{"id":6491,"date":"2022-03-14T08:00:59","date_gmt":"2022-03-14T13:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/braindevs.net\/blog\/blog\/?p=6491"},"modified":"2022-03-15T08:40:56","modified_gmt":"2022-03-15T13:40:56","slug":"a-little-help-please","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/a-little-help-please\/","title":{"rendered":"A Little Help, Please…"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve got a problem, and I\u2019m hoping you can help me.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the situation\u2026<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I work as a high school English teacher. And I\u2019m also a consultant \u2013 presenting psychology and neuroscience research for teachers and students and parents.<\/p>\n

In that consulting work, I often face this problem: teachers\/parents\/students believe \u2013 quite confidently \u2013 in some brain myth or another.<\/p>\n

For instance:<\/p>\n

When I talk with teachers about managing working memory load, I regularly get this question:<\/p>\n

\u201cCan we reduce working memory overload by aligning instruction with students\u2019 learning style<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

When I talk about research into attention and distraction, I often hear this rejoinder:<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, but: all the research shows that an enriched environment enhances learning<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

A discussion about student motivation often defaults to this baseline:<\/p>\n

\u201cAround here we remind students to have a growth mindset<\/em>. That will get the job done.\u201d<\/p>\n

A comment about note-taking strategies prompts this response:<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, we know from research that handwritten notes result in more learning than laptop notes.\u201d<\/p>\n

In these moments, how should I \u2013 the \u201coutside expert\u201d \u2013 respond?<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve Got Two Hands<\/h2>\n

On the one hand, I should \u2013 obviously \u2013 let them know they\u2019re wrong<\/em>.<\/p>\n

First<\/strong>, because they are wrong (as far as research currently shows).<\/p>\n

No: learning styles theories have not held up<\/a> over time. We just don\u2019t have good evidence to support them.<\/p>\n

No: \u2018enriched environment\u2019 research doesn\u2019t apply to schools. (It was initially done with rats<\/em><\/a>; lots of research suggests that busy classrooms distract from learning. I tell this story in a recent book<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

No: mindset theory is not a slam dunk<\/a>. This topic churns up lots of controversy, but my own view is\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2026we\u2019ve seen enough positive<\/strong> results to think something is going on there,<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2026and enough negative<\/strong> results to know we don\u2019t have a good handle on the specifics yet<\/em>.<\/p>\n

And<\/p>\n

No: the handwriting vs. laptop debate<\/a> is nowhere near settled.<\/p>\n

The second <\/strong>reason to highlight these errors: we don\u2019t want their colleagues to believe these myths.<\/p>\n

If I don\u2019t contradict these false beliefs right away, they can easily propagate.<\/p>\n

These two truths, however, face an ugly \u201con the other hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the Other Hand<\/h2>\n

When I speak up to contradict these myths, I\u2019m pursuing two goals:<\/p>\n

Change the mind<\/em> of the person who made the comment, and<\/p>\n

Encourage other listeners to adopt correct beliefs<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s my awkward question:<\/p>\n

does contradicting brain myths directly actually accomplish those goals?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Imagine I say:<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m so glad you\u2019ve brought up learning styles. It turns out that the research just hasn\u2019t supported this theory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Will the teachers who made those comments in fact change their minds?<\/p>\n

Will others around them believe me?<\/p>\n

Honestly, I\u2019m not so sure\u2026<\/p>\n

A Compelling Backstory<\/h2>\n

Let\u2019s ask this surprising question: why do people believe in learning styles?<\/em><\/p>\n

Why do they believe that elaborate classroom decoration enhances learning, or that handwritten notes rule? Why do laptop notes receive so much confident hatred?<\/p>\n

Almost certainly, teachers believe in these myths because some other consultant told them that \u201cresearch says so.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Or, they heard these myths at a conference touting “brain science!”<\/p>\n

That is: teachers don\u2019t believe these myths because they reject<\/strong> research. Teachers believe them because they embrace<\/strong> research.<\/p>\n

In many cases, I suspect, they first heard that information at a PD day organized by their principal or district. In other words: they were once professionally expected to believe this myth<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Teachers are not, for the most part, stubborn flat-earth luddites. Instead, they have used these (seemingly) research-based strategies for years. Those strategies might even seem to help.<\/p>\n

Why, then, should they change those beliefs? Just because some new guy (me) shows up and says \u201ctoday\u2019s research shows\u2026\u201d?<\/p>\n

The Big Question<\/h2>\n

So, here\u2019s my problem.<\/p>\n

I really must correct brain myths.<\/p>\n

And, I\u2019m really unsure that \u201ccorrecting brain myths\u201d directly will work.<\/p>\n

For the last few years, I\u2019ve adopted a 3-step strategy in this situation:<\/p>\n

First<\/strong>: I don\u2019t contradict in public. Embarrassing people rarely inspires them to change their opinions.<\/p>\n

Instead, I offer strong, research-based alternatives. (\u201cRather than focus on learning styles to reduce working memory load, I would \u2026\u201d)<\/p>\n

Second<\/strong>: I ask that teacher curious questions in a one-on-one conversation:<\/p>\n

“Where did you first hear about learning styles? Which version have you tried? What research have you explored? Have you looked at recent studies?”<\/p>\n

Once rapport develops, I\u2019ll mention that more current research hasn\u2019t supported the learning styles hypothesis. I might even offer to send links and share resources.<\/p>\n

Third<\/strong>: I include school leadership. Most principals and leadership teams I\u2019ve worked with know common neuromyths, and want to root them out.<\/p>\n

In-school leaders know better than I the best places to intervene: perhaps a departmental conversation, or a future faculty meeting. That is: they know how to spread the word widely without singling out and embarrassing any one teacher.<\/p>\n

I wish I were sure these methods always work. But I simply don\u2019t know<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

And so, here are my questions to you:<\/em><\/p>\n

What approach would be most effective with your colleagues?<\/p>\n

What approach would be most effective with you?<\/p>\n

If, for instance, you feel entirely certain that handwritten notes work better than laptop notes, what could I say to influence your thinking?<\/p>\n

Would it, in fact, help to contradict you at that moment, in front of your peers? (\u201cLet me explain why that study is so obviously flawed\u2026\u201d)<\/p>\n

Did the research-based link above open new avenues for your thinking?<\/p>\n

Would you rather have a one-on-one conversation about that research?<\/p>\n

Honestly, I\u2019m open for suggestions!<\/p>\n

TL;DR<\/h2>\n

We really must correct brain myths in education. And, I\u2019m really unsure about the best way to do so.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m hoping that you\u2019ve got helpful suggestions\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve got a problem, and I\u2019m hoping you can help me. Here\u2019s the situation\u2026 I work as a high school English teacher. And I\u2019m also a consultant \u2013 presenting psychology and neuroscience research for teachers and students and parents. In that consulting work, I often face this problem: teachers\/parents\/students believe \u2013 quite confidently \u2013 in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":6495,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[25],"class_list":["post-6491","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lb-blog","tag-neuromyths"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6491","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6491"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6491\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6498,"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6491\/revisions\/6498"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6491"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6491"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.braindevs.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6491"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}