The role of cognitive psychology in the understanding and production
of texts is to analyze not only the result of these activities (what has been
understood or produced), but also the activity itself (the mental operations and
knowledge involved in understanding and writing). To date, note taking has
not been widely studied because of its functional complexity and the need to
develop methods in order to carry out such studies (Piolat, Olive & Kellogg,
2005). This functional complexity also accounts for the lack of specific note
taking training in schools and universities. Teaching is limited to the production
of summary texts involving the sorting, ranking, and reformulation of
what the student has read or heard. Faced with the need to take notes, students
develop their own methods and thereby become aware of the consequences
and contradictions in their choices (Boch, 2001).
Learning to take notes well undoubtedly takes as much time as learning
to write in a relatively experienced way (at least fifteen years according to
Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1991). Taking into account the different functional
Note Taking and Learning: A Summary of Research 111
aspects of note taking that have been mentioned, we believe learning to take
notes involves the development of a range of skills that take several years to
master. The aim of teaching note taking would be to help students progress not
more quickly but in a way that their skills in using this indispensable tool are
improved.