Can bad memory be a sign of higher intelligence? What should parents of school-age children know?

We’re often told that having a great memory is the key to success, especially for students. After all, you need to memorize all those facts, dates, formulas, and concepts to do well on tests and excel academically, right? However, new research suggests that forgetting some information may make you smarter. 

The traditional view is that forgetfulness is a sign of low intelligence. However, a new study from the University of Toronto argues that having a perfect memory that never forgets anything can hold you back from peak intellectual performance. The researchers found that forgetting irrelevant details and focusing on the most important, relevant information is hugely beneficial for intelligent decision-making. Our brains evolved to forget superfluous facts that don’t serve us well, and remembering every tiny detail we’ve ever encountered can “clutter” our minds.

What details stick in our minds depends a lot on the environment we operate in and the frequency with which we encounter and need to apply that data. For instance, think of a high school math teacher. They’ll likely have an excellent recollection of all the key formulas, theorems, and problem-solving techniques related to the math subjects they instruct year after year. However, that same math teacher may struggle to spontaneously reproduce complex vector calculus equations or derive proofs from abstract branches of topology that they haven’t actively applied or refreshed their knowledge since graduating.

In other words, the general math concepts are deeply ingrained because the teacher’s professional world revolves around applying that mathematical knowledge daily. But the niche math facts aren’t central to their routine experiences, so those non-essential details tend to fade from memory until being referenced again. Our brains are highly efficient at prioritizing and retaining relevant and valuable information in our contexts. Conversely, our minds will let go of trivial details disconnected from our typical spheres of life, conserving that mental storage for more purposeful utility.

This research highlights two key takeaways for students and their parents:

  • Prioritize understanding core concepts over trivial details:

Don’t worry about forgetting minor facts. Focus on grasping the core concepts, principles, theories, and big-picture ideas. Knowing the fundamental basics of a topic and how to apply them is far more important than total recall of minute factoids.

Cases Where Detailed Memorization is Important:

  1. Medical students learning anatomy, diseases, drug names/dosages, etc. Forgetting key specifics could be life-threatening here.
  2. History exams that test comprehensive timelines and sequences of events. Accurately remembering dates is often crucial to analyzing causes/effects.
  3. Law students need verbatim recall of legal statutes, precedents, and code sections for their qualification exams.

Cases Where Conceptual Understanding Matters More: 

  1. For example, memorizing specific quotes word-for-word from novels, plays, etc., in an English literature course is less important than analyzing themes, characters, symbolism, historical context, and the author’s overarching message. Understanding why the writer made certain creative choices and how the literary elements shape the deeper meaning matters more than total verbatim recall.
  2. In principles of marketing class, memorizing precise statistics about market sizes or ad campaign data is less crucial than grasping fundamental consumer behavior concepts, branding strategies, pricing models, and how to apply marketing’s core principles effectively to real-world scenarios.
  3. In cognitive psychology, rather than obsessing over memorizing textbook definitions of every cognitive bias, heuristic, and psychological phenomenon, the priority should be on comprehending overarching concepts like how human perception, memory, decision-making, and biases operate and influence our thoughts/behaviors in practice.

The common thread is that in many idea-based subjects, the goal is to gain a deeper comprehension of foundational fundamentals—the key concepts, models, principles, and critical thinking used in that discipline. Memorizing surface-level trivia misses the larger purpose when mastering the core logic, reasoning, and insights, which is the real priority.

  • Use strategies like elaboration

The basic idea is to take new information or concepts you’re trying to grasp, actively relate them, and integrate them with things you already know well from previous experience. Instead of memorizing new material in isolation, the elaboration method requires you to make meaningful connections and build associations between unfamiliar topics and your pre-existing knowledge base of relatable facts, examples, and concepts you’re already comfortable with.

For example, in a creative writing class, you learn about literary devices like metaphor and foreshadowing. Rather than just trying to cram the textbook definitions, you could link those abstract literary terms to concrete examples you’re already familiar with from books, movies, TV shows, song lyrics, etc.

By saying something like, “Oh, this metaphor is being used in that famous line from that classic novel where…” or “This example of foreshadowing reminds me of that hint they dropped a few episodes earlier in that show I watched…” – you’re elaborating on the new concepts using references to pre-existing narratives you already know well. Those personal associations make the literary terms “stickier” and more concrete in your mind.

The same elaboration approach can work for all kinds of academic topics. In a biology class about genetic inheritance, you could link the concepts to your own experiences with how family traits and characteristics get passed down between relatives. For economic principles, you could tie abstract ideas to your real-world understanding of jobs, income, budgeting, etc.

Ultimately, research highlights that what we consider ideal for memory and intelligence is more nuanced than total recall. While memorization is crucial in certain domains, forgetting can paradoxically signify a well-functioning, adaptable mind. Daily, our brains prioritize retaining the knowledge and skills most relevant to our current circumstances while letting go of extraneous details. This discerning selectivity allows us to focus cognitive resources on acquiring deeper comprehension and critical thinking abilities within the subjects that truly matter to our goals and experiences.

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