NOTE MAKING STRATEGY FOR GENERAL STUDIES
NOTE MAKING STRATEGY FOR GENERAL STUDIES
Note making is a challenging element for the UPSC exams. It is an art where one has to decide what to add and what not to add. Though it is a lengthy process it is beneficial in many ways. Through note making one converts the language of the book to one’s language. Most aspirants have the question of how to make notes? So, this blog is about note-making strategy for General Studies.
All of us have different perspectives and think differently so each one’s way of making notes will differ, but one can still follow the RCAB method to make effective notes. The abbreviation of RCAB is as follows:
- Revise maximum in minimum time
- Consolidate everything in one place
- Align what you read to the exam
- Build your answer skills
This way of making notes helps one to make short notes from multiple sources and align the content to the exam. Note-making is like the foundation of a house, vital to the structural integrity of the house itself. There is a vast array of subjects so it would be difficult to revise everything at one stake. So, making such notes helps one to revise the entire syllabus in 5-10 minutes. It may seem confusing initially but once the aspirant gets a hang of it, it will be easy to follow.
There are some basic guidelines to note-making as follows:
- Make use of A4 sized blank sheets because registers are a barrier to add notes in between. A4 sheets can be inserted in between when one needs to update the notes.
- It should be rough, with no use of complete sentences or concern for grammar and neat handwriting. A good note-making should be understandable to the one who wrote it. No one makes notes to publish it to other aspirants.
- It can be made precise with the usage of symbols, keywords, flow charts, and tables as these are refection one’s creativity.
- While preparing for an exam, one should always have the syllabus and previous year question paper. The syllabus is vast and one may choose the wrong syllabus and book. So, it is advisable to keep these two components in sight at all times when preparing.
- One should have a common note for both prelims and mains. One integrated note for both but such that you should be able to realize which notes are for prelims and which one is vital to mains.
An aspirant can take two sets of notes i.e. one before prelims and one after prelims. Before prelims, your notes should be more elaborate, whereas after prelims notes should be to the point. One can make digitized notes and integrated notes to make the work easier. Digitized notes can be done for dynamic topics like current affairs, agriculture, cyber-security, etc. through Evernote. Here, the topics should be organized subject-wise, and precise. An index should be created for later reference where all the pending current affairs should be organized issue wise to update it later.
Integrated notes are a combination of all that one has read from basic books to static resources. Maps, diagrams, and flow charts as it makes it easy to remember. Notes should be made point-wise in a brief manner and important dates and names should be highlighted. One should not make instant notes on reading for the first time because reading for a second time helps to decide on the best points. For a topic on Parliament, one must read the static resources, current affairs, consolidate everything and make one note in the end. These are to be done well before Prelims.
After Prelims, there will be some time that can be used to revise and make new notes. First, one must read the existing notes made before prelims to recollect. Then, take fresh pages and make new notes without looking at the previous notes. The points should be condensed and topics should be to the point. Now the final notes with more content would be ready which can be used for periodical revision for mains.
One can make use of it for easier revision and preparation where one can cover more topics in minimum time. This helps in internalizing things easily. It avoids taking a long time to recollect and arrange the answers in exams and avoid tensions. So, follow RCAB to become a topper.
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