Taking notes during lectures improves learning outcomes compared with not taking notes.

Is it true that taking notes during lectures improves learning outcomes compared with not taking notes?

Partly. The retrieved studies address narrower variants of note-taking (guided notes, partial notes, longhand vs digital, collaborative notes) rather than a clean comparison of taking notes versus not taking notes. Some report benefits for note-taking or guided notes, while one small study and an EFL listening study found no significant advantage.

Verdict: CONTESTED PARTIAL · 5 sources for, 2 against · Last checked 3 Oct 2026

The private library was unavailable for some searches in this check. Missing library results are not evidence against the claim.

Kim, H. (2018). Impact of slide-based lectures on undergraduate students' learning: Mixed effects of accessibility to slides, differences in note-taking, and memory term. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2018.04.004

Machida, K., Chin, M., & Johnson, K. (2018). The provision of partial notes is not associated with improved student attention in lectures or subsequent understanding of the lecture material. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787417723241

A Meta-Analytic Review of Guided Notes. (2009). doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1353/etc.0.0066

Exploring the impact of note taking methods on cognitive function among university students - PMC Lock. (n.d.). pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-025-07593-x

The Effects of Collaborative Note-Taking in Flipped Learning Contexts. (2020). ssrn.com. https://ssrn.com/abstract=3511768

The effects of guided notes on pre-lecture quiz scores in introductory psychology. (2016). gateway.proquest.com. http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&res_dat=xri:pqm&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:10041802

The Effect of Item Modality and Note-taking on EFL Learners’ Performance on a Listening Test. (2015). doi.org. https://doi.org/10.22054/ilt.2015.7227