Why is the learning styles myth so popular?
This neuromyth could be steering teachers away from evidence-based lesson plans
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Some of the most widely shared ‘facts’ about the brain are not actually true. Contrary to popular belief, for example, we all use much more than 10% of our brain, and nobody is an exclusively visual learner. But despite the neuroscientific evidence, people often believe and share these neuromyths.
“Neuromyths are usually created when scientific findings are misunderstood or oversimplified,” says Oktay Cem Adiguzel, a professor of education at Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, in Canada, and Anadolu University in Türkiye.
These neuromyths have made their way into public consciousness, but what particularly concerns Adiguzel and other education researchers is that a lot of teachers believe them – especially the myth that each student has a specific learning style. This could lead educators to base lessons on false beliefs, instead of on established neuroscience.
Teachers around the world are drawn to the learning styles myth
In 2012, researchers in the Netherlands and the UK found that teachers believed about half of the neuromyths they were asked about. That hasn’t improved much in the last fourteen years; recent studies from Australia, Spain, Luxembourg, and other countries all still show that many teachers and teaching students believe outdated myths about the learning brain.
To find out how far some of these myths reach, Adiguzel collaborated with researchers in eleven different countries to find out how primary school teachers across the world think about neuromyths.
“I was surprised by how similar some of these myths were across many countries,” he says. For example, more than 90% of teachers across all countries agreed that “individuals learn better when they receive information in alignment within their dominant learning styles”. The learning styles myth suggests that people are visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learners. But there is no evidence that a strict division by sensory input defines how people learn best. Adiguzel is concerned that this myth might lead teachers to focus on a single approach for each student. “It can lead to labeling students,” he says.
For teachers, who face constant time pressures, there is another downside to basing lessons on learning styles. “If the evidence suggests that teaching people in this way is not beneficial, then you’re wasting your time,” says Rob Nash, head of psychological research at the National Institute of Teaching (NIoT) in the UK. Nash surveyed 570 education students at the NIoT’s teacher training programme about their belief in neuromyths, and his findings matched those of other studies. Here, too, the vast majority (87%) believed in the learning styles myth. If that many teachers are changing how they teach based on a myth, this is cause for concern.
“Neuromyths are usually created when scientific findings are misunderstood or oversimplified.”
Oktay Cem Adiguzel
The learning styles myth could influence lesson plans
During her PhD research in educational neuroscience at American University in Washington, DC, Christine Bresnahan asked 60 teachers to choose between a lesson in which each student is instructed only in their preferred auditory, visual or kinesthetic learning style, and one in which each student receives information in all three modalities. They then rated how strongly they agreed with a number of statements about learning styles.
Even though more than 80% of teachers agreed that lessons could be tailored to students’ learning styles (consistent with other studies), only 46% actually picked the option to teach the learning styles-based lesson. This is encouraging, because it shows that belief in neuromyths does not necessarily shape classroom teaching.
“It is more likely that you will choose a learning styles lesson if you believe in learning styles,” says Bresnahan. “However, it is not the only factor.” For example, teachers also based their choice on whether they thought a specific kind of lesson would be easy to manage or time-consuming to plan. But others chose the learning styles lesson because they genuinely thought that it was the best way to teach.
“Research has repeatedly shown that offering choices is an excellent way to encourage student motivation and learning.”
Christine Bresnahan
Changing teachers’ views on neuromyths
“Teachers usually adopt neuromyths with good intentions,” says Adiguzel. “When a student is struggling, a neuromyth can sound like a clear scientific answer.”
Bresnahan found something similar when she asked teachers to explain their lesson choice. Some of the teachers thought that the students themselves had chosen the modality for receiving instruction.
“Research has repeatedly shown that offering choices is an excellent way to encourage student motivation and learning,” says Bresnahan. But she adds that these choices do not need to be based on visual, auditory, or kinesthetic input. In her paper, she suggests that alternatives should be available so that teachers who want to offer choice in the classroom are not only encountering materials that are based on learning styles.
In addition to bringing more evidence into teaching materials, it is important to help teachers learn how to spot a neuromyth.
In Nash’s survey, some of the education students were reminded to think critically. Students who received this reminder were less likely to believe neuromyths, but they also became more skeptical of facts. It was clear to Nash that a simple reminder is not enough, and that teachers in training need more guidance in critical thinking. “I think we recognize that we need to make space for those conversations within the curriculum,” he says.
Clearly, there isn’t a single solution to help steer teachers away from neuromyths. “We need multiple strategies,” says Adiguzel. He proposes a combination of approaches that include evidence-based training materials and adding critical thinking to the curriculum for teacher education. “Alongside formal training, we should also use public communication to challenge the myths,” he adds.
Incorporating all these suggestions would require some big changes to education systems, but it might be the best chance of steering teachers away from neuromyths.
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