Note taking the use of note taking skill in english listening

ABSTRACT The purpose of the graduation paper is to study the use of note-taking of the second-year English major students at ThuongMai University The author has also cultivated in his mind the idea of providing the students with a rich source of information and future research priorities concerning the theme "the use of notetaking skill in English listening" Methodologically, note-taking studies were researched by questionnaire survey and interviewing students The search notes focused on the theory underlying note-taking and the findings of the previous studies Note-taking performs a crucial function in improving English listening skill ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor Mrs Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc for her continuous support for my study, for her patience, 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 and English Faculty of ThuongMai University for creating favorable conditions for me to my graduation paper I’d like to send my sincere to my family for their support during the development of this graduation paper 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 Rationale 1.2 Previous studies 1.3 Aims of study 1.4 Research subjects .3 1.5 The scope of study 1.6 Research Methology 1.7 Organization of the study Chapter 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 2.1 Listening comprehension 2.1.1 Definition of Listening comprehension .5 2.2 Note-taking 2.2.1 Definition of Note-taking 2.2.2 The importance of note-taking while listening 2.2.3 Effective note-taking techniques while listening 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 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 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS →: to + : add : Lead to LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURE Table 1: English listening level of second-year English major at ThuongMai University 16 Table 2: Frequency of taking note while listening to English of the second-year English student majors of ThuongMai University .18 Table 3: Frequency of students in trying to write down everything tape or lecturers said .19 Table 4: Frequency of students in using symbols and abbreviations to take notes while listening to English 19 Table 5: Students using mind map in their notes .21 Table 6: Frequency of students in leaving a space between entries to fill in it missing information while taking note 22 Table 7: Frequency of students in using two-column method to take notes 23 Table 8: Frequency of students in reviewing and editing your notes after listening 24 Table 9: Self-rate note-taking skill in English listening skill of students 26 Y Diagram 1: English listening level of second-year English majors at ThuongMai University 17 Diagram 2: Frequency of taking note while listening to English of the secondyear English student majors of ThuongMai University .18 Diagram 3: Frequency of students in using symbols and abbreviations to take notes while listening to English 20 Diagram 4: Frequency of students in using mind map to take notes 21 Diagram 5: Frequency of students in leaving a space between entries to fill in it missing information while taking note 22 Diagram 6: Frequency of students in using two-column method to take notes .24 Diagram 7: Frequency of students in reviewing and editing your notes after listening .25 Diagram 8: Self-rate note-taking skill in English listening of students .26 Figure 1: Prestyn Kylie (2015, April19) some abbreviations for taking note 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 Chapter 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 1.1 Rationale Today, English is the most commonly used language in the world It is the language of science, technology, technology, commerce and information across the globe English has become a compulsory subject in most schools in Vietnam, especially in universities During the course of learning English at Thuong Mai University, especially in the field of listening in the second year, I myself discovered 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, speak before they read, and read before they write From this point of view, the importance of teaching listening can well be seen and it is now regarded the first and foremost skill to be acquired in learning a new language In fact, English Faculty of ThuongMai University offers listening courses to all the students of English Faculty However, the second-year students are not professional listeners, so obviously they not have a wide knowledge about note-taking skill Furthermore, they not know how to take note fast, what to note, etc They tend to write as much as they can This not only takes long time but also go too far from the main idea Sometimes, they note the less important information and leave behind the main purposes of the speaker All of problems above lead to an unexpected result Together with many others skills in listening skill, note-taking plays very important role because this stage supplements memory to have a better listening skill However, note-taking is not a simple skill It requires very high requirements Students have to analyze, choose information and note down while listening for speaker Besides, the speed of speaking is faster than the speed 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 ThuongMai University All the above reasons have inspired me to choose the subject: A study on the use of note-taking skill in listening skill of the second-year English majors at ThuongMai 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 in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts by Gary E.Meacher (May, 2012) This thesis offers a framework for the development of Notable He supposed that notable is a versatile tool that functions in varied note-taking environments Considerations for different learning styles and activities that aid in information retention and recall are uniquely utilized throughout the application Ethnographic research was conducted on middle school students to gain insight into their learning environments, 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 resource for both students and instructors to gain insight into what education research reveals about note-taking He said that note-taking is an acquired skill that improves student learning and retention of information in a variety of domains and subjects Importantly, comprehension and production processes (which both require working memory resources) are needed simultaneously for optimal learning to occur, making effective note-taking difficult to accomplish The methods of assessment for notes can be relatively subjective or inconsistent from one study to the next, which makes it difficult to uniformly capture what makes for 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 year English majors in improving note-taking skill in listening class  To suggest some techniques to improve note-taking skill of the secondyear English majors of ThuongMai University 1.4 Research subjects  How to take note while listening to English by the second year English majors 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 taking skill in listening of the second year English majors at ThuongMai University and some techniques to improve note-taking skill for them The study limits itself at presenting how to take note while English listening of the second-year English majors of ThuongMai University Moreover, I concentrate on improving note taking 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 the use of note-taking skill in listening skill of the second-year English majors at Thuong Mai University and suggested solutions" the following methods are used in the research process:  Firstly, interviews 300 second-year English majors of ThuongMai University  Secondly, survey questionnaires for 300 second-year English students Major of ThuongMai University  Finally, in order to accomplish the graduation paper, a flexible combination of methods is used, which embraces collection, categorizing and analyzing of data, and description of result CHAPTER 4: SOME SUGGESTED TECHNIQUES If you want to increase the effectiveness of your studying and performance on English exams, it's imperative to learn how to take good notes Effective notetaking is a key element of the formula for success in English listening In the following, the fourth chapter aims to provide students some helpful techniques to take note effectively and fast while listening to English 4.1 Improve English listening skill Improving English listening skill is an effective way to improve note-taking skill while English listening Because when the students have a good listening skill, you will catch up with the speed of the lecturers and tapes, find out the key words of listening lessons and get the listening content So it is easier for the students to take notes In order to improve English listening skill, I show some following tips for the students:  Spend hours and hours listening to people speaking English and turn boring time into listening time Listen to things that interest you Because if you listen to something you not like, it's going to be hard for you to continue and you'll get bored and stop  Improve and expand your English vocabulary If you feel like almost everything you listen to is too difficult to understand, your vocabulary is probably very small That’s why you have trouble to understand most English listening content In this case, I recommend that, other than listening to English, you also read in English to quickly learn words and phrases commonly used in English listening lessons If you already know a lot of common words, and the main reason of your trouble understanding is that you’re not good at recognizing words spoken quickly You can simply focus on listening to a lot of English  Improve your English grammar Reading helps you to see how the grammar works Choose something that you are interested in and read about it One of the best ways to improve your grammar is to solve as many exercises as possible  Improve your English pronunciation When you learn a new word, learn how to pronounce it correctly Try recording your speech (using your smartphone or tablet) and making a note of specific aspects you’d like to improve You could find a clip of someone speaking English and then record yourself saying the same words Then you can compare the two and see what you did differently, and try again 4.2 Use symbols and abbreviations A system of note-taking abbreviations, acronym and symbols has to be gradually formed Using acknowledged symbols or creating own symbols to stand for longer information saves the time and makes it much easier to grasp information and better listening The following are some examples for abbreviations and symbols for notetaking:  Abbreviation: An abbreviation (from Latin brevi³re → brevis meaning “short”) is a shortened form of a word or phrase used mainly in writing to represent the complete form It usually has a full-stop at the end Compared with writing down the whole words, abbreviation save a lot of time in note taking process Examples: Lib For Library Abbr for abbreviation Approx for approximate Figure 4: List of Abbreviations  Acronym: An acronym (from Latin acro- meaning “beginning” + -onym meaning “word, name”) is a pronounceable word formed mostly (but not always) from the initial letters of a descriptive name or title Examples: • radar stands for radio detecting and ranging • ASAP stands for as soon as possible The term initial uses a similar method, but the word is pronounced letter by letter Examples: • BBC stands for British Broadcasting Corporation • USA stands for United States of America • PM stands for Prime Minister • SARS stands for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome • OPHA stands for Older People’s Health Association • APEC stands for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Group) Figure 5: List of Internet Acronyms  Symbols: Symbols are another device which is very useful to take notes The ease of drawing them to represent a meaning can save a lot of time Many forms of using symbols are involved in the note taking system Using letters or numbers and their combinations to represent words with similar pronunciation Example: b4 = before = to Notes are just the assistance to recall memory and there is no need and impossible to write down every single detail of the information So just write some keys words, numbers and information that contribute to the recall of the information flow Last but not least, a well-structured note greatly helps to get a clear idea about the information flows and the relationships among them Instead of writing everything in only one paragraph, dividing notes into chunks and marking the relatively independent information out will ease much pressure of delivery task 4.3 Use Mind Maps Mind maps or spider diagrams are diagrams with the main theme in the central, with key ideas linked as branches around the theme The lines show the links between ideas Mind maps are useful for visual learners who struggle with studying from notes and help you remember and connect relationships between topics Benefits of Mind Map: Mind map serves several purposes for learners:  Helping students brainstorm and generate new ideas  Encouraging students to discover new concepts and the propositions that connect them  Allowing students to more clearly communicate ideas, thoughts and information  Helping students integrate new concepts with older concepts  Enabling students to gain enhanced knowledge of any topic and evaluate the information An example of a mind map is shown here: Figure 6: An example of a mind map Concept maps can easily become cluttered Use both facing pages of an open A4 note book to set out your concept map and allow plenty of space for adding ideas and symbols  Begin in the middle of the page and add ideas on branches that radiate from the central idea or from previous branches  Arrows and words can be used to show links between parts of the concept map  Color and symbols are important parts of concept maps, helping illustrate ideas and triggering your own thoughts 4.4 Use Cornell method to take notes The Cornell note-taking method uses a two-column approach This method helps students organize notes into easily digestible summaries This method is effective because the main points, details, study cues, and summary are all written in one place The left column takes up no more than a third of the page and is often referred to as the “cue” or “recall” column The right column (about two-thirds of the page) is used for taking notes using any of the methods described above or a combination of them After class or completing the listening, review your notes and write the key ideas and concepts or questions in the left column You may also include a summary box at the bottom of the page, in which to write a summary of English listening content in your own words An example of the Cornell is shown here: Figure 7: An example of the Cornell note-taking method 4.5 Other techniques 4.5.1 Make clear and accurate notes Make sure to take legible and accurate notes because students are rarely to remember the key details after class is end Regularly, student think that they will be remember everything, so they neglect to jot down specific details and only find later that they can't recall what it was they needed to remember Students should keep the notes to review the primary point, the details and the concept that they didn't fully comprehend during the lecture 4.5.2 Use Colors You should use color to highlight major sections and main points This may take a little bit longer but it will be useful for your notes When you are taking notes, change the color of your pen! Don't write in blue or black ink You can also use different colors to classify and link concepts or information by topic Writing in color will help you retain 50% - 80% more of the information without reading it a second time (also highlight in purple) However, don’t focus too much on color coding when you’re in the lecture It requires time and concentration, so it’s more useful to most of the highlighting and underlining when you’re revising your notes later on Figure 8: Using different colors to take notes 4.5.3 Write phrases, not full sentences Only record the key words that you need to get the idea of the point made Skip words like “the” and “a” that don’t add additional meaning to the lecture content Retain key technical or discipline-specific terms 4.5.4 Take notes in your own words Paraphrase what you hear so it makes sense to you, it helps you to understand and remember what you hear Try to paraphrase everything except where information needs to be noted exactly If you miss something, write key words, skip a few spaces, and get the information later Leave a space on the page for your own notes and comments 4.5.4 Organize your notes It is better if you have the time to so, right after class Notes organized by date, class, and subject make it easier to locate specific lecture details It is also a good idea to keep information from different dates and classes separated or to begin each class with a new piece of paper 4.5.5 Underline, circle your notes Underline, circle or otherwise identify key information, examples, definitions, or other important materials Devise your own marking code to indicate each type 4.5.6 Think while you take note This means you can’t write down every word your lecture or tape says If you try to transcribe your teacher’s lecture, you have no time for thinking about what you’re writing and how it fits together, and you inevitably fall behind As you listen and write, think about what information is most likely to be of use later, whether on a test, in an essay, or in completing a project Focus on points that directly relate to your listening lesson And during class, listen for verbal cues from your lecturer that indicate important information CONCLUSION In the English listening process, most of the 2nd year English majors have taken notes but we can see from the results that they not know how to take notes reasonably and understandably Firstly, most of the students have been slow note takers It means that they are cannot catch up with the information which speakers say If students are not fast enough to note which the speakers say they will miss the information and note nothing at all Secondly, their notes are not legibility, and sometimes he or she used shorthand or abbreviation to take notes but their notes are not clear, so they understand nothing about what the speakers say Finally, they don’t know how to apply note-taking techniques effectively and how to organize their notes They always try to write down everything they listen from the lectures or tapes My graduation paper show them what they should to take notes effectively in English listening lessons and give them some note-taking techniques which helps the second-year English majors apply easily The findings of this study are practically significant for students and researcher For students, because note-taking is a strong strategy which they may optimize their listening skill For the researcher, the results of the research show the reality of the use of note-taking while listening to English by the second-year students of the English Faculty of ThuongMai University, from which, I can suggest some techniques to improve note-taking skill while listening to English for students in chapter REFERENCES  Lundsteen, Sara W (1979) Listening – It’s Impact on Reading and the Other Language Arts National Council of Teachers of English Urbana Illinois  Bloomfield, L (1942) Outline guide for the practical study of foreign languages Baltimore: Linguistic Society of America, Waverly Press  Howatt, A & Dakin, J.(1974) Language laboratory materials, ed.J.P.B.Allen, S.P.B Allen, and S.P.Corder  J Rubin (Eds.), Learner strategies in language learning (pp 133–144) Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice/Hall International  Purdy,M.(1991).What is Listening? In D Borisoff, & M.Purdy, (Eds.), Listening in Everyday Life: A Personal and Professional Approach (3-19) Lanham: University Press of America  Carroll, J.B.(1993).Human Cognitive Abilities A survey of factor analytic studies Cambridge: Cambridge University Press  Coakley,C.G., & Wolvin, A.D.(1986) Listening in the Native Language, In B H  O‟Malley, J & Chamot, A U.(1989).Listening Comprehension Strategies in Second Language Acquisition Applied Linguistics, 10(4): 418-437  Imhof, M (1998).What makes a Good Listener? Listening Behavior in Instructional Settings International Journal of Listening, 13, 81-105  Rost, M (202) Teaching and Researching Listening Malaysia, Pearson Education  Shelley O'Hara, Improving Your Study Skills: Study Smart, Study Less Wiley, 2005  Walter Pauk and Ross J.Q Owens, How to Study in College, 11th ed Cengage, 2013  Castello, M and C Monereo, 2005.Students's Note-taking As a Knowledge construction Tool Educational Studies in Language and Literature, 5(3): 265-285  Kathleen T McWhorter, Successful College Writing, 4th ed Bedford/St Martin's, 2010  K Dietsche, in 2000 –DGJ, My technical writing studentVivinette  Berkeley College A System for Effective Listening and Notetaking 12 October 2000  Pauk, Walter How to Study in College (1984 and 1997) Houghton Mifflin Co Boston, MA  University of Texas at Austin Making the Grade 101 (27 February 1998) 20 October 2000  Wallace Bruce Clift, Jr., Symbols of Transformation in Dreams, 1984  Jones,R, Conference Interpreting Explained, St.Jerome Publishing, 2002  Monereo, C., The peer review process as an opportunity for learning (vol 37, pg 665, 2014)  George Dudycha, professor of psychology at Wittenberg College states, Stimulate recall (179-180)  Fisher, J., & Harris, M (1994) "Effect of note-taking preference and type of notes taken on memory," Part 2, Psychological Reports, 35 (1)  McKeachie, W (1994) Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers Lexington, MA : D.C Heath  Boyle, J R & Weishaar, M (2001) The effects of strategic note taking on the recall and comprehension of lecture information for high school students with learning disabilities, Learning Disabilities Research & Practice  Boyle, J.R (2001) Enhancing the Note-Taking Skills of Students with Mild Disabilities Intervention in School and Clinic Volume 36, pp.221-224  Tony Buzan (2012), “Modern mind mapping for smarter thinking”  Ann Dillon, Get Connected: Study Skills: Study Skills, Reading, and Writing Thomson Wadsworth, 2008  Kathleen T McWhorter, Successful College Writing, 4th ed Bedford/St Martin's, 2010  Pauk, W (1989) The Cornell Note-taking Technique The Counseling and Career Center, Brigham Young University Retrieved April 12, 2004 APPENDIX SURVEY QUESTIONAIRE There are four answers A, B, C, D for each question Circle the answer which you agree with: Question 1: How you rate your English listening? A Very good B Quite good C Good D Normal E Bad Question 2: How often you take notes in listening lessons? A Very frequently B Frequently C Occasionally D Rarely or never Question 3: How often you try to write down everything you listen? A Very frequently B Frequently C Occasionally D Rarely or never Question 4: How often you use abbreviations and symbols for some words? A Very frequently B Frequently C Occasionally D Rarely or never Question 5: How often you use mind map to take notes? A Very frequently B Frequently C Occasionally D Rarely or never Question 6: How often you leave a space between entries so that you can fill in missing information? A Very frequently B Frequently C Occasionally D Rarely or never Question 7: How often you use two-column method to take notes? A Very frequently B Frequently C Occasionally D Rarely or never Question 8: How often you review and edit your notes after listening? A Very frequently B Frequently C Occasionally D Rarely or never Question 9: How you rate your note-taking skill in English listening? E A Very good F B Quite good G C Good H D Medium I.E Bad INTERVIEW Students’ attitude toward listening skill Question 1: “Listening skill is one of the most essential and important skills for English learners”, what is your opinion about this viewpoint? Question 2: Do you have any tips or suggestions to share the learners to improve their listening skill? Students’ attitude toward note-taking skill Question 2: "Note is an effective way for students to capture and remember listening content, achieving better listening performance", what is your opinion about this viewpoint? Question 3: Which techniques you use to take notes while listening to English? How you use them? Question 4: Do you have any tips or suggestions to share the learners to improve their note-taking skill? ... note- taking skill in listening skill by second year English majors in improving note- taking skill in listening class  To suggest some techniques to improve note- taking skill of the secondyear English. .. listening and note taking skill in listening skill, types of listening, and the roles of note taking skill in listening skill  Chapter 3: DATA ANALYSIS – shows the results of the survey and... their listening skill For the researcher, the results of the research show the reality of the use of note- taking while listening to English by the second-year students of the English Faculty of