10 Nov The advantages of handwritten notes vs. digital
It’s becoming more and more common to see laptops and tablets dotted around the table in business meetings, and many students bring them into lectures. It seems that many people prefer to take notes digitally rather than by hand, but despite its advantages, this isn’t necessarily the best way.
In a world where we are becoming more reliant on our smart phones, tablets and laptops, are we set to see the death of good old pen and paper? With the influx of note-taking apps and cloud storage devices, some seem to find writing notes digitally to be the best solution, but we’re not so sure…
Digital notes: thorough, fast and saved forever
Laptops, smartphones and tablets can be used to enhance your note-taking, allowing you to engage in activities online, collaborate more easily on papers and projects, and access, store and duplicate information quickly.
Rushed hand-written notes can be messy and difficult to decipher. With digital notes it’s far quicker and easier to correct typos and extend shorthand notes – plus there’s no need to tidy up by writing out a whole new document by hand.
Digital notes can be accessed and stored efficiently. Provided you have access to the Internet and a suitable note-taking app, you can back up your notes online.
Notes of this kind are easily searchable, can be shared with others, and filed away without a ring binder in sight.
Handwritten notes: personal, efficient and more effective for information retention
Digital notes aren’t necessarily the best note-taking method; there is evidence that suggests they may not be as effective as they seem. A study conducted by Mueller and Oppenheimer found that people retain and remember information better from handwritten notes.
Within an academic setting, it is still debated whether students should be allowed to bring their laptops into a classroom or not. In an analysis of student notes, Mueller and Oppenheimer’s study showed that laptop-note-takers tended to transcribe much of a lecture word for word. They suspected that this was because those who type notes were inclined to transcribe lectures, rather than process them. The same goes in business meetings – if you insist on typing every word you’re less likely to process the information or engage in the meeting.
Those who write out notes by hand tend to have stronger conceptual understanding, and are more successful in applying and integrating material. Writing by hand is slower and more cumbersome, and individuals cannot possibly write down every word in a lecture or meeting – but this works to your advantage. Writing by hand allows you to listen, digest, and summarise information far more succinctly using your own words.
Individuals who use laptops take notes in a fairly mindless and repetitive fashion, failing to effectively analyse information in the brain. This monotonous typing fails to promote a meaningful understanding of the content being written down, meaning it is likely to be forgotten.
Technology does not always foster learning
There is no denying that technology is helping to shape the world in which we live, often in positive and dynamic ways. The research proposed by Mueller and Oppenheimer illustrates, however, that even when technology allows us to do more, it does not necessarily produce any benefits.
Learning – both in a professional and academic sense – involves more than the receipt and regurgitation of information. If we want to evaluate evidence, thinking critically and analytically about specific content, we need to encourage the cognitive processes that underlie these abilities – and we can do this through writing by hand.
Put pen to paper with NoteShel
Inspired by Mueller and Oppenheimer’s findings? Why not perfect your handwritten note-taking strategy with our stylish post-it note holder and pen? NoteShel is the ideal note-writing solution at work, when studying, and on the go.
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