Current schooling is about short-term memory, not intellect, wisdom, or critical thinking.

Can you remember what the text book said, and name the 3 causes of 'X'?

If yes, you will do well on the test, get an A grade, and be considered "smart."

If you have a hard time remembering, you won't.

Simply studying long hours (the secret of the Asians) by repetitive reading will make it sink in long enough to do well on the test. But that does not necessarily translate to the real world, where the tests are harder to identify and solve.

The Chinese are good copy cats and thieves of technology, but they create nothing.

None of that has to do with critical thinking. The farmer's kid who only finished a 6th grade education, but learned how nature works and the process of trial and error will probably have better critical thinking skills than the kid who went to Harvard because he spent all non-school hours studying and memorizing for the next test.