Mallory Vila, 18, types her in-class notes on her laptop while Gaby Placido, 21, takes handwritten notes in class.
“I kind of decide to write down things that the teacher says that aren’t in the book or on the slides, like added content to what’s already provided,” said Placido, a UF wildlife ecology and conservation junior.
According to a study, “The Pen is Mightier Than the Keyboard,” published in April by Psychological Science, students like Gaby Placido, who take handwritten notes in class, are more likely to score higher on tests.
The study, which resurfaced at the start of the Fall semester, revealed that students who take handwritten notes can retain and process information better.
Writing down added content and main ideas is key, said Robert Bailey, UF’s supplemental instructions coordinator.
“As the person’s talking, you’re just typing everything they’re saying,” he said, “as opposed to listening actively and saying, ‘OK, that’s important,’ and writing it down.”
Vila, a UF chemistry freshman, said her laptop shortens her note-taking time, but sometimes it hinders her processing abilities.
“It doesn’t give me a chance to actually develop what they’re saying and interpret it,” she said.
Bailey stressed the importance of students writing down the main ideas of the lectures and then going back into their notes, organizing them and adding information from PowerPoints and textbooks.
The Teaching Center, located at Broward Housing, offers workshops and online videos on note-taking, as well as a link to the Cornell Note-taking System, which Bailey said he recommends for students.
[A version of this story ran on page 9 on 9/8/2014 under the headline "Study: handwritten notes better for understanding than typed"]
