Poor listeners let their minds to wander. Effective listeners remain focused and actively try to absorb material. Aggressively tackle difficult material. When they encounter a tough topic, poor listeners absorb very little. Things bounce off them.
Effective listeners condition themselves to be interested in challenging matters.
Poor listeners tune people out on the basis of a few words. Get to know the professor personally. Poor listeners see a professor as a talking head. Understand and use the differential between the speed of speaking and the speed of thinking. We think at about 400 words per minute.