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We're all different in various ways but I had the same experience as GP. I used to believe in notetaking from lectures and discovered comprehension and memory was much better when I actively listened instead of trying to either copy or process the lecture onto paper.

And, really, there's no substitute for coming to class prepared (by reading ahead or whatever). It makes the lecture process much more useful. In that sense, a list of notes of things you don't think you understand from preparation is probably helpful.

I went with a hybrid approach in university: I didn't take any notes in class so I could actually focus on the lecture and actively think along. Later, in preparation for the exam, I would go through all slides again and turn them into notes, compressing a whole lecture down to 20 pages or so.

I think this is true when clarifying one’s own thoughts. If they’re notes from a book - a big chunk of what I use Roam for - they don’t act as memory aids, not for me at least.