1. Listening for
specific details

2.  There are situations in real life where we listen only for
some specific details and ignore the rest of the entire
message. e.g. weather forecast, announcements in train
stations/airports, … etc.
 Once you have learned to pick out the main idea in a
lecture, your next step is to note the specific details. You
will need these details later to answer questions on all
types of exams: multiple choice, short answer, and essay.
To listen for and note specific details, it is helpful to notice
how the lecture is organized.

3. Lecture Organization and Note Taking
If the lecture is organized in the standard
way; i.e. if it contains and introduction,
body, and occlusion, listen for and note
the main idea in each of these sections.
The following information help you
decide which specific details you should
write in your notes.

4. 1.
If the introduction to the lecture is a summary of the
previous class session, take note of this. These notes will
be an added reminder of what the lecturer thinks is
important.
2.
If the introduction is just a general introduction or an attention gesture
(a fact, a saying, a story), you don’t need to write it down.
3.
Next, listen for information in the body of the lecture. You will
probably hear the most details in this section. Write down as much
information as you can in your notes, but don’t worry if you can’t get
everything. Put a question mark in the margin and ask questions later.
4.
As you listen to the conclusion, continue to make your notes as
complete as possible. Most conclusions won’t contain any new
information, but be ready in case the instructor has forgotten to include
an important detail earlier and decides to mention it in the conclusion.

5. Four ways to organize your notes:
1. This method of note taking is useful when the main points and details are
long phrases and sentences.
Main point
Detail
Detail
Detail
Main point
Detail
Detail
Detail

6. 2. This method of note taking is most useful when details are symbols,
statistics, single words, or very short phrases.
Main point
Detail
Further detail
Detail
Detail

7. 3. The following method is useful when the lecturer tends to back up and
give specific details on points mentioned earlier in the lecture.
Detail
Further detail
Main point
Detail
Further detail
Main point
Detail
Detail
Detail
Further detail

8. 4. This method is useful when the details recede the main point.
Detail
Detail
Detail
Main point
Detail
Detail
Detail
Main point