Book Notes vs Highlights: Which Is Better for Retention (and How to Use Both) | Chapterly Blog
Book Notes vs Highlights: Which Is Better for Retention (and How to Use Both) Every serious reader eventually faces this question: should I highlight important passages or write notes about them? Both methods feel productive in the moment, but research shows they work very differently when it comes to actually remembering and understanding what you read. Highlighting is fast and easy. Notes require more effort. But easier is not always better for learning, and harder is not always impractical. The truth is that highlighting and note-taking serve different cognitive functions, and the most effective reading practice combines both in a deliberate way. This guide breaks down the science behind each method and shows you how to use them together for maximum retention and understanding. What Highlighting Does for Your Brain Highlighting is the most popular form of active reading, and also the most criticized by learning scientists. The criticism is partly deserved and partly misunderstood. The Problem with Passive Highlighting A landmark study by Dunlosky et al., published in Psychological Science in the Public Interest, rated highlighting as a low-utility learning strategy. The researchers found that students who highlighted textbooks performed no better on tests than students who simply read...