012)
about focusing on the things seen, read or listened, and described note taking as writing main idea and important
about concentrating on that moment. The latter one is points regarding the information presented during
about recording notes for using in the future. listening. On the other hand, there are some researchers
There are a great number of definitions made about who described note taking as a negative activity. For
note taking. Boch and Piolat (2005) described note taking instance, Zuckerman (2016) stated that note taking is a

E-mail: [email protected].

Author(s) agree that this article remain permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution
License 4.0 International License
 Özçakmak 581

miscellaneous and complex process that leads students understood that only few students get the skill of basic
to take unfruitful or incomplete notes. note taking. Even though students are asked to take
notes comprehensively year-round, and it is known that
note taking is useful for learning, keeping knowledge
Benefits of note taking taught and thinking, the case is like that (Boch and Piolat,
2005). Although they complete a great number of
Note taking is a technique that is highly effective on
notebooks, few students have the knowledge of note
comprehension. Taking notes during lesson helps
taking and reviewing (Kiewra, 1987). Reasons of this
students reach aim of the course more comfortably and
matter should be worked through. Is not instruction
makes them to understand what is taught easily (Kiewra,
enough, or cannot note taking be taught functionally?
1991). The students who take notes are advantageous in
Students’ mislearning note taking causes them to be
terms of getting the most important points of the course
insufficient in effective note-taking. Some students
and recalling content of the course (Kiewra and Fletcher,
perceive note taking as writing everything they hear. In a
1984). Note taking has many advantages the foremost of
study carried out by Sutherland et al. (2002) with 25
which is relieving students of reading the whole book. It
students whose mother tongue was English or who learnt
improves students’ comprehension skills since it attracts
English as a foreign language, it was found that 17
students’ attention to the material that is read or listened.
students did verbatim transcription. If every word that is
It prevents students from missing the things taught during
heard is noted, knowledge cannot be synthesized. Since
the lessons. Additionally, it helps students recall the
working memory of a student who writes everything that
important information they learnt and makes them
is told or read is active, he/she cannot analyze the
independent (Bahrami and Nosratzadeh, 2017; Saravani,
incoming knowledge (Hill and Miller, 2006).
2019; Umaadevi and Rekha, 2019). Kiewra (1991)
claimed that note taking is important as it increases
students’ attention during lesson and enables coding the
Note taking instruction
things taught during lesson into long-term memory. It was
concluded in a study conducted by Faber et al. (2000)
Speaking speed, comprehension speed and writing
that note taking was effective in ninth graders’
speed should be mentioned for note taking.
comprehending low-interest passages. Note taking can
Comprehension speed is more than speaking speed, and
help students to recall some details about the subjects
speaking speed is more than writing speed. Each word
taught and to specialize in listening (Roy et al., 2014) as
spoken can be understood, yet writing may be
well as improving writing skill of an individual through
problematic. Therefore, trying to write everything a
different methods and techniques (Walker et al., 2017).
teacher tells may make note taking a skill that is too
Note taking is among the most crucial tools that improve
difficult to overcome. Students should be trained about
comprehension (Kobayashi, 2005). However,
note taking methods and techniques to prevent this. In
comprehension is not only dependent on note taking. The
some studies (Oğuz, 1999; Çetingöz, 2010), it was
primary thing to be successful is related to students’
concluded that students having received training about
reviewing their notes (Van Matre and Carter, 1975).
note taking learned more than the ones that followed the
Note taking is generally regarded within the context of
lessons without training. There may be some students
courses. Notes taken during lessons mostly provide
who do not know how to take notes effectively in the
students with course materials and help them study their
classrooms. Teachers are required to help those students
exams using these notes (Witherby and Tauber, 2019).
to take notes and to encourage them to realize
Note taking is not only associated with courses. Notes
remarkable facts of a subject rather than to get angry
are taken with the aim of a deeper understanding, long-
(Bretzing et al., 1987; Murphy, 1996; Jacobs, 2013).
term learning and reviewing previous knowledge as well,
and note taking is applied in various fields of life such as
daily life and professional life. For instance, a person’s
Individual differences
keeping clear and right records for his or others’ use
facilitates producing ideas and participating in the Another matter to be touched on about note taking is the
meeting. Notes which provide records in hospitals to be fact that students who take notes use different methods
used as a reference in patient care and long-lasting and techniques, or each student has a unique note taking
treatments can be used in courts for referring later and style. Even the contractions that students use for the
can sustain reliability of judicial system (Mueller and same word may be different from each other’s. This is
Oppenheimer, 2016). both surprising and closely related to students’ individual
differences (Hadwin et a., 1999; Piolat et al., 2005).
Effective note-taking Being cognitively different may result in students’
adopting different note taking strategies and their getting
Although students are taught various techniques to different efficiency (Bui and Myerson, 2014; Jansen et al.,
comprehend and to write texts during their school life, it is 2017). It is quite normal that students take notes
582 Educ. Res. Rev.

differently and use different contractions. Students’ the skills that were note taking during reading and note
previous learning may directly affect the notes they take taking during listening was more effective.
about the topics they read or listen. Taking notes about
information firstly met by regarding it important and
disregarding information previously met and learnt Aim of the study
completely are products of prior learnings. Prior learnings
being complete or incomplete or null related to the same In the study, it was aimed to determine possible impact of
topic shows only one side of individual differences. note taking during reading and listening on Turkish
Language prospective teachers’ comprehension success.
Sub-problems of the study are as follows:
Note taking and technology
1). Are there any statistically significant differences
There have been some changes in students’ note taking between comprehension scores of the Reading Group
styles with the developments in technology. Today, (RG) and of the Listening Group (LG)?
students can take notes through some programs installed 2). Are there any statistically significant differences
in computers or mobile phones instead of through between comprehension scores of the Reading Group
notebook and pencil. Even students who take a photo of (RG) and of the Reading-Note Taking Group (RNTG)?
the writings on the board (in other words take notes) are 3). Are there any statistically significant differences
frequently seen (Özçakmak and Sarigöz, 2019). This between comprehension scores of the Listening Group
proves that note taking keep up with changing technology (LG) and of the Listening-Note Taking Group (LNTG)?
and it still keeps its popularity. Technological 4). Are there any statistically significant differences
advancements have provided students some between comprehension scores of the Reading-Note
conveniences and have lessened amount of time they Taking Group (RNTG) and of the Listening-Note Taking
spent for writing. Students who get accustomed to typing Group (LNTG)?
through keyboard rather than using pencil and notebook 5). Is there any statistically significant relationship
are able to write the same words in a shorter time and to between comprehension scores of the groups and their
focus on their courses in remaining time. academic achievement mean scores?
6). Are there any statistically significant differences
between comprehension scores of the groups by gender?
Note taking during listening/reading

When note taking is considered, writing based on the METHODOLOGY

things listened or read comes to mind. Such that, in the Model
study carried out by Özçakmak and Sarigöz (2019) with
university students, it was revealed that the students In the study, causal-comparative research model was employed.
mostly regarded note taking as “note taking from This is a model that is used to investigate reason or result of a
listening” (61%), and it was followed by “note taking from difference existing between groups or to reveal the effect of an
independent variable on another dependent variable (Brewer and
reading” (31%). Notes generally used in academic
Kuhn, 2010; Fraenkel et al., 2011). In this model, it is aimed to
learning can be taken from a course or a written compare situations in their natural environments without any
document. Notes that are mostly taken under a deadline interventions (Karasar, 2016). The aim of the researcher is to find if
of time during a lesson can be written on intended speed there were any effects of the independent variable on the
while being taken from a written document (Olive and dependent variable.
Barbier, 2017). Taking notes during listening or reading is
regarded as a useful strategy in terms of developing
Study group
storage of information (Carrier and Titus, 1979). When it
is regarded in terms of linguistic skills, it forms a basis for The study was conducted with 72 second graders studying at the
improving listening, reading, speaking and writing skills. It Department of Turkish Language Teaching at Education Faculty of
is not possible for a student to tell a matter without Hatay Mustafa Kemal University. The students’ ages ranged from
18 to 21. The students were randomly assigned to the groups
understanding it. When this is taken into consideration,
considering A and B classes. The students’ distributions by their
the importance of reading and listening skills appear by academic achievement levels and by their genders are shown in
itself. In our study it was investigated how reading and Table 1.
note taking during reading and listening and note taking
during listening affected students’ comprehension
success. Furthermore, note taking during reading and Data collection tool
note taking during listening which are two components of Comprehension achievement test
note taking were compared with regard to their effect on
the students’ comprehension success. When the literature The comprehension achievement test was employed in the study to
was searched, no studies were found revealing which of determine reading and listening comprehension achievement
 Özçakmak 583

Table 1. Distribution of demographic information of the study group.

Variable N %
Reading 17 23.6
Reading-Note Taking 18 25.0
Groups Listening 18 25.0
Listening-Note Taking 19 26.4
Total 72 100.0

Low (Less than 2.75) 24 33.3

Medium (Between 2.75-3.00) 19 26.4
Academic Achievement (GPA)
High (Greater than 3.00) 29 40.3
Total 72 100.0

Female 52 72.2
Gender Male 20 27.8
Total 72 100.0

scores of the students. The test consisted of 10 questions 5 of which student would be in which group was not considered, but that
which were open-ended and 5 of which were true-false questions. students in which classroom would be in which group was taken
One person who was experienced in assessment and evaluation into consideration. As a result of lot, class-A which included 35
gave support for preparation of the test. Each open-ended question students was selected for reading skills, and class-B which
of the Comprehension Achievement Test was 15 points and the consisted of 37 students was selected for listening skills. With
maximum score to be taken from these open-ended questions was drawing the second lot, 17 students were assigned to the Reading
75. Each of the other 5 questions which were true-false questions group, and 18 students were assigned to the Reading-Note Taking
was 5 points, and the maximum score to be received from these 5 group in class-A. Likewise, 18 students were assigned to the
questions was 25. Thus, the maximum score to be received from Listening group, and 19 students were assigned to the Listening-
the whole Comprehension Achievement Test was 100. Note Taking group in class-B.

Reliability and validity Selection of the text

The questions having been prepared within the context of In the study, an informative text of medium difficulty containing 640
Comprehension Achievement Test were conducted on 5 students words and 7 paragraphs and named as “Childhoods of the Famous
before the implementation. By looking at the students’ responses, Scientists” was used. The same text was used in all phases of the
they understood the questions accurately, and there were not any implementation. Supposing that the students’ note taking and
questions that they did not understand. This is important to assure comprehension achievements would be affected positively by a text
that there no meaning is lost. Coherence between the evaluators they met before the implementation, a text they had never met
was searched to provide reliability. For that purpose, the students’ before was selected. The texts were intended to include information
responses having been analyzed by the researcher were also that most of the students did not know by asking for expert’s
evaluated by a Turkish language education expert. Coherence opinion. Consequently, the informative text which was about
between the coders was found as 0.91 according to Miles and childhoods of the famous scientists was selected among 10
Huberman (1994) formula. candidate texts. The informative text mentioned about childhood
In order to ensure validity, the test included an informative text years of the four scientists, Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison,
named “Childhood of the Famous Scientists”. In this regard, the Alexander Graham Bell and Isaac Newton.
titles of “Albert Einstein”, “Thomas Edison”, “Alexander Graham
Bell” and “Isaac Newton” were included in the open-ended (5
questions) and true-false questions (5 questions) of the test to Implementation
ensure content validity. An expert of assessment and evaluation
was consulted to make sure that the questions had content validity, Certain facts were paid attention to in order to provide reliability and
and it was assured by the expert. validity of the data obtained from the study before the
implementation. Firstly, it was investigated whether the groups were
equal or not, and the implementation started after enabling equality.
Process Academic averages reflected general averages of the students for
all the courses they received in the first and second grade. Means
Selection of the students related to academic achievements of the groups are presented in
Table 2.
The study was carried out with 72 university students who agreed When Table 2 is analyzed, it can be seen that mean in the
to participate in the study voluntarily among 88 students studying at reading group was 2.81, in the reading-note taking group was 2.93,
the Department of Turkish language teaching. The classroom in the listening group was 3.01, and in the listening-note taking
variable affected assignment of students to the groups. Thus, that group was 2.93. Grade point average was 2.92 in total. ANOVA test
584 Educ. Res. Rev.

Table 2. Groups’ academic achievement distributions.

Groups N Mean Std. deviation

Reading 17 2.81 0.40517
Reading-Note Taking 18 2.93 0.24583
Listening 18 3.01 0.27030
Listening - Note Taking 19 2.93 0.44984
Total 72 2.92 0.35368

Table 3. ANOVA analysis regarding academic achievements of the groups.

Sum of
Groups df Mean square F P
squares
Between Groups 0.343 3 0.114 0.911 0.441
Within Groups 8.539 68 0.126
Total 8.882 71

was employed to determine if academic means caused any students in the Listening group were asked not to use pencil and
significant differences between the groups. Findings regarding sheet, while the students in the Listening-Note Taking were
ANOVA Test are illustrated in Table 3. It was understood from informed that they could take notes during listening. The
Table 3 that as a result of ANOVA test, there were not any implementation lasted for 40 min. The notes taken by the students
significant differences between the groups (p>0.05). Thus, it was in the Listening-Note Taking group were collected.
concluded that the reading group, the reading-note taking group,
the listening group and the listening-note taking group were
academically equal. Before implementation, the texts were selected Data analysis
meticulously in order to ensure that students were at an equal
distance to the texts. Text selection was made among the texts that
The data of the study were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 20
the students (at least most of them) had not seen before. The text
package program. Some measurements had been made before the
which was selected under the guidance of an expert was asked to
analysis to determine the types of analyses to be used (parametric
the students after the implementation, and it was questioned if the
or non-parametric). As a result of Levene’s Test, it was found that
students had seen it before. Then, it was revealed that 65 of them
variances were equal (p>0.05). Moreover, it was understood as a
(90.3%) had never seen it before, and the rest of them knew some
result of Shapiro Wilk Test that the data showed normal distribution
of this information. Additionally, similarity of group distribution of the
(p>0.05). Thus, parametric measurements were applied. In the
students knowing the information partially increased validity of the
study, some descriptive statistics including percentage, frequency,
study. The students were assigned to the groups by lot before the
mean and standard deviation were employed. Furthermore,
implementation. 17 students of class-A consisting of 35 students
Independent Sample T-Test, ANOVA Test, Post Hoc Benferronni
were assigned to the Reading group, and the rest 18 were assigned
Test and Pearson Correlation Test were used. The findings
to the Reading-Note Taking group. Moreover, 18 students of class-
obtained as a result of the analysis are presented in tables in the
B consisting of 37 students were assigned to the Listening group,
section of “Findings”.
and the rest 19 were assigned to the Listening-Note Taking group.
The students were informed about the implementation before the
intervention, and the student groups which were determined by lot
were gathered. The implementation started with class-A in which FINDINGS
Reading and Reading-Note Taking groups were included. The
students in the Reading group were asked not to use pencil and In the section of findings, descriptive statistical tables
sheet, while the students in the Reading-Note Taking were
informed that they could take notes during reading. Then, the
related to the groups were presented, and the analyses
informative text, “Childhoods of the Famous Scientists”, which showing whether there were significant differences
consisted of 640 words was handed out to the groups of Reading between the groups and if the groups differentiated by
and Reading-Note Taking. The implementation lasted for 40 min. gender were shown in tables. In addition, an analysis
While the students in the Reading group gave back the texts they was performed to test if there was a correlational relation
read without taking notes, the students in the Reading-Note Taking
between comprehension achievement scores and
group gave back the texts on which they took some notes.
On another day, implementation was performed in class-B in academic point averages of the groups.
which the groups of Listening and Listening-Note Taking were Table 4 shows mean scores which the groups received
included. The students were informed about the implementation from the Comprehension Achievement Test. It can be
before the intervention, and they were told about the group they seen in the table that the Listening-Note Taking group
would be in. They clustered based on their groups. Then, the
students were asked to listen to the informative text, “Childhoods of
received the highest score ( X =81.05) while the Reading
the Famous Scientists”, which consisted of 640 words. The group received the lowest score ( X =59.41). The average
 Özçakmak 585

Table 4. Distribution of comprehension achievement means of the groups.

Groups N Mean Std. deviation

Reading 17 59.41 15.39910
Reading-Note Taking 18 66.94 9.72246
Listening 18 65.28 10.77473
Listening - Note Taking 19 81.05 9.65789
Total 72 68.47 13.88177

Table 5. Anova analysis regarding comprehension achievements of the groups.

Sum of
Source df Mean Square F Sig.
squares
Between Groups 4628.324 3 1542.775 11.587 0.000
Within Groups 9053.621 68 133.141
Total 13681.944 71

Table 6. Post Hoc Benferronni test results regarding comprehension achievements of the groups.

(I) Groups (J) Groups Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error Sig.
Reading-Note Taking -7.53268 3.90238 0.346
Reading Listening -5.86601 3.90238 0.825
*
Listening - Note Taking -21.64087 3.85218 0.000

Listening 1.66667 3.84623 1.000

Reading-Note Taking *
Listening - Note Taking -14.10819 3.79529 0.002

*
Listening Listening - Note Taking -15.77485 3.79529 0.001

comprehension achievement score for all of the groups than scores of the ones who took the exam after taking
was 68.47. ANOVA was employed to see if the scores notes during reading and scores of the ones who just
that the groups received from the Comprehension listened and took the exam. Before conducting an
Achievement Test were statistically significant or not, and analysis about testing if there was a relation between the
the findings are shown in Table 5. students’ academic grade points and their comprehension
Table 5 indicated that there was a significant difference achievement scores, their academic grade point averages
between mean scores that the groups received from the and comprehension achievement scores are shown in
Comprehension Achievement Test (p<0.01). The findings Table 7.
of Post Hoc Benferronni Test used to understand Table 7 illustrates the students’ comprehension scores
between which groups the difference was and in favor of and their academic grade point averages. According to
which groups are presented in Table 6. As it can be seen the table, the mean score that the students received from
in Table 6, there was a significant difference between the the Comprehension Achievement Test was 68.47, while
Reading and the Listening-Note Taking groups (in favor their academic grade point averages were 2,92 out of
of the latter one) (p<0.01), between the Reading-Note 4,00. The results of Pearson correlation analysis
Taking and the Listening-Note Taking groups (in favor of employed to determine if there was a relation between
the latter one) (p<0.01) and between the Listening and the students’ comprehension scores and their academic
the Listening-Note Taking groups (in favor of the latter grade point averages are presented in Table 8.
one) (p<0.01). In other words, scores that the students Table 8 indicated that there was a positive-way relation
who took notes during listening received from the (even if it was weak) between the students’
Comprehension Achievement Test were higher than comprehension scores and their academic grade point
scores of the students who just read and took the exam, averages (p<0.05). This finding revealed that there was a
586 Educ. Res. Rev.

Table 7. Descriptive statistics regarding academic point averages and comprehension achievement
scores.

Variable Mean Std. deviation N

Comprehension achievement score 68.47 13.88177 72
Academic grade point average 2.92 0.35368 72

Table 8. Correlation between academic grade point averages and comprehension achievement scores.

Comprehension Academic grade

achievement score point average
*
Pearson correlation 1 0.264
Comprehension achievement
p 0.025
score
N 72 72

Table 9. Analysis of the students’ comprehension scores by the variable of gender (Independent Sample T-Test).

Gender N Mean Std. Deviation t df Sig.

Female 52 70.38 13.85662
Comprehension achievement score 1.920 70 0.059
Male 20 63.50 12.98785

linear proportion between academic grade point averages reading and note taking during listening was more
and comprehension scores. In other words, it showed effective made this study important.
that students with high academic grade points can get In this study, impact of reading and listening skills as
higher scores from the Comprehension Achievement sub-components of note taking on students’
Test. Since distributions of the students to the groups comprehension achievement was investigated as well,
varied in terms of gender, analysis regarding gender was and it was found that there were not any differences
made considering comprehension achievement scores of between comprehension achievement scores of the
the all groups. Distributions of the students’ Reading and Listening groups. This finding can be
comprehension achievement scores by gender are interpreted as that reading and listening skills are not
expressed in Table 9. superior to each other, and students’ reading or listening
According to Table 9, when the scores that the to any informative materials affect their comprehension
students received from the Comprehension Achievement levels in a similar way. Some students can learn better by
Test were analyzed, although the female students’ scores listening while others can learn better by reading even
( X =70.38) were higher than the male students’ scores ( X though none of these two skills is superior to the other.
=63,50), Independent Sample T-Test results showed that This is closely related to the students’ learning styles.
no statistically significant differences were found between The fact that the Reading and Reading-Note Taking
female and male students (p>0.05). groups were similar in terms of their comprehension
achievements asserted that students’ reading a text and
their taking notes after reading this text did not affect their
DISCUSSION comprehension. However, this result was found to be
controversial with some other studies (Faber et al., 2000;
In the study, note taking during reading and note taking Belet, 2005; Tok and Beyazıt, 2007). Some factors such
during listening which are two components of note taking as the text’s being informative and not being too long
skill were handled. A great number of studies related to (640 words), and its being interesting as it was about
note taking during reading (Faber et al., 2000; Badger et childhood years of the famous scientists may have
al., 2001; Hebert et al., 2014; Chang and Ku, 2015) and caused comprehension achievement scores of the
note taking during listening (Çetingöz, 2010; Ahour and Reading and Reading-Note Taking groups to be close.
Bargool, 2015; Zuckerman, 2016; Park, 2019) have been When it was considered with regard to the Listening and
carried out. However, that no studies were found Listening-Note Taking groups, it was seen that note
revealing which of the skills that were note taking during taking during listening affected the students’
 Özçakmak 587

comprehension achievement levels positively. There are When the scores that the students received from the
a lot of studies supporting this finding (Durukan and Comprehension Achievement Test were analyzed,
Maden, 2010; Kocaadam, 2011; Ceran, 2015). The result although the female students’ scores ( X =70.38) were
obtained in our study should be considered based on the
higher than the male students’ scores ( X =63.50),
informative text used. Taking notes during listening may
Independent Sample T-Test results showed that no
not always be more advantageous than listening without
statistically significant differences were found between
taking notes. For instance, the case may be exact
female and male students. In some studies, it was
opposite in a study in which a narrative text is used and
claimed that female students recorded more important
students’ success of note taking during listening and of
ideas than the male students, yet they were less
listening without note taking is compared.
successful than the male students (Hartley, 1976; Daly,
When the results obtained in our study were
1983). However, in many studies (Reddington et al.,
considered with regard to Reading-Note Taking and
2015; Morehead et al., 2019), it was revealed that
Listening-Note Taking, it was revealed that note taking
females took notes more effectively than males. On the
during listening affected comprehension achievement
other hand, there are also some studies (Rahmani and
more compared to note taking during reading. The
Sadeghi, 2011; White, 2017) suggesting that there are no
reason may be the fact that taking notes while listening to
significant differences between female and male students
a lesson has certain advantages compared to taking
with regard to note taking success.
notes while reading a material. While note taking during
listening is simultaneous with the text, note taking during
reading requires students to go between skills of reading
Limitations
and note taking (Kiewra, 1991). In other words, while
note taking during listening is formed in one step, note
In our study, an informative text was used. It is possible
taking during reading necessitates two steps. In a study
to obtain different results by using narrative or
carried out by Riley and Dyer (1979), a text containing
argumentative texts. Furthermore, length of the text used
2.000 words was read by a group of participants while it
in the study was 640 words. Conducting the study with
was listened by another group of participants. Both
longer or shorter texts may result in different findings.
groups were split into two groups within themselves as
the group taking notes and the group not taking notes. As
a result of that study, it was found that note taking
Implications
provided some advantages for the listeners, yet it did not
cause any differences for the readers.
Our study which was carried out by using an informative
In our study, it was found that there was a positive
text is not generalizable for other types of texts.
weak relation between the students’ comprehension
Therefore, different academic studies can be conducted
scores and their academic grade point averages. This
on the impact of note taking on narrative and
proved that there was a linear proportion between the
argumentative texts in terms of note taking during reading
students’ academic grade point averages and their
and note taking during listening. In the current study, an
comprehension scores. In other words, it was inferred
informative text containing 640 words and 7 paragraphs
that the possibility of receiving a high score from the
was employed. In further studies, the possible effect of
Comprehension Achievement Test by the students who
the text length on note taking and on comprehension
had high academic grade point averages was higher
achievement can be investigated.
compared to the ones who had low academic grade point
In the current study, university students were selected
averages. In his doctoral thesis, Daly (1983) suggested
as the sample. In further studies, different samples such
that there was a high level of positive relation between
as primary school, middle school and high school can be
general grade point average and note taking
chosen. Additionally, impact of note taking styles (reading
achievement. Similarly, in the studies conducted by
and listening) on comprehension achievement can be
Kiewra and Benton (1988) and Luo et al. (2016), it was
investigated in the field of teaching language to the
found that amount of notes taken was closely related to
foreigners.
academic achievement. Although these findings showed
that note taking skill was highly dependent on academic
achievement, academically low or mediocre students’ CONFLICT OF INTERESTS
note taking success can be improved with the help of
well-structured note taking instruction. This is because of The author has not declared any conflict of interests.
the fact that quality of the notes is important rather than
amount of them regardless of the way they were taken
(by listening or by reading). In other words, amount of the REFERENCES
basic units of the text caught is more important than Ahour T, Bargool S (2015). A comparative study on the effects of while
amount of the note taken. Otherwise, verbatim note taking listening note taking and post listening summary writing on Iranian
would be invaluable. EFL learners' listening comprehension. Theory and Practice in
588 Educ. Res. Rev.

Language Studies 5(11):2327-2332. processing ability and notetaking. Contemporary Educational

http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0511.17 Psychology 13(1):33-44. https://doi.org/10.1016/0361-
Badger R, White G, Sutherland P, Haggis T (2001). Note perfect: an 476X(88)90004-5
investigation of how students view taking notes in lectures. System Kiewra KA, Fletcher JJ (1984).The relationship between levels of
29(3):405-417. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(01)00028-8 notetaking and achievement. Human Learning 3:273-280.
Bahrami F, Nosratzadeh H (2017).The effectiveness of note-taking on Kobayashi K (2005). What limits the encoding effect of note-taking? A
reading comprehension of Iranian EFL learners.International Journal meta-analytic examination.Contemporary Educational Psychology
of Applied Linguistics and English Literature 6(7):308-317. 30(2):242-262. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2004.10.001
http://dx.doi.org/10.7575/aiac.ijalel.v.6n.7p.308 Kocaadam D (2011). The effects of listening education with note taking
Belet DS (2005). Effectiveness of learning strategies over reading to listening skills of 7th grade students. Unpublished Master Thesis,
comprehension, writing skills and learners` attitudes towards Turkish Gazi University, Institute of Educational Sciences, Ankara, Turkey.
course. Unpublished Doctoral Thesis, Anadolu University Institute of Luo L, Kiewra KA, Samuelson L (2016). Revising lecture notes: how
Education Science, Eskisehir, Turkey. revision, pauses, and partners affect note taking and achievement.
Boch F, Piolat A (2005). Note taking and learning: A summary of Instructional Science 44(1):45-67.
research. The WAC Journal 16 p. Miles MB, Huberman AM (1994). Qualitative data analysis: An
Bretzing BH, Kulhavy RW, Caterino LC (1987). Notetaking by junior expanded sourcebook. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
high students. Journal of Educational Research 80(6):359-362. Morehead K, Dunlosky J, Rawson KA, Blasiman R, Hollis RB (2019).
https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.1987.10885783 Note-taking habits of 21st century college students: implications for
Brewer EW, Kuhn J (2010). Causal comparative design. In student learning, memory, and achievement. Memory 27(6):807-819.
Encyclopedia of Research Design, USA California: Sage Publication https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2019.1569694
1:124-131. Mueller PA, Oppenheimer DM (2016). Technology and note-taking in
Bui DC, Myerson J (2014). The role of working memory abilities in the classroom, boardroom, hospital room, and courtroom. Trends in
lecture note-taking.Learning and Individual Differences 33:12-22. Neuroscience and Education 5(3):139-145.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2014.05.002 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tine.2016.06.002
Carrier CA, Titus A (1979). The effects of notetaking: A review of Murphy JM (1996). Integrating listening and reading instruction in EAP
studies. Contemporary Educational Psychology 4:299-314. programs. English for Specific Purposes 15(2):105-120.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0361-476X(79)90050-X https://doi.org/10.1016/0889-4906(96)00019-1
Ceran D (2015). The effect of selective listening and listening methods Oğuz A (1999).The effect of lecture note taking on the level of learning
by note-taking on listening comprehension skill of sixth grade and recalling. Unpublished Doctoral Thesis, Hacettepe University
students. Zeitschrift für die Welt der Türken 7(1):205-219. Institute of Educational Science, Ankara, Turkey.
Çetingöz D (2010). University students’ learning processes of note- Olive T, Barbier ML (2017). Processing time and cognitive effort of
taking strategies. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences longhand note taking when reading and summarizing a structured or
2(2):4098-4108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.03.647 linear text. Written Communication 34(2):224-246.
Chang WC, Ku YM (2015). The effects of note-taking skills instruction https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088317699898
on elementary students’ reading. The Journal of Educational Özçakmak H, Sarıgöz O (2019). Evaluation of Turkish teacher
Research 108(4):278-291. candidates’ perception of note taking concept. Educational Research
https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.2014.886175 and Reviews 14(3):78-86. https://doi.org/10.5897/ERR2018.3623
Daly KL (1983). The effect of training college students in listening and Park H (2019). The Effect of L1 and L2 notetaking in academic lecture
not taking skills on learning from a lecture. Unpublished Doctoral listening on listening comprehension and analysis of notes.
Thesis. University of Minnesota, USA. Unpublished Master Thesis. St. Cloud State University, Minnesota,
Durukan E, Maden S (2010). Effects of “taking notes with concept maps” on USA.
the listening skills of primary school students. ODU Journal of Social Piolat A, Olive T, Kellogg RT (2005). Cognitive effort during note taking.
Sciences Research 1(2):63-70. Applied Cognitive Psychology 19(3):291-312.
Faber JE, Morris JD, Lieberman MG (2000). The effect of note taking on https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1086
ninth grade students' comprehension. Reading Psychology Rahmani M, Sadeghi K (2011). Effects of note-taking training on
21(3):257-270. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710050144377 reading comprehension and recall. The Reading Matrix 11(2):116-
Fraenkel JR, Wallen NE, Hyun HH (2011). How to design and evaluate 128.
research in education (8th Ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill. Reddington LA, Peverly ST, Block CJ (2015). An examination of some
Hadwin AF, Kirby JR, Woodhouse RA (1999). Individual differences in of the cognitive and motivation variables related to gender differences
notetaking, summarization, and learning from lectures. Alberta in lecture note-taking. Reading and Writing 28(8):1155-1185.
Journal of Educational Research 45(1):1-17. Riley JD, Dyer J (1979). The effects of note taking while reading or
Hartley J (1976). Lecture handouts and student note‐taking. listening. Literacy Research and Instruction 19(1):51-56.
Programmed Learning and Educational Technology 13(2):58-64. https://doi.org/10.1080/19388077909557514
https://doi.org/10.1080/1355800760130208 Roy D, Brine J, Murasawa F (2014). Usability of English note-taking
Hebert M, Graham S, Rigby-Wills H, Ganson K (2014). Effects of note- applications in a foreign language learning context. Computer
taking and extended writing on expository text comprehension: Who Assisted Language Learning 29(1):1-27.
benefits? Learning Disabilities-A Contemporary Journal 12(1):43-68. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2014.889715
Hill JD, Miller KB (2006). Classroom instruction that works with English Saravani JG (2019). What successful students do to succeed. Dialog on
language learners. Virginia, USA: Association for Supervision and Language Instruction 29(1):44-52.
Curriculum Development. Sutherland P, Badger R, White G (2002). How new students take notes
Jacobs HH (2013). Active literacy across the curriculum: Strategies for at lectures. Journal of Further and Higher Education 26(4):377-388.
reading, writing, speaking, and listening. New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877022000021775
Jansen RS, Lakens D, Ijsselsteijn WA (2017). An integrative review of Tok Ş, Beyazıt N (2007). Effects of summary and note taking strategies
the cognitive costs and benefits of note-taking. Educational Research on reading comprehension and retention. Eurasian Journal of
Review 22:223-233. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2017.10.001 Educational Research 28:113-122.
Karasar N (2016). Bilimsel araştırma yöntemleri: Kavramlar, teknikler, Umaadevi MB, Sasi Rekha S (2019). Note-taking as an effective
ilkeler. Ankara: Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık. strategy in enhancing the listening and writing skills of English
Kiewra KA (1987). Notetaking and review: The research and its language learners. International Journal of English Language,
implications. Instructional Science 16(3):233-249. Literature in Humanities 7(6):1-11.
Kiewra KA (1991). Aids to lecture learning. Educational Psychologist Van Matre NH, Carter JF (1975). The effects of note taking review on
26(1):37-53. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep2601_3 retention of information presented by lecture. (ERIC Document
Kiewra KA, Benton SL (1988). The relationship between information- Reproduction Service No.ED 120 684).
 Özçakmak 589

Walker M, Trafimow D, Bronstein J (2017). The Socratic note taking Witherby AE, Tauber SK (2019). The current status of students’ note-
technique: Addressing the problem of students not engaging with taking: Why and how do students take notes? Journal of Applied
assigned readings before class. Teaching Philosophy 40(3):341-365. Research in Memory and Cognition 8:139-153.
https://dx.doi.org/10.5840/teachphil2017101975 http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pag0000322
White J (2017). The effects of guided and traditional note taking on Zhang Y (2012). The impact of listening strategy on listening
student achievement in an eighth grade social studies class. comprehension. Theory and Practice in Language Studies 2(3):625-
Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation. Milligan College, Elizabethton, 629. https://doi.org/10.4304/tpls.2.3.625-629
Tennessee USA. Zuckerman KL (2016). An Investigation of Note-Taking and Review on
Test Performance. Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation. Columbia
University, New York, USA.