University Instructors' (Mis)Conceptions Regarding the Neuroscience of Learning

• In Event: 66.041 - Epistemological Considerations in Defining the Pragmatics of Educational Neuroscience

Abstract

This study sought to reveal the (mis)conceptions that university instructors hold about neuroscience and learning to better understand how neuromyths affect educators’ beliefs and instructional practices. Participants in our sample agreed with about half of the common neuromyths. The most pervasive misconceptions dealt with learning styles and the effects of hemispheric dominance on individual differences in learning. Professional development opportunities like workshops on instructional methods contributed to both the development of general knowledge about the brain and educational neuromyths. Astonishingly, 90% of university instructors in our sample believe that “learning problems associated with developmental differences in brain function cannot be remediated by education” and 79% agree that “mental capacity is hereditary and cannot be changed by the environment or experience.”

Authors

• Pasha Antonenko, University of Florida

• Andrea Burgess, University of Florida

• Andreas Keil, University of Florida