I got a similar, one-page worksheet from a prof when I was in grad school. Her list added information that situated the reading in conversation—who is the author responding to? who does the argument support/challenge? that sort of thing.
For the past few years, I’ve been putting everything into DevonThink; this helps out a lot with recollection, and allows me to make new connections between stuff I’m working on now and all that stuff I’ve forgotten about.
That’s a good addition, and part of what I was aiming for in “key cites,” but it could/should be more explicit that way, and people aren’t always directly citing the conversations they’re involved in, esp across disciplinary lines…thanks!
Nate Kreuter
January 17, 2014 10:51 am
I remember the worksheet John said, is using, or some version of it, but I remember it being more detailed and a little stifling for me. That I use a somewhat longer form of what Collin describes here that consists almost entirely of just citations from the text, occasionally with a couple words or phrases of commentary. I then notate the notes, which I like to keep in hardcopy, by writing a large word or two of commentary or attention directive-ness, such as “Clarity” or “Labor” to indicate to myself what I originally saw the citation relating to. If nothing else, it helps me to focus my attention when I return to a text.
Interestingly, I’m doing the same thing with marginalia in books — when I find passages that I think I may use, I’m starting to put 1-2 words in the upper right hand corner (even if on opposite page), so I can just flip to find.
Colin, did you ever think about doing this with Zotero? I know people who share bibliographies on that site – and it seems to work pretty well. This looks like a great exercise, thanks!
Thought about it, yeah, but I fear I need to become a better Zoteroan myself before I can ask it of my students 🙂 The assignment/format emerged from all the blogging I used to do, and so I’m probably operating with a bit of inertia in that regard, and my familiarity with MT and later WP, as opposed to DEVON, Zotero, and other dbase interfaces.
If I have the chance this semester, maybe I’ll spend some time with Z and think about moving this over there…
Aimée Knight
January 16, 2014 11:05 amAgreed. > “I can’t tell you how happy it would make me now to have taken notes like these on everything I’ve read since grad school.”
Can we make a public annotated bib of works in the field?
Collin
January 16, 2014 11:12 amThis is my lifelong dream, Aimée! 🙂
John Jones
January 16, 2014 2:12 pmI got a similar, one-page worksheet from a prof when I was in grad school. Her list added information that situated the reading in conversation—who is the author responding to? who does the argument support/challenge? that sort of thing.
For the past few years, I’ve been putting everything into DevonThink; this helps out a lot with recollection, and allows me to make new connections between stuff I’m working on now and all that stuff I’ve forgotten about.
Collin
January 16, 2014 2:17 pmThat’s a good addition, and part of what I was aiming for in “key cites,” but it could/should be more explicit that way, and people aren’t always directly citing the conversations they’re involved in, esp across disciplinary lines…thanks!
Nate Kreuter
January 17, 2014 10:51 amI remember the worksheet John said, is using, or some version of it, but I remember it being more detailed and a little stifling for me. That I use a somewhat longer form of what Collin describes here that consists almost entirely of just citations from the text, occasionally with a couple words or phrases of commentary. I then notate the notes, which I like to keep in hardcopy, by writing a large word or two of commentary or attention directive-ness, such as “Clarity” or “Labor” to indicate to myself what I originally saw the citation relating to. If nothing else, it helps me to focus my attention when I return to a text.
Collin
January 17, 2014 11:50 amInterestingly, I’m doing the same thing with marginalia in books — when I find passages that I think I may use, I’m starting to put 1-2 words in the upper right hand corner (even if on opposite page), so I can just flip to find.
Roger Whitson
January 17, 2014 11:09 amColin, did you ever think about doing this with Zotero? I know people who share bibliographies on that site – and it seems to work pretty well. This looks like a great exercise, thanks!
Collin
January 17, 2014 11:48 amThought about it, yeah, but I fear I need to become a better Zoteroan myself before I can ask it of my students 🙂 The assignment/format emerged from all the blogging I used to do, and so I’m probably operating with a bit of inertia in that regard, and my familiarity with MT and later WP, as opposed to DEVON, Zotero, and other dbase interfaces.
If I have the chance this semester, maybe I’ll spend some time with Z and think about moving this over there…