on note-taking

Abstract

Note-taking, or copying quickly and accurately the material that the professor puts on the blackboard, is the predominate – and preferred – student activity in college-level mathematics classrooms. This activity is herein investigated in relation to the following eleven topics in the constructivist theory of mathematics education: student-centered environment, the professor as an authority figure, dialogue and participant activities, personal autonomy, self-reliance, real math, interconnected cognitive spaces, metacognition, assessment, interpersonal relations and social values. In each case, it is found that the activity of taking notes is not compatible with the constructivist position on these topics. A few remarks are also made regarding note-taking in more general, non-constructivist settings.