In the realm of education, the persistence of myths among teaching professionals presents a significant challenge to the advancement of evidence-based pedagogical practices. A recent study conducted by Tunga, Celik, and Cagiltay, published in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, uncovers troubling evidence that many educators continue to hold onto widely debunked educational myths despite ongoing interventions aimed at correcting such misconceptions. Myths such as learning styles, multiple intelligences, and the alleged direct link between violent digital games and real-life aggression were found to be particularly resilient, as were misunderstandings surrounding 21st-century skills and the popularly misrepresented hierarchy of needs concept attributed to Maslow. This research not only highlights the stubborn endurance of these beliefs but also shines a critical light on how teacher preparation programs and continued professional development efforts have so far struggled to instigate lasting conceptual change.
One of the central findings of the study is that myths are often disseminated through undergraduate teacher education and professional training programs. This indicates that institutions responsible for preparing future educators bear a significant responsibility for either perpetuating these myths or dismantling them effectively. In many cases, educators rely heavily on popular science articles and secondary summaries rather than engaging directly with primary, peer-reviewed research, which tends to be more nuanced and updated to reflect the current scientific consensus. This reliance on accessible but simplified or outdated sources further entrenches misconceptions. Therefore, the path forward must involve curricular reforms at the university level to introduce teacher candidates explicitly to the nature of educational research, helping them develop critical appraisal skills that can discern between robust evidence and anecdotal or commercially motivated claims.
Interestingly, the study revealed a nuanced approach to correcting these entrenched myths. It showed that anecdotal refutations—using concrete stories and relatable case studies—were sometimes more effective than purely scientific explanations in shifting beliefs. This is a pivotal insight because it underscores the emotional and experiential dimensions of belief change, which purely factual arguments alone may not sufficiently address. Teachers may internally resist changing views that are intertwined with their identity, teaching philosophies, or simplifications that help make sense of complex educational phenomena. Thus, interventions combining rigorous scientific data with compelling narratives about classroom realities might hold more promise for fostering genuine conceptual change among educators.
However, notwithstanding these interventions, some misconceptions, particularly those connected with learning styles and multiple intelligences, exhibit remarkable resistance to change. The pervasiveness and longevity of these ideas can, in part, be attributed to their intuitive appeal and widespread acceptance in popular culture. Such myths often promise straightforward solutions to the complex task of personalizing education, making them difficult to dislodge even when confronted with contradictory evidence. This tenacity calls for more robust and sustained efforts that go beyond single-session refutations or cursory mentions in teacher training. Continuous engagement through workshops, reflective practices, mentorship, and community learning networks is necessary to challenge these deeply ingrained beliefs effectively over time.
The implications of this persistence of myths extend far beyond academic debates. Believing in unsupported or disproven educational concepts can directly affect classroom practices, potentially leading to the inefficient use of resources and missed opportunities to employ more effective, research-backed teaching strategies. For instance, investing time and classroom attention aligned strictly with the idea of learning styles may divert focus from more impactful, universal instructional techniques that promote cognitive engagement across all learners. Consequently, dispelling these myths is not merely an academic exercise but a critical step toward enhancing educational outcomes on a systemic level.
Policymakers hold a particularly strategic position in shifting the paradigms within teacher education and professional development frameworks. The study emphasizes the need for system-level mandates that require evidence-based curricula in all teacher preparation programs. Accreditation bodies must stipulate rigorous standards that ensure programs explicitly address and dismantle common educational myths. Moreover, external audits and reviews should be implemented to monitor compliance and effectiveness, thereby fostering a culture of accountability. Without such structural changes, efforts to reform teacher beliefs risk being fragmented and short-lived, falling prey to entrenched traditions or the allure of commercially attractive but unfounded pedagogical products.
The study additionally calls for long-term research aimed at understanding how beliefs evolve in educators over time and what kinds of interventions produce lasting change. Many existing interventions focus only on immediate or short-term belief shifts, which may not translate into enduring conceptual transformation or changes in classroom behavior. Investing in longitudinal studies would provide valuable insights into the durability of belief change and inform the design of more effective professional development programs. Complementary to this, professional learning opportunities need to be rooted firmly in empirical evidence rather than outdated practices or commercially driven training modules, which often perpetuate myths under the guise of innovation.
At the school level, administrators act as crucial agents of change, uniquely positioned to influence teacher beliefs and classroom practices. Schools must conduct thorough reviews of their instructional materials and pedagogical activities to identify where these outdated myths implicitly or explicitly persist. This might involve removing learning style inventories or discarding lesson plans based exclusively on multiple intelligences frameworks, replacing them with strategies aligned to the best available research. Administrators can steer school cultures toward reflective, research-informed practice by fostering environments that encourage critical examination of long-standing beliefs and their impact on teaching effectiveness.
Creating structured opportunities for teachers to engage in critical reflection and dialogue is another pivotal role for school leaders. Facilitating peer collaboration, reflective journaling, and discussion groups within safe and supportive environments allows educators to question ingrained assumptions and experiment with evidence-based alternatives. Through such processes, teachers can gradually reconcile new information with existing beliefs, reducing resistance to change and fostering a culture of continuous professional growth founded on scientific literacy.
Moreover, professional learning initiatives organized by schools should move beyond merely introducing new instructional strategies. They need to actively challenge existing, ineffective methods by presenting research findings that debunk widely held myths. Disseminating research like that of Tunga and colleagues plays an essential part in helping teachers grasp the broader consequences of their pedagogical choices. Given that many educators derive ideas from popular books, videos, and social media—sources often steeped in anecdote rather than evidence—administrators must guide staff toward reputable, current research, setting a model for informed decision-making grounded in empirical rigor.
Underlying these recommendations is the recognition that dismantling educational myths is a complex, ongoing process requiring multi-layered interventions across various educational strata. Teacher educators, policymakers, and school administrators each play indispensable roles in catalyzing this change. For teacher educators, integrating explicit myth-debunking content into curricula and encouraging research literacy is paramount. Policymakers must enforce standards and support longitudinal research, while school leaders should cultivate reflective professional cultures and monitor instructional authenticity. Collectively, these initiatives can reshape the pedagogical landscape, helping teachers transition from myth-bound practices to those supported by the best available evidence, ultimately enhancing student learning and educational equity.
The persistence of myths in education epitomizes a broader challenge in knowledge translation, where scientific evidence encounters deep-seated beliefs, cultural narratives, and institutional inertia. The findings from this study caution against complacency and underscore the necessity of intentional, multifaceted efforts to realign educational practice with scientific understanding. As educational professionals worldwide grapple with the rapid pace of change and mounting expectations, ensuring they are equipped with accurate knowledge is critical for meeting the demands of modern classrooms and fostering meaningful, lasting learning experiences for all students.
By emphasizing that educational myths often derive from good intentions yet flawed interpretations, this study humanizes the struggle, reminding us that belief change is rarely straightforward. It requires patience, empathy, and pragmatism—elements captured in the advocacy for diverse refutation techniques combining scientific data with relatable narratives. This balanced approach respects the complexity of teacher cognition and underscores the importance of storytelling in professional learning, enabling educators not only to learn new information but also to integrate it meaningfully into their practices and identities.
Ultimately, the stakes are high; perpetuating myths can inadvertently undermine efforts to enhance educational quality on a broad scale. This comprehensive research provides a roadmap for addressing this issue head-on, calling for systemic reforms that prioritize research literacy, critical reflection, and evidence-based practice at every level of the educational ecosystem. The outcomes promise not only to transform teacher education but also to reverberate through classrooms, improving learning experiences and outcomes for generations of students.
Subject of Research:
The persistence and prevalence of educational myths among teachers, and the effectiveness of interventions aimed at changing educators’ beliefs.
Article Title:
Educational myths among teachers: prevalence and refutational intervention for belief change.
Article References:
Tunga, Y., Celik, B. & Cagiltay, K. Educational myths among teachers: prevalence and refutational intervention for belief change.
Humanit Soc Sci Commun 12, 1619 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05470-y
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