Even if the material covered in class is also covered in the text, your notes will indicate what points the instructor considers most important-and these points will probably be the ones emphasized on tests. Of course, it is even more important to take good notes in classes in which much of the material is covered almost exclusively during the lectures. They are notes that help you recall close to 100 percent of the lecture material. But this does not mean that you should attempt to write down everything.
Good note taking generally requires that one balance listening with writing.
If you spend all of your time attempting to get down every word, you might miss some very important points while detailing less important ones. Time spent listening allows you to grasp an overview of the material and thus identify the essential aspects of it. You are also able to catch subtle points that can be gleaned only from the instructor's nonverbal behavior such as facial expressions and tone of voice. Abbreviate as much as possible. Just make sure that you use abbreviations that you will understand when you read over your notes.