Getting the most from lectures
The following links contain useful advice, strategies and activities which will assist you in getting the most from your lectures:shunmugaraja
· Find out the purpose of lecture courses-n- -1- 1
· Cope with a variety of lecture stylesshunmugaraja
· Your attention spanshunmugaraja
· Improve your note-taking skills
1. Find out the purpose of lecture courses
The lecture is the main vehicle of information on many degree courses. When lecturers write a series of lectures they are setting out what they think are the important aspects of the subject. These views will influence recommended reading, essay topics and tutorial/seminar work. Lecture courses give a frame to your work on that aspect of the subject.
Find out the following:shunmugaraja
What reading is given to supplement the lectures?
· Has a pre-reading schedule been issued?
· Is a handout distributed before/after the lecture?
· Does a course booklet or compendium accompany the series of lectures?
What is the role of the lecture?
· Is it to deliver the main body of information about the subject?
· Or is it to give background knowledge, with the main body of knowledge being presented elsewhere? (If so, find out where!)
What's the link between lectures and seminars, classes or tutorials?
· Perhaps issues raised in lectures are then gone over in seminars, classes or tutorials.
· Lectures and seminars may come closely in time.
· Seminars may move on from issues raised in lectures. (This can mean you won't get much from the seminar if you didn't successfully follow the lecture, or from the next lecture if the seminar gives important information.)
· The subject matter of certain lectures may not be related to any seminar work. (You have to get as much out of each as you can on the one hearing.)
When you have this information, both about your lectures and their relationship to other parts of your course, you will have a clearer idea of where you need to rely on your own skills to make the most of the lectures, and where you have departmental back-up to assist you.
2. Cope with a variety of lecture styles
Structured Lectures
Some lectures will be easy to follow and take notes from. For example:
· The lecturer announces the structure at the beginning. ('I am going to discuss X today, I shall make 4 main points and I shall give 3 illustrations of each').
· The lecturer reminds you frequently of the point s/he has reached in the talk.
· The lecturer gives 'signposts' to highlight structure. ('My next point...'; 'I shall now discuss...'; 'On the other hand...'; 'Finally...').
· The lecturer pauses between points to let you re-focus your attention and to let you catch up with notes.
· The lecturer does not digress from the main points.
· The lecturer makes sure that everyone is following.
· The lecturer illustrates the talk with handouts/ diagrams.
Unstructured Lectures
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Some lectures will not be so clearly signposted. You will have to pull the structure together for yourself.
Listen for the 'signposting' words which underpin all linguistic accounts:
· Transition words/phrases that signal a new aspect ('secondly'; 'my next point is'; 'others have argued that'; 'turning now to'; 'on the other hand').
· Words/phrases that signa
l an illustration ('an example of this'; 'this is seen when'; 'evidence for this is found').
· Words/phrases that signal a recap ('summarising what I have said'; 'what this amounts to is'; 'the position we have arrived at is').
· 
Your Notes
Mark your notes appropriately:
· Take a new line and number each new point.
· Give an 'e.g.' for illustrations.
· Write 'summary' to introduce a recapitulation.
Ensure your notes mark the path the lecturer is following.
When a lecturer digresses (perhaps to pursue a separate line of enquiry, perhaps in response to a question from someone in the audience) continue taking notes, but put this whole piece into brackets. That way you will know afterwards it was an aside from the main structure of the lecture.
Speaking Styles
Every lecturer has a personal speaking style. Get used to different lecturers' styles and adapt your note-taking strategies accordingly:
· If a lecturer tends to start slowly and then fit a lot of information in at the end, make sure you keep your concentration going for that final burst of intense note-taking.
· If a lecturer talks very quickly, try to develop your own shorthand (see Step 4) so that you can keep up.
· If a lecturer talks rather slowly, don't let your concentration drift - consciously remind yourself to keep focused on the topic.
· If you can't hear the lecturer speak, then you need to tell him/her!
3. Your attention span
The problem
Much research has been done on listeners' attention span. Here are some of the findings:
· Listeners' attention starts to drop after the first 15 minutes.
· Attention is affected by room temperature, stuffiness, time of day, extraneous noise.
· People differ in the rate of decline of attention span.
Attention can be helped by:
· short breaks to re-focus concentration
· being asked a question, or set a problem, which makes passive listeners into active thinkers
However:
· the overall drift is downwards
What you can do
When you realise your concentration is dropping:
· slightly change your position; or raise your head and look around; even close your eyes and relax for a very short time - actions like this will help to refresh and re-focus you.
When you realise you've missed a bit of the lecture:
· write a reminder in your notes, and check with a fellow-student after the lecture.
As you listen to a lecture develop an awareness of its shape:
· when you recognise that what is coming up mainly fills out something already said make your notes shorter and less detailed so that you refresh your concentration for the next major point. (N.B. Check later with someone else just in case you did miss anything significant!)
During a concentration 'low':
· use all your writing abbreviation skills to get information down without much selection or processing. It isn't the best way to take notes, but at these points in the lecture it may be all you can manage.
Above all, when you hit a low concentration moment:
· recognise it for what it is; take restorative action; don't give up on the lecture!
4. Improve your note-taking skills
Taking notes from an oral delivery - a speech or a lecture - is a complex process. You can't write down everything that is said, so you have to process the information to extract the main features, write these down quickly enough to be able then to process the next pieces of information, write these down quickly enough...and so on.
Review and amplify your notes
It is important that you review your notes as soon after the lecture as you can. Research has shown that students who do this tend to retain more information for longer than students who do not. Speedy review will also enable you to clarify any cryptic or obscure parts in your notes, as you will be able to remember the lecture well enough to recall the information, or to compare notes with a colleague.
Some students find it helpful to re-write their lecture notes very soon after the lecture. This can help you to get your notes into a form that you know you will be able to make sense of later. Also, since lecturers often cover so much ground in lectures, you may find it necessary to amplify your notes with a more detailed account of information to which the lecturer made only passing reference.
Above all, don't just take lecture notes and file them away afterwards. They are part of the working documents for your course and as such will continue to be useful to you, both in the course you are studying and insofar as they shed light on later courses that you will be taking.
How to improve your listening skills
The problem about recalling the spoken word is that it passes by so quickly: unlike written material it cannot be read and re-read. So good recall of spoken material depends first on good 'listening skills'. If you have any doubts about your listening skills, try these two exercises using a tape recorder.
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