Note taking in bilingual students: does using a first or second language influence note-taking quality and memory of newly learnt content?

• Published in: International journal of bilingual education and bilingualism 2025-01, Vol.28 (1), p.36-52
• Main Authors: Canham, Amy, Coumel, Marion, Manolova, Juliana, de Bruin, Angela
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bilingualism; English proficiency; Immigrant students; international students; Language; Memory; Note taking; Second language learning
• ISSN: 1367-0050; 1747-7522
• DOI: 10.1080/13670050.2024.2390862

Bilingual students can take notes in their first language (L1) or their second language (L2). Higher note-taking quality, which might differ between the L1 and L2, has been associated with better memory of new content. In this study, we examined how language of note taking within bilinguals affects note quality and memory of new content. One hundred bilinguals watched three videos while typing notes in L2-English, their L1, or while using their languages freely. One week later they completed a memory test. Memory test scores did not differ between the L1, L2-English, and free note-taking conditions. Note-taking quality was higher in the L2 and free language conditions than in the L1, likely because the video content was presented in the L2. However, note-taking quality was only significantly related to memory test performance in the free note-taking condition and not in the L1 or L2 conditions. Across all conditions, L2-English proficiency was positively related to both note-taking quality and test performance. Together, these results suggest that, when learning content in an L2, the note-taking language can influence note quality but does not strongly impact how well new information is remembered.