Maintaining memorized information only as long as it is required to achieve a real goal is a feature, not a bug. That almost everything taught in school is forgotten shortly after is an indictment of a system determined to embed largely useless info, not of students' character.
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There's an extant body of research on whether the traditional education system teaches students "critical thinking skills," "how to learn," etc., and the conclusion is a *resounding* no.
...which really is no wonder. Developing these skills requires great leeway when it comes to self-direction, questioning authority, and being wrong often and for frustrating durations. The process of learning to be a genuinely generative mind is antithetical to standard schooling
