An Assessment of Retention and Depth of Processing Associated with Notetaking Using Traditional Pencil and Paper and an On-line Notepad during Computer-Delivered Instruction.

This study examined the roles which note-taking method (eithctr pencil and paper or an online computer notepad) and style (verbatim, paraphrasing, etc.) play in retention and depth of processing during computer-delivered instruction. Participants were 112 junior and senior undergraduates from a southern Minnesota university whose major was computer and information science. They were asked to view modules from a tutorial and take notes using e:ther paper and pencil or an online computer notepad. Thirty-two idea units ( ingle complete ideas or blocks of information) were selected from the four modules and used as a basis for assessing notes. A posttest and an exit questionnaire were administered. The study found that: (1) there was a difference in total posttest scores between the control group which took no notes and the treatment group which took notes online. The difference, which supports online notetaking, appeared to be due to the way the control and online notetakers answered the factual-type questions on the posttest; (2) the type of notes taken did not affect the overall retention of information; (3) the method used to take notes and the type of notes taken did not affect the number of idea units recorded by the subjects; (4) a difference in recall scores was found between the verbatim and both the own-style and paraphrase notetakers, supporting the verbatim notetakers; and (5) there was a positive correlation between the recall scores and total posttest scores of the subjects. (Contains 31 references.) (Author/AEF) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) O This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. O Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction qualki. Points of view or opinions stated in this C1 document do not necessarily represent 00 official OERI position or policy