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EPISODE · Oct 26, 2026 · 11 MIN

Why Your Notes Aren't Helping You Learn

from Closed Stacks: Read Better, Remember More · host Closed Stacks

In this video, I look at how note-taking affects memory, understanding, and the way we process information. The real value of notes may not be storing information but the mental processing we do when we take them.Uploaded 19-07-26Further reading:Mueller, P., Oppenheimer, D.M. (2014) The pen is mightier than the keyboard: advantages of longhand over laptop note taking. Morehead, K., Dunlosky, J., and Rawson, K. A. (2019). How much mightier is the pen than the keyboard for note-taking? A replication and extension of Mueller and Oppenheimer (2014). Educational Psychology Review, 31, 753–780.Voyer, D., Ronis, S. T., and Byers, N. (2022). The effect of notetaking method on academic performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Contemporary Educational Psychology.Sparrow, B., Liu, J., and Wegner, D. M. (2011). Google effects on memory: Cognitive consequences of having information at our fingertips. Science, 333(6043), 776–778.Fiorella, L., and Mayer, R. E. (2015). Learning as a Generative Activity: Eight Learning Strategies That Promote Understanding. Cambridge University Press.Chi, M. T. H., de Leeuw, N., Chiu, M. H., and LaVancher, C. (1994). Eliciting self-explanations improves understanding. Cognitive Science, 18(3), 439–477. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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