University of Tlemcen

Department of English

March 2015
Level: LMD 1 (all groups)
Correction of S1 Make up exam

Characteristics of an independent learner: (there are different ways to answer the question,
varying from one teacher to another, but in general at least six of the characteristics below should
be mentioned, if six of them are mentioned, the student has 6pts, the 4 remaining points for
grammar and spelling mistakes)

The ability to take charge of one's learning.

Motivation
feeling confident enough to take decisions and act on them
being reflective
Being Critical, asking questions, problematizing
Organising oneselfand ones time
Note-taking
Gathering and using information
Reading
Listening
Writing
Speaking
Remembering
Working with others
To know how to work ones priorities
Work out a study-plan

1- The note-taking process :

There are many ways of answering the question, still according to the teacher they had for
the first semester. These are the different possible ways of answering the question: (6pts
contents, 4pts form)
1st answer: the 5 R's of note-taking
1. Record. During the lecture, record in the main column as many meaningful facts and
ideas as you can. Write legibly.
2. Reduce. As soon after as possible, summarize these ideas and facts concisely
3. Recite: say over facts and ideas of the lecture as fully as you can, not mechanically, but
in your own words and with as much appreciation of the meaning as you can. Then,
uncovering your notes, verify what you have said. This procedure helps to transfer the
facts and ideas of your long term memory.
4. Reflect. Reflective students distill their opinions from their notes. They will help them
in making sense out of their courses and academic experiences by finding relationships
among them. Reflective students continually label and index their experiences and ideas,
put them into structures, outlines, summaries, and frames of reference.
5. Review. If you will spend 10 minutes every week or so in a quick review of these
notes, you will retain most of what you have learned, and you will be able to use your
knowledge currently to greater and greater effectiveness.

2nd answer : Active note-taking means:

The student thinks about what he wants to get out of his research before he starts looking
for answers
Writing notes mostly in their own words -

Recording direct quotes only when it's important to use the exact words

Making the notes user-friendly, by:

- making them notes brief and selective

-Keeping them well-spaced to highlight individual points and add more details later if
necessary
- Show the relationships between the main points
- Using ones own words to summarise
- Illustrations, examples and diagrams can help to put ideas in a practical context
- Making them memorable using: colour, pattern, highlighting and underlining
- Reading through to make sure they're clear 3rd Answer: Taking notes in lectures:
Before the lecture...

Thinking about the title

Thinking about what the learner knows about the topic already, and what they expect or
hope to learn from the lecture

Trying to get a basic idea of what it's about beforehand by reading an

introductory paragraph from a textbook.

During the lecture...

Listening for clues to structure of the lecture to help organise the notes notes
Identifying key words - for instance, when words or phrases are being repeated..)

Being an active listener - trying to connect what is being said to what the learner already
knows

After the lecture...

To sit somewhere quietly and consider what was learnt(thinking about it). Summarising
and writing what were the main points in a few sentences.
Finding questions and researching the answers, discussing it with a friend, making a list
of questions to raise