Browning’s Implementation of Cornell Notes: Why the Change?

To complete Cornell notes, students organize their notes with a vertical lines close to the left side of the page and a horizontal line near the bottom of the page. The left section is for concepts, the right section for content, and the bottom section for reflection.

The school has begun to implement a new system of notetaking called Cornell Notes (sometimes referred to as Two-Column Notes) in an effort to assist students in more effectively retaining information. 

“If you are actively taking Cornell notes when you're reading, I think you become a better reader because it gives your reading a purpose,” Grade 8-12 Learning Specialist Kristen Sheppard said. “You are literally being a detective as you read asking yourself: What are the main ideas? What are the details that back up those main ideas?”

The Cornell style of note taking involves the separation of students’ notebook paper into three sections: concepts, content, and reflection. The purpose of this organization is to enable students to pull key ideas out of the class, such as formulas, philosophies, and essential questions, while simultaneously allowing students to include the intricate details of their study. 

“You're making notes for yourself in a way that your brain can organize information effectively, and then also synthesize or summarize the information effectively,” Assistant Head of School and Director of Teaching and Learning Danielle Passno said. “And so that's a strategy we want every single student to graduate with so that they are effective learners.”

The two main columns of concepts and content additionally facilitate efficient studying as students can fold the notebook page, allowing them to test themselves in preparation for assessments. The smaller reflection row at the bottom of the notebook page provides a concise summary of  the topic. 

 “All you have to do is just go back and quiz yourself on all your main ideas and study old tests,” Ms. Sheppard said. “Those two, if you have Cornell notes and if you have your Cornell notes from your class work and readings and you've saved all your old tests and quizzes, then you really don't have to do any additional prepping before the exams.”

According to the Cornell University Alumni Site, the style of note-taking was developed by education professor Walter Pauk in the 1950s. Pauk’s 1962 book on the technique, How to Study in College, expanded the use of Cornell notes on the national level. In the book, Pauk emphasizes the importance of learning through questions, noting: “Writing questions helps clarify meanings, reveal relationships, establish continuity, and strengthen memory.” 

Pauk’s notes method has been featured in Browning’s curriculum in previous years, but over the summer of 2023, a team of teachers and the school’s learning specialists designed a Cornell notes-focused system. The group created a presentation which was then given in opening faculty meetings to 3rd through 12th grade teachers: “And we made it an expectation that this is something teachers should be teaching in their classes,” Ms. Passno said.