Is listening to a book ‘cheating?’

[RealityChik]

8. Not cheating but...

The more sensory processing that engages the brain in the task of information acquisition, the more of that information is committed to long term memory. Since more brain power is needed to read than to listen, reading is more beneficial. Even more so, reading aloud is even more beneficial than silent reading for retention. Writing something down after reading it is also a productive retention task.

But I'm no professional cognitive scientist. Just an armchair aficionado of the subject. That said, the jury is still out on this one. Willingham makes a good argument for each method is of equal benefit, so is not cheating. I disagree that the benefits are equal because the brain is more susceptible to distraction and mind-wandering with listening only, but my opinion is based on personal experience of an ADD brain!