Publish at May 29 2024 Updated May 30 2024
Of all the continents and places to explore, one of the most fascinating is within us: our brain. For centuries we've been trying to demystify the organ that not only enables us to live, but also offers us the opportunity to learn, imagine, create and so on. This quest began by comparing our brains with the brains of other animals. Scientific advances have made it possible to observe brain activity without having to perform experiments worthy of Dr. Frankenstein. Magnetic resonance imaging has revealed some very interesting things about our grey matter.
In fact, since the mid-2000s, funding for neuroscience research has multiplied.
The quest to understand the brain gained momentum, and many saw enormous potential, particularly in education. Indeed, if we could better decipher the process by which knowledge is acquired, this should lead to smarter next generations, shouldn't it? The problem is that the educational world was quickly blinded by principles and conclusions that later proved to be wrong.
Fascination with neuroscience has led to an authority bias among students and teachers alike. After all, scientists shouldn't make mistakes... Yet they do. Like any science, some conclusions cannot be reproduced, experiments lack candidates or evidence, and so on. As a result, these studies cannot be taken seriously.
However, the "neuroenchantment" aspect leads many people to believe anything that comes out of brain work. An experiment carried out in 2014 clearly demonstrated the credulity of individuals, including those in fields of study related to brain science.
A team of scientists created a simulated "thought scanner" using an old computer and a hairdryer from a 1970s hairdressing salon repainted white to give it a serious look. On the screen was projected a pre-recorded video of a 3D brain model with noises to add to the immersion and the idea that thoughts were being analyzed. In front of an audience of advanced neuroscience and psychology students, not a single one displayed any mistrust or skepticism in the face of a scientifically impossible machine. Critical judgment disappeared along with sophisticated appearances.
If future specialists can be so easily fooled, it's hardly surprising that neuromyths still have a strong hold. For example, the thesis of right and left hemispheres, among others, continues to be shared. Is the right brain the seat of creativity? We now know that this is false, and that it is rather the billions of connections between different parts of the brain that enable the mind to wander or conceive things. Even the idea that we all use only 10% of our brains remains firmly entrenched in many people's minds.
The problem of this credulity in neuroscience becomes more problematic when it affects the world of education. Because it's bound to have an impact on the pedagogical approaches adopted. Especially since, when surveyed, many teachers still believe myths.
This 2019 study in Quebec showed that many Quebec teachers believed 5 persistent neuromyths to be true. The good news was that at least the ratios were declining. A more recent study, this time in Luxembourg, showed that a significant proportion of the teaching profession clung to misconceptions. This also applies to university students in pedagogy, psychology, chemistry, biology or computer science.
For example, the notion that learners have multiple intelligences, and that teaching must therefore be adapted for the visual, auditory and kinaesthetic, may well have been disproved several times over, yet a large percentage of the educational world still believes it. Because while calibrating teaching to students' needs is a good thing, it must be based on real requirements, not neuromyths.
Brain Gym" is probably one of the biggest educational scams of recent decades. How many schools and school systems have spent thousands of dollars on programs for this supposed brain gym that has never passed the test of rigorous scientific study?
Teachers may feel hurt by these accusations of credulity. Most specialists, however, are benevolent and understand perfectly well why they believed it. However, it seems necessary to dispel these beliefs. The solution lies in training. Including a course or two in neuroscience in teacher training could be a good start. Implementing various workshops on these and other myths and their effects among active teachers seems a constructive approach. It's highly unlikely that neuromyths can be eliminated from every teacher in the world, but by working actively to share neuroscience truths, their number will be greatly reduced.
Image: AndrewLozovyi / DepositPhotos
References:
Blanchette Sarrasin, Jérémie, Martin Riopel, and Steve Masson. "Neuromyths among Quebec teachers." Le Réseau ÉdCan. Last updated September 5, 2019. https://www.edcan.ca/articles/les-neuromythes-chez-les-enseignants-quebecois/?lang=fr.
Bocquillon, Marie, Christophe Baco, Antoine Derobertmasure, and Marc Demeuse. "Learning styles, one of the most persistent (neuro)myths in education." Enseignement.be. Last updated July 12, 2023. https://enseignement.be/index.php?page=27203&id=3764.
"Brain Gym, a pedagogical legend among others." Afis Science. last updated January 11, 2024. https://www.afis.org/Brain-Gym-une-legende-pedagogique-parmi-d-autres.
Debrun, Aymeric. "Neuromyths in education in Luxembourg." Sydologie. last updated February 12, 2024. https://sydologie.com/2024/02/les-neuromythes-dans-leducation/.
Khramova, Marina V., Tatyana V. Bukina, Nikita M. Smirnov, Semen A. Kurkin, and Alexander E. Hramov. "Prevalence of neuromyths among students and pre-service teachers." Nature. last updated December 14, 2023. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-023-02412-4.
"Creativity comes from the right brain is a neuromythe." Learn, Review, Remember. Last updated August 17, 2023. https://apprendre-reviser-memoriser.fr/creativite-cerveau-droit-neuromythe/.
"Giftedness: myths to deconstruct." Observatoire Sur La Réussite En Enseignement Supérieur. Last updated November 27, 2023. https://oresquebec.ca/articles-de-veille/la-douance-des-mythes-a-deconstruire/.
"What are neuromyths? Identifying them to deconstruct them." CDCP Digital Learning. last updated February 27, 2023. https://www.cdcp-tn.com/veille-du-digital-learning/les-neuromythes-cest-quoi-les-identifier-pour-les-deconstruire/.
Martineau, Yves. "Neuroscience, Seduction and the Fallacy of Credibility." Ordre Des Psychologues Du Québec. Last updated September 2023. https://www.ordrepsy.qc.ca/-/neurosciences-seduction-fallacieux-sentiment-credibilite.
Rousseau, Luc. "Dispelling educational neuromyths: a review of in-service teacher professional development interventions." Mind, Brain, and Education. Last updated 2024. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/mbe.12414.
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