Neuroscience in educational practice is still unclear – educational neuroscience is a relatively new field in education. One of the reasons preventing a link between these fields is the belief in neuroscience. Belief in neuromyths may be partly influenced by media messages, the intuitive style of human thinking, and lower scientific literacy. Therefore, this study will seek to identify psychological and cognitive factors that promote belief in neuromyths and reinforce beliefs related to cognitive functions. Social surveys will be carried out to address questions related to knowledge, beliefs and neuromyths about the human mind and brain. Media consumption and its impact on beliefs will be assessed, as well as scientific literacy. An experiment will be carried out to assess how a particular visual manipulation affects the credibility of a journalistic scientific article and changes the intuitive style of thinking into an analytical one.
Project results:
When teachers’ belief in neuromyths was assessed, it was found that teachers were most likely to neither agree nor disagree with the myths (54.55%). Neuromyths neither agreed nor disagreed with: learning problems related to brain function cannot be solved by education; men’s brains are biologically better suited for maths and science and women’s brains are better suited for empathy; children need to learn their mother tongue before they can learn a second language; people use around 10% of their brain power; brain scans are more useful for uncovering the true thoughts of people than asking questions; playing classical music to babies makes them smarter. Respondents tended to agree that children concentrate harder, are more active and learn less well when they are given sugary drinks or snacks, that the dominance of the hemispheres of the brain determines individual styles among learners (e.g. left hemisphere – logic, right hemisphere – creativity), and that moderate alcohol intake kills brain cells. Respondents tended to disagree with the myth that mental abilities are inherited and cannot be changed by environment or experience, and strongly disagreed with the myth that the brain stops developing when children reach secondary school. It was noted that respondents’ answers were similarly consistent with the facts about the brain, with the majority neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Teachers’ attitudes towards cognitive development showed that respondents had fewer doubts when evaluating the statements made.
The assessment of psychological and cognitive factors showed that the educational level of the respondents was quite high (95.1 % had completed higher education). The majority of respondents have a tendency towards rationality (96.5%), a higher level of scientific knowledge (47.8%) and a medium level of cognitive ability (78.1%).
The correlations found between the factors and belief in neuromyths showed that teachers’ belief in neuromyths is directly related to female gender, older age, more work experience, more frequent reading of journalistic articles and lower level of scientific knowledge. Women were found to be more likely to improve their cognitive abilities, as well as those who read more journalistic articles and less scientific articles. Older age, more work experience, more frequent reading of journalistic articles and higher levels of scientific knowledge are directly related to belief in facts about the brain. A linear regression was found between socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender) and belief in neuromyths, with a correlation of 13.5% (F(7, 339) = 11.189, p < 0.001, R2=0.135). A linear regression of 18.6% (F(6, 340) = 12.935, p < 0.001, R2 = 0.186) was also found between female gender, older age, rationality, lower level of scientific knowledge and belief in neuromyths.
Period of project implementation: 2022-09-05 - 2023-03-31
Project coordinator: Kaunas University of Technology
