making notes e

8/12/2019 Making Notes e

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/making-notes-e 1/16

W E D N E S D A Y , J U L Y 1 5 , 2 0 0 9

Making notes

This is a very important process. You have millions of books and they

seem intimidating at times.

It's always a good idea to make notes.

First, do not ever make notes in your first reading. I would go for

notes maybe in 2nd or better in 3rd read.

There are many kind of notes that you can make.

1) If you select certain most important topics in your optionals, eg

distt administration, RTI in pub ad, then select the best books for that

topic and write all of that on A4 sized sheets. select such 50 60 topics

from your optionals by looking at the pattern of paper and make the

best notes possible. Initially it seems like a lot of hard work. But it

really helps. I made such notes for about 80-90 topics in Pub ad.

Remember, you can not afford to leave the rest of the syllabus.

because even in the best case scenaro you might get questions outside

this list.

So finish your syllabus thoroughly and these notes will work as addons.

2) Chapter-wise notes- I did this in both psychology and Pub ad.

take an A4 sheet and fold it in between so that it has 2 parts. write

synoptical notes just the gist that is relevant to you. write it in

condensed form so that it doesnt take much space. Also, use

highlighters and red/pink/green pens to highlight imp stuff.

You must be wondering why I a stressing on A4 sheets. They are easy

to handle and you can classify the notes whenever you want. You don't

have to carry a big notebook at the time of exam.

3) Post-it notes-

Suppose you have GS notes from a coaching class. They are good. But

they are huge. Also, you have already spent enough time on optionals

notes. So there's a short cut for these notes. Buy Post-it notes, the

yellow coloured stickies. When you have studied a topic, just write

the +ves, -ves, anything on that post it and stick it onto that page.

When you are revising the stuff, just look at the post-its. That will

save your time and stick better in head.

About Me

Shubhra

Hi I am Shubhra Saxena. I am an

engineer from IIT Roorkee 2002

batch of Paper Technology. I am

an IAS Officer of 2009 Batch, U.P.

Cadre. I am currently posted asDistrict Magistrate, Shravasti,

Uttar Pradesh

View my complete profile

freecounters

More Next Blog» Create Blog Sign In

An IAS Officer's Blog

of 16An IAS Officer's Blog: Making notes

3/26/2014http://shubhra-saxena.blogspot.in/2009/07/making-notes.html



Posted by Shubhra at 12:05 PM

Just before the exam, you can just glance at these notes for the last

time. Remember you should have done this many times before. But

the last revision is the most crucial. Psychology students would

understand why. When you write your paper this year, you would

understand the significance of this last look you gave your notes.

Also understand that the note making exercise is a tedious one andyou might think you are wasting a lot of time. rather you could study

from books. but for a single topic you will have to open 4 5 books at a

time. That's even more tedious. Plus it will be difficult to retrieve the

stuff. Get it all in one place and you are all set.

69 comments:

Followers

Blog Archive

► 2012 (39)

► 2011 (3)

► 2010 (2)

▼ 2009 (31)

► December (1)

► September (1)

► August (6)

▼ July (5)

Hello All

Making notes

Aspirants Interaction page

Posts to follow shortly

Pub Ad Mains and Prelims tips

► June (9)

► May (9)

Tanuja July 15, 2009 at 2:21 PM

Ma'am a request, can we get your notes ?

That would also save lot of time for us and as we know they are the

best ones and far better than any coaching notes . I am not doing any

coachings so it would be a great help for me and those who can't

afford a coaching . Thanks

[email protected]

Reply

Shubhra July 15, 2009 at 2:29 PM

No, my notes can not help you as they might not be relevant for you.

you will have to do the requisite hard work for thus exam. Do not shy

away from hard work if you wanna clear this exam.

Reply


I did it all on my own. I didn't have even this guidance that you have

in the form of this blog. So go ahead and work hard. there's no short

cut to success.

Reply

Nuke July 15, 2009 at 9:47 PM

thanks a lot mam this was enlightng just hope i get the schedule frm

you ..i am sorry mam i might seem kinda freaked out but to be frank i

am nt a very good planner so if you could just give me a skeleton i

would work on it and improvise ..looking for the guidance

Reply





coolblue July 16, 2009 at 8:23 AM

also let us know how to make notes from news papers.

thank u

Reply

monu July 16, 2009 at 8:56 AM

mam so u dont suggest making notes of a particular book like dd basu

and bipin chandra?which in a sense says that no book is holistic for a

particular topic?and if we make notes on a4 sheets then how to keep

them together?may be pin them up together?and what if we use

notebooks to make notes?

and how to make notes from newspaper?

Reply

Shubhra July 16, 2009 at 9:21 AM

I didn't make notes from newpapers.

Reply


@monu

staple them together.

I didn't make notes for all topics of polity and history. I just put

synopsis of topics on few pages to revise. That's all.

Reply

Nihar Ashish July 16, 2009 at 9:44 AM

Ruchi di.. Nihar here from our good ol' Kargali colony. I just came to

know about you and - Wow! You've made each one of us soooooo

proud.

Reply


mam then how does notes and synopsis differ?and i must say that u

would be very brilliant just as most iitns r!

but mam u must have read the books on polity and history many a

times?

Reply






Thanks Nihar!! good to hear from you!!! how are you?

Reply


@monu

yes i read the books many times.

synopsis is v brief notes..almost in point form.

the other notes for your optionals should be more detailed.

Reply

Rohit July 16, 2009 at 11:27 PM

Dear Shubhra,

Many thanks for you guidance and precious time. This blog is really a

blessing for CS aspirants.

If you didn't make notes from newspapers, then how did you cover

current affairs? And, without making notes from editorials, how did

you gather viewpoints from mains perspective?

Does current affairs magazine sufficient for these purposes?

Best Regards,

Rohit

Reply


would it be a bad idea to make otes on note book instead of a4 size

paper?

and what abt notes making from ncert etc?

Reply


@rohit

I followed 1 current affairs magazine to keep up with current affairs

after i was done with newspapers.

I just cut editorials that I thought were important for my optionals

and GS, classified them, highlighted the points and kept in a file.

Reply






@monu

i found it handy to have notes on a4 sheets. I could organize them

easily and carry whichever i wanted easily.

Reply

vandna July 17, 2009 at 5:50 AM

Hello Ma'm,

U said u didnt make notes from the newspaper..but..its obvious u

followed the magazines and the newspapers daily...what I am doing

is I take d gist of daily news from AIR news at night and follow it up

with d newspaper d next morning...taking tit-bits out of those and

reading the editorials...and finally I supplement with my monthly

magazine...

the problem I am facing is that a lot of time goes into it..almost 2 hrs

per day...so plz suggest a way to tk cr of it...

thnx n regards.

Reply


@vandna

That will take a lot of time.

you are supposed to work hard...but smart hard work. so don't waste

unnecessary time. you have a long way to go.

Reply

kanishka July 17, 2009 at 6:45 AM

bureaucracy as stucture ,andadministration as functions explain

give few suggestions to make decision making value free

mam,

such kind of questions confuse a lot and they have limited matter to

put up,can you just tell how to do away with such questions.

irrelavent plz,ignore it.

thanking you,

kanishka shukla.

Reply

VINAY July 18, 2009 at 5:33 AM

mam,

can u tell me how u prepare for GS papers & essays paper. which

magzine, books essential for GS.

Thanks

vinay





Reply


please go thru the blog to get ur answers

essay post will follow in august.

Reply

vandna July 18, 2009 at 12:56 PM

Thanks a lot ma'm..I would work upon it positively.

Warm regards.

Reply


@kanishkathe question you have given is easy to understand. Whether decision

making process in admn can be value free or value laden. You have to

talk baout simon's bounded rationality model here.

Reply

Vikas July 20, 2009 at 9:11 AM

maam thank you for throwing light on how to make notes...maam you

said that you covered a lots of books for different topics but maam

the books you mentioned in psychology tips are just baron and

ciccareli and given the time constraint do one has to go through (in

psychology)these books perfectly or read many books ..i mean is it

good to do few books thoroughly or read many books ..did you went

through other than the books mentioned in psychology ...

thank you maam

Reply

Arjun BM July 20, 2009 at 9:17 AM

Hello ma'am,

Your tips are very helpful. Regarding point 1 - selection of important

topics and making notes.

a. Can you please share the 80-90 topics that you had prepared notes

on and also other important topics for Pub Ad - based on your

experience?

b. If possible, can you please share the notes you have made - since

it will help us read your valuable notes and leave us with more time

to focus on other topics.

Thank you very much for your guidance till now and we all look

forward to more tips.





- Arjun

Reply


@vikas.Kindly post ur question in relevant post.

Reply

akhil July 22, 2009 at 6:15 AM

Hi Ma'am,

I belive in a first reading of about 10 -15 Pages and then making brief

notes of them.. Would you recommend this statergy?

Also Ma'am please enlighten us on how to improve our vocabulary andincrease our retention skills.

Reply

Vikas July 22, 2009 at 7:22 AM

maam i thought that my question was related to note making from

diff. books otherwise i would not have troubled you like that..i hope

you would understand that this was mistakenly posted here..

Reply


In the first reading, you will end up writing everything in the book.

Second reading helps you decide what to select.

Reply

Abhimanyu July 23, 2009 at 3:01 AM

Hello Maam

About the chp wise note making..since you didn take coaching..you'd

have to make the notes(apart from the synopsis) yourself..could

explain how you went about that?..or did you buy the notes of some

class and added a synopsis at the end?

Thnks

Reply






I looked at the syllabus and the topics to be covered and prepared

notes from books and internet accordingly.

Reply

aloksingh July 23, 2009 at 8:24 AM

Mam what were internet sources(URL)apart from wikipedia, for notemaking.

Reply


Eg.suppose u want ARC-II recommendations, go to ARC website. You

will have to search sources per topic separately.

Reply

vandna July 24, 2009 at 4:30 AM

Hello Ma'm,

I have taken out around 80 topics for an optional from the syllabus

and past year papers pattern...I am still in a fix..

Should I follow the syllabus in a flow chapter-wise and make notes on

those gross topics as they appear while I am covering the

syllabus...this way I feel I would have covered the text also nicely...

OR should I just start with note-making on those gross identified

areas and cover the remaining general ones from the book later...thismight break the flow somehow hopping from one topic to another but

could save up on time...

I don't know if I am putting it clearly..this is what I have

comprehended so far..You followed both ways as u have mentioned

for your optionals...I am so confused about the initiation..plz help

me with it..

Thanks n regards

Reply


First make notes for whole units so that your whole syllabus is over.

Then, start about making notes for these spl areas consulting the best

sources.

Reply

vandna July 24, 2009 at 2:59 PM





ok ma'm..thanks very much!

Reply

saurabh July 26, 2009 at 11:34 AM

thanks shubhra mam...ur reflections on notes makeing r really

motivating. infact sometime b i too concluded that there is noalternative to notes making...n i started with great enthu. but soon i

found that i m spending lot of timein this exercise n lost interest in

the process. but again i was with no better alternative or short cut. n

was sceptical about success of this method. but really after going

through ur post i hav regained my faith in notes making...its really a

tedious work but at the end of the day i feel that a particular topic is

in my full control. n i can handle any question on that.

i hav read all of ur posts...mam u really doing a true social service

here by helping aspirants. i m sure that our administrative system is

going to hav a very dynamic n committed civil servant.

best wishes for ur career.

Reply

Twinkle July 27, 2009 at 8:58 AM

Dear Ma'am,

Suppose I want to make notes on Topic 1 (PA) & I'm reading

M.Bhattchrya, Awasthi Mahesh. & N.Henry. Do I make notes on the

relevant chaps from the 3 books & then a final synopsis (for final

revision)? Or a combined notes after going thru the 3 books? Plz

suggest.

Thanks,

Twinkle

Reply


combined notes after going thru the 3 books

select the best from all sources.

Reply

rasheda July 30, 2009 at 12:27 AM

Hello Shubhra Mam...hw r u??

1st of all I would like to congratulate u 4 yr great achievements.

Your tips on making notes is indeed very much helpfull 4 all aspirants

of civil services.

Before joining yr blog site I was in deep confusion tht have almost





been solved now.

I would like to solve 1 query regarding making notes...tht's while

making notes 4 relevant topic we should go 4 different books 4 the

same topic & then make it comprehensive...but should we focus on

current situation passing into government in a year 4 the same topic

if any happens???

Hw to apply it into our conventional notes???

& wht should b the body of answer???Should we mention tht current topic into our preface & conclusion??

Hw to start an effective preface 4 each topic & wht's qualities should

our conclusion have???

Thnx & regards

Rasheda Khatun.

Reply

rasheda July 30, 2009 at 12:44 AM

Shubhra ji wht's the importance of notes frm coaching class???which coaching class notes r useful 4 pub adm. & GS???

Vaji Ram & Ravi's notes r better 4 GS or should we buy another

coaching class' notes??

have u gone through notes by coaching??

Reply


Rasheda,

you will have to consult more than 1 book in most cases.

You should make a separate notebook for current related information

so that you can keep noting all of the current stuff in that notebook.

When your notes are over, just supplement these details to your

relevant topics.

Reply


Rasheda,

For GS, Vajiram notes are good.

For Pub ad, Vajiram notes are not good.

You can also get notes of any other GS coaching u find around.

Yes, I have gone through Vajiram and ALS notes.

Reply





mano July 30, 2009 at 11:30 PM

hello mam,

im mano ,preparing for civil services examination.first of all

mam,congratulation for your greatest achievement.well mam,im

having lot of problems with my study routine,taking notes,reading

newspaper....can you please help me

i will enlist all problems below

1.im goin to coaching center mam,their i write down notes in a4

sheets dictated by sir...should i memorize all content or just

read ....how can i make synotic notes...i hav tries but still a topic

covers 2 to 3 papers of my synopsis.is memoring all day to day topis

essential?....please guide me thru this...

2.secondly the newspaper which is read daily ,has to be revised again

and again?

3.how can i manage my time mam?

these are my doubts ,please guide me thru it....i would be greatly

obliged

Reply


@Mano

Please do not memorise everyday.

Finish whole chapter from relevant sources and then start making

notes.

No, newspaper doesnt have to be memorised at all.

Time managemnet can be done by making daily, weekly and monthly

timetables, You should break your syllabus in parts and then planyour timetable accordingly.

Reply


mam,hence the synopsis which i take can be memorized....

or is it that the answers should be memorized which i hav written

Reply


hi mam,

congratulations for your achievement.

im mano,ias asprirant going to give my prelims next yr

im having lot of problems with manking notes in synoptic for,reading

newspaper....i have enlisted my probles in detail below

1.im not able to make synoptic notes,im goin for vajiram classes for

geo,notes are pilling up ,the notes im reading but is it mandatory to

memorize the notes ,or can it be memorized by writing synopsis,but





in that sitaution synopsis are to be in detail......im not able to

understand mam.....are synopsis supposed to be short or sufficient

for having main ponts which can make up answer by

manipulating....please help me man...i would be greatly obliged

Reply

Shubhra August 1, 2009 at 9:13 AM

@Mano

First study the topics well from expansive notes and books

Once you have finished the topic well for about 2 times, then start

making synoptic notes, how detailed or how brief the notes should

be, depends on your level of comfort in the topic.

Reply

rithik August 10, 2009 at 9:18 PM

ma'am,

In case of shortlisted topics ,how comprehensively are we expected

to cover the topic since there are many interlinkages.

Eg:CIVIL SOCIETY --

The questions which i can think of are --

civil society and public policy ;civil society and good governance;civil

society and accountabity

so should i just make generic points about civil society and apply

them in the exam or try to cover all the aspects around it.

or is it good to answer all the previous year questions on that topic?

Thanks & regards ma'am.

Reply

Shubhra August 10, 2009 at 11:02 PM

You should make generic notes and try to apply them to specific

situation. If you strat doing it by question per question, you will have

to put in tremendous amount of time and patience.

Just try to cover all aspects of civil society from some good books and

make notes in one place.

Questions come in all shades and packages. Do not try to outsmart

the exam. Just be flexible enough to accomodate any eccentricities

the q paper throws at you.

Reply





ruby August 14, 2009 at 5:23 AM

for gs i m relying upon-

the hindu, yojna, kurkshetra, competition wizard, chronicle mag.

is it all enough or do i need to edit the list?

Reply


why read 2 curr affairs magazines? choose one and stick to it.

Reply

ruby August 15, 2009 at 3:56 AM

but in your opinion which 1 is better out of wizard and chronicle?

Reply


I referred Wizard.

Reply

ruby August 17, 2009 at 10:10 PM

so nice of you for the guaidance

Reply


ma'am,

When do you think we should generally prepare the notes??Since i'm

writng '09 mains,is it late to be making notes now since its a little

time consuming?

and also ma'am,kindly guide us about the last month/2 month

preparation strategy(the do's and dont's)

Thanks and regards ma'am..

Reply

raja August 25, 2009 at 7:46 AM

This comment has been removed by the author.

Reply






@rithik

It's a bit late now.

Reply

Lavanya August 26, 2009 at 3:28 AM

Hi Shubra mam

Is it necessary to make newspaper notes for prelims and how much

time be invested for that. And regrdg my optional P.A - as of now i'm

not writing the mains but preparing with the mains focus for next yr

use, so in order to check whether i'm in the right track i'm answering

the previous yr questions. Shall i post my answer in order to get ur

correction.

Thank You

Reply


ma'am,

kindly guide us about the last month/2 month preparation strategy

(the do's and dont's)

Thanks and regards ma'am..

Reply


@Lavanya

yes, plz post ur answer.

u dont need to make notes from newspaper, that will take a long

time. refer magazines for Curr affairs.

Reply

Marut August 27, 2009 at 10:25 AM

hey shubhra... impressive wat ur doin... helpin UPSC aspirants!! whr

ru these days.. ur whereabouts?..sad 2 interact wid u thru dis

medium though!! :) m bakk in India... n wid CSC.. wrkin in BidMgmt/Proposals/Presales for CSC India sales.....!!! hs ur induction

already startd?..

keep in touch!!

Marut

Reply






Hey Marut,

Good to hear from you.

My no is still the same. Call me tomorrow.

or just put your email id here...I will send u my no.

TC

Reply

adi August 28, 2009 at 8:14 AM

hi, madam ive start preparing for ias very later( in aug) ..also i m

doing job..so i m not able to join any coaching class (coz i m posted

in a remote area) ..so i m lil worried as how to manage..as there any

substitute for classes...can i buy notes of these classes n strt reading

thm..will it be useful...pls do help..waiting for ur reply...

Reply

adi August 28, 2009 at 8:14 AM

hi, madam, im bit confused as how to go about making notes..should

i make them without refering books(i.e. by learning ) or from books.

as there are many topics in a chapter , so what should be the ideal

approach..pls help...

Reply


@adiyes you should buy these notes and start studying from them.

Reply

Sunil September 6, 2009 at 11:57 PM

Hello Ma'am... It feels great getting CS tips from you... I thank you

very much for helping all of us taking out your valuable time for this

blog... This blog will help us to utilize our time and potential in the

best way possible. Thanx a lot..

Reply

Gaurav November 8, 2009 at 2:55 AM

Madam

chapter wise notes is in respect to prelims or what?

Also please provide more detail if possible how to go about chapter

wise notes.

After analysing the paper should we go about those kind of points

only whose type is asked in question papers.





Newer Post Older Post

Add comment

Notify me

Comment as:

Publish

Preview

Home

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

regards

Gaurav shrivastava

Reply

Shubhra November 14, 2009 at 5:34 AM

for mains

Reply


making notes e

Documents