How Do High-Achieving Students Approach Web-Based, Copy and Paste Note Taking? Selective Pasting and Related Learning Outcomes

Abstract

Previous research has indicated that most students copy and paste notes from Internet sources in a mindless way; they typically paste large sections of text into their notes and then later can recall little of what they have stored. However, supplying students with a note-taking framework that restricts the amount of text that may be pasted can prompt them to engage in more selective pasting, and this seems to result in greater learning. But the extant research has not specifically addressed copy and paste note-taking behaviors of high-achieving students. The high-achieving high school and college students in the present study used a note-taking tool on the computer that consisted of an electronic matrix to cue students to note certain types of information. In one condition, the number of words that could be included in each cell was restricted, whereas in the other group, the students’ cells were unrestricted. After the note-taking sessions, all students completed assessments to document the amount of information they learned. High-achieving students in both conditions learned the same amount through the note-taking process. These results were inconsistent with the previous research. Follow-up analyses of students’ notes indicated that although the high-achieving students in the unrestricted note-taking group were not limited in the number of words they copied, many of them selectively chose which information they pasted into the grid. The relationship between text-pasting selectivity and learning remained: High-achieving students were more selective in their note taking, and they also were more successful on the posttests.