Scope: Chemical Engineering, Languages, LSAT.
Key is active engagement. I do not recommend note-taking, but do write your scratch paper with good readability. If you do use a paper to scratch out during the initial learning process, always toss them immediately after.
What is active engagement? Depends on the scope.
For ChemE:
There’s a series of lectures and slides that you are given as study materials. You should go through all of them without taking any notes. There will be parts where you do not understand. You might lack some pre-requisites, or maybe the deriving process of a certain formula is just very hard. It does not matter what it is, you just go over the materials (videos/practice questions) as many times as possible (high frequency) and take as little notes as possible. When you move onto the practice questions, you do not compile any until you have done at least 3 run-throughs. The things you take as notes have to be both important and low-frequency in its appearance. Remember, two conditions. The compiling should also be limited to the ones that you have gotten wrong multiple times after the repetitive run-through.
For Language:
Do not start with the classic textbooks. Get the basic pronunciation rules and understand how the characters work. Buy a novel, mark the meanings on and just keep doing it.
For LSAT:
Jump right into LR and RC. Without timing anything, do at least 10 drill tests (or mock exams but untimed). Look through the wrong answers and figure out the pattern then fix it. Do not watch YouTube videos. Do not get stuck on theorizing the exam, it is a waste of time.
Conclusion: any action that is not directly involved with whatever that is going to be on your exam is a waste of your time and effort. This is what direct engagement is.
Rebel 