It's very similar but, in my opinion, it's more beneficial than active reading since you can share personal knowledge that the other didn't know, so you leave more satisfied when you leave an active listening session more than simple reading. When I say satisfied I mean that I feel like I learned more when I share knowledge with someone rather than just reading it, as I would create those personal connections with the knowledge. I find that even though it is more difficult to find someone to share the study session with, it is still beneficial for me because I learn more things and I can also learn what is most important thanks to the emphasis the person puts in certain subjects. Another difference with active reading is that active listening doesn't have as many parts as reading. This is because the most important part of active listening is to focus on what the other person is saying so that you get as much information as possible. Both active reading and active listening are strategies I use in many areas, not just for learning, but they usually seem to be more helpful when the learning comes.