Memorizing vs. understanding

Boink · May 11, 2005

I could apply that to the IT field. I could memorize protocols and acronyms for a short time, but it wasn't until I understood them and was able to apply them in a real world scenario that I could retain the information. I'm very "hands on". I don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing when it comes to nursing.

Fun2, BSN, RN · May 11, 2005

I think for myself, it depends on the material.

I understood a bunch of A&P 1, and memorized a bunch as well. (I made a 90 on the muscle tissue/nervous tissue test, set the curve, ended up with a 100, but never did "understand" it!) lol

I like to be able to understand things, but I realize, sometimes it takes longer than I have to completely understand...so memorization plays a key role in making the grade.

One of the posts made me think:
when it comes to sciences, do you try to understand the material or you go with pure memorization?
For me, I need to understand the material, I just can't memorize things. Yes, I can actually but it is pointless since I forget it in 2 days. When I was worried about my A&PI grade, one thing made me feel good: I know that stuff, I understand the material and at that particular moment, the grade didn't reflect what I knew I retained from that course. It turned out I got a B which just made me feel even better lol. :)
What about you?

SusanJean · May 11, 2005

With the exception of anatomy, I would say understanding.

Now for me, anatomy was pure memorization.

SJ

Roseyposey · May 11, 2005

I can't memorize nonsense; I have to understand the material. I've learned if I look at the bigger picture, the details fill themselves in. I know anatomy is mostly memorization, but I found if I understood what things did and how they related to each other, remembering the names was much easier. I ended up with 100% in Anatomy and 104% in physiology. Hopefully my strategy will hold up in nursing classes.

Doug85 · May 11, 2005

If I truly understand a concept, multiple choice tests are a breeze. I'm able to connect the dots right on the spot. However, if someone is planning on regurgitating everything they memorized for a test, they better hope the questions don't require some serious thought. Being able to apply knowledge learned is extremely valuable, IMO.

BoonersmomRN · May 11, 2005

If I truly understand a concept, multiple choice tests are a breeze. I'm able to connect the dots right on the spot. However, if someone is planning on regurgitating everything they memorized for a test, they better hope the questions don't require some serious thought. Being able to apply knowledge learned is extremely valuable, IMO.

Exactly ( basically what I was going to write:).

There have been a few things that I have really struggled to understand and those were the questions on the test that made me " apply" the information towards a situation instead of just answering it via memorizing the notes from class, etc.

Now obviously a lot of brute force memorization comes in when it comes to the knowing all the bones muscles, hormones, etc but for other things it's both memorizing the steps AND understanding the entire process so you can apply that information to situations, etc.

Lambert5883 · May 11, 2005

I just took my final exam in A&P I yesterday and felt awkward because one had to "deduce" on a lot of the questions in order to answer correctly. I was lucky I did as well as I did. Poor study habits leading up to our last exam forced me to memorize a great deal of the material without fully understanding it. What probably saved me is that I attended each class and actually listened. I think a combo of the two styles really helped me with this class.

SCmomof3, RN · May 11, 2005

If I truly understand a concept, multiple choice tests are a breeze. I'm able to connect the dots right on the spot. However, if someone is planning on regurgitating everything they memorized for a test, they better hope the questions don't require some serious thought. Being able to apply knowledge learned is extremely valuable, IMO.

ITA! Esp since from what I've heard here on the boards and IRL, nursing school is all about understanding and applying. Impossible to do that if you're just memorizing facts. Though I agree somewhat about anatomy being memorization. However, there is some understanding to that as well. IE knowing what terms such as canaliculi means helps you remember where it's located, understanding the roots of words helps you remember where the body part is located, etc.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · May 11, 2005

You probably already got all this in the other answers, but here's my two cents: memorizing without being able to comprehend the "and now what do you do" means nothing. Even in subjects where the understanding of the subject matter counts (beyond rote memorization), they don't begin to touch upon the degree that's required for nursing tests.

Read the material, study the notes you took, ask lots of questions, and then see if you can answer questions such as "if I had a patient with X disease, what clinical manifestations might I expect to see" or "I've just come upon Patient X and she has XX symptoms. What is my first best intervention?" or "Patient X presents with XX symptoms. What can the nurse expect to see on the lab report?"

A study partner of mine had it "all sewn up" when she started the core nursing classes (after surviving A&P, chemistry, etc). She could memorize and regurgitate anything for a test. She just made it through first semester and couldn't pass a single test for the second semester's first module.

She could describe in detail everything discussed in class, but when it came to prioritizing interventions and anticipating symptoms, etc, it was a different story.

Unfortunately, she failed out.

Don't memorize, learn assessments, diagnosis, and interventions!

lady_jezebel · May 11, 2005

One of the posts made me think:
when it comes to sciences, do you try to understand the material or you go with pure memorization?
For me, I need to understand the material, I just can't memorize things. Yes, I can actually but it is pointless since I forget it in 2 days. When I was worried about my A&PI grade, one thing made me feel good: I know that stuff, I understand the material and at that particular moment, the grade didn't reflect what I knew I retained from that course. It turned out I got a B which just made me feel even better lol. :)
What about you?

BOTH are necessary. You have to understand the concepts but memorize the specific terms, reactions, pathways, etc... You can't succeed in science without both.

Doug85 · May 12, 2005

You probably already got all this in the other answers, but here's my two cents: memorizing without being able to comprehend the "and now what do you do" means nothing. Even in subjects where the understanding of the subject matter counts (beyond rote memorization), they don't begin to touch upon the degree that's required for nursing tests.
Read the material, study the notes you took, ask lots of questions, and then see if you can answer questions such as "if I had a patient with X disease, what clinical manifestations might I expect to see" or "I've just come upon Patient X and she has XX symptoms. What is my first best intervention?" or "Patient X presents with XX symptoms. What can the nurse expect to see on the lab report?"
A study partner of mine had it "all sewn up" when she started the core nursing classes (after surviving A&P, chemistry, etc). She could memorize and regurgitate anything for a test. She just made it through first semester and couldn't pass a single test for the second semester's first module.
She could describe in detail everything discussed in class, but when it came to prioritizing interventions and anticipating symptoms, etc, it was a different story.
Unfortunately, she failed out.
Don't memorize, learn assessments, diagnosis, and interventions!

100% correct.