eFaqt: Note-Taking Goes Digital!

eFaqt is a new, free service that aims to help students with their studying and note-taking.  The site basically acts a digital companion where students can record and organize notes, and create flashcards to help themselves study.  It's a great resource, so, let's check it out!

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Before diving in, here's an introductory video from the team at eFaqt:

So, let's head over to eFaqt, sign up for a free account, and check this site out!  After you signup, you'll be presented with your home dashboard.  From here, you can add new resources, study notes and flashcards you've already created, or continue taking notes on a book or article you're reading.

Your Home Dashboard

The first time you start out, you also have the option of watching an introduction to the site. The video does an excellent job of explaining the basics of the service:

Now, let's get studying!  If you want to add a resource, as you saw in the video, just click the "study something new" button, select if you want to add a book or article, enter the information of the text, and you're ready to go!

Select a Book or Article to Get Started

From there, you can begin creating your flashcards and notes.  It's an incredibly simple interface and I think you'll be able to figure it out without much trouble.  Plus, if you have trouble, little help windows pop up when you're getting started.  You can also add images to your notes and flashcards, which is a great feature.

Creating a Flashcard

Once you've got all your flashcards and notes taken, it's time to start studying!  Just click the "Practice" button at the top and you'll be on your way.

Time to Practice!

While you're practicing, you'll see one side of the flashcard, and then you can click "Check" to see if you got the answer right or wrong.  For the notes, the site will hide some of your words and then you can check to see if you knew what was underneath.  Then you just have to click if you got the question right or wrong.  Like the rest of the site, the practice section is super user-friendly and easy to figure out.

Practice Session

And, when you're all finished, eFaqts will let you know what percent of the material you've retained and remembered.  You can also adjust the settings (at the top right) to change how often you are emailed study reminders, how long you want to study for each day, and how long you want for breaks.  This is a great feature to help students stay on track while they're studying.  It's so easy to get distracted and this could definitely help students stay a little more focused.

Set up your Preferences

Finally, if you're a fan of the site, you can sign up for a pro account to get access to mind maps, comprehensive reading, review planning, the ability to print your summaries, and more (it costs around $3.00 a month for the pro version).

Sign Up For the Pro Version

Suggestions for Improvement...

I really like eFaqt.  I think it's a great tool to help students stay organized and keep track of their notes while they're reading a textbook or article.  However, my major complaint is that it can only be used for textbooks and articles. 

These days, study materials are so much more comprehensive, you've got videos, blogs, MOOCs, and a whole wealth of resources available on the internet.  For eFaqt to become a truly wonderful tool, they will need to add support for these learning resources as well, not just books and articles.

Aside from that, the site is incredibly well designed, user-friendly, and students at the middle and high school level would definitely benefit from the organization and study opportunities that the site offers. Overall, it's a solid application, with a whole lot of potential.