Learning Myths

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Learning Myths

Task-Based Learning

Fixed Intelligence

Growth Mindset

Task-Based Design

Learning Styles Instruction

Left or Right-Brained

Brain Lateralization

Learning Pyramid

Active Learning

Growth Mindset

10,000 HourRule

Purposeful Practice

"In lateralization, the left hemisphere and right hemispheres of the brain have very different functions, but they communicate with each other through their physical connections." -Michael Gazzaniga and Roger Sperry Source: MedicineNet

"It has been conjectured that individuals may be left-brain dominant or right-brain dominant based on personality and cognitive style, but neuroimaging data has not provided clear evidence whether such phenotypic differences in the strength of left-dominant or right-dominant networks exist." - Jared A. Nielsen et al. Source: Plos One

A.K.A. The Cone of Experience "Through comprehensive searches in digital libraries, we have found that versions of the Learning Pyramids have been part of educational debates and practices for more than 160 years. These findings demonstrate that the models did not originate from empirical research." -Kare Letrod and Sigbjorn Hernes Source: Cogent Education See Also Educational Technology

"Our empirical findings show that students thought courses that adopted an ACL as the key learning environment were significantly better designed and more encouraging of student creativity and innovation than courses which used regular classrooms; thus, student perceptions were improved [...] The results suggest that ACLs are better environments for nurturing innovation for all students, regardless of their academic ability." -Pit Ho Patrio Chiu and Shuk Han Cheng Source: Higher Education Research and Development

"[...] the more methodologically sound studies have tended to refute the hypothesis and that a substantial divide continues to exist, with learning styles instruction enjoying broad acceptance in practice, but the majority of research evidence suggesting that it has no benefit to student learning, deepening questions about its validity." -Joshua Quevas Source: Sage Journals

"Kozhenvnikov et al. (2014) found that cognitive preferences are best represented as a matrix between the full range of a learner’s processing strategies matched with the task at hand." -Matt Strader: The Edvocate Source: Sage Journals

"This article [...] reviews research on adult practices that do instill growth mindsets, concluding that a sustained focus on the process of learning is critical." -Kyla Haimovitz and Carol Dweck Source: SRCD

"[...] recent research has demonstrated that deliberate practice, while undeniably important, is only one piece of the expertise puzzle—and not necessarily the biggest piece." -David Hambrick et. al: Slate See also: 1. The role of deliberate practice in expert performance: revisiting Ericsson, Krampe & Tesch-Römer (1993) 2. The role of domain-specific practice, handedness, and starting age in chess 3. The Relationship Between Deliberate Practice and Performance in Sports: A Meta-Analysis

"Purposeful practice is focused on the achievement of specific, well-defined goals [...] According to Anders Ericcson, the hallmark of purposeful practice is trying to do something you cannot already do. It involves practicing new skills repeatedly, focusing on exactly how you are doing them, where you are falling short, and how you can get better. Key to this is gathering reliable feedback to know if you’re improving." -Rick Kettner at RickKettner.com See also: 1. Purposeful practice as the key to superior sales performance: An exploratory analysis 2. Development and initial validation of an instrument to measure engagement in purposeful practice among youth soccer athletes

"The FE [Flynn Effect] refers to a consistent upward drift in intelligence test scores across generations of about three points per decade. This occurs when a contemporary examinee’s test performance is compared to norms derived from a previous generational cohort when the average performance was lower than it is today." -Jacques Grégoire, Lawrence G. Weiss in WISCV "The effect is widely accepted as real, and typically thought to be due to various societal improvements that enhance development of the brain and nervous system such as nutrition, healthcare, and education."