The headline of the post misses the point. The problem the author describes, revolves around active vs. passive learning and the '3x Speed' part is just part of

The headline of the post misses the point. The problem the author describes, revolves around active vs. passive learning and the '3x Speed' part is just part of what he refers to as passive learning. I completely agree, that passive learning is what happens in many western classrooms and that active learning is a lot more valuable. However, listening to books or videos at 3x the normal speed is nothing I would condemn, because IMO it depends on the source material. Some audiobooks/videos are so slow that it is hard to keep the focus at normal speed. Consuming them at higher speeds keeps me from drifting to other topics. So I think the discussion about the speed doesn't lead anywhere. That said, I don't use 3x speed. Sometimes, I consume videos at 2x speed and I tend to keep audiobooks at 1x speed, because I like to consume them as secondary activities e.g. while driving. Certainly not the most effective way to consume the content, but I like it and it fits into my daily habits. I think the discussion should be about active/practical/self-directed learning vs. pure consumption of material, because this is what makes a difference.