Valid neuroscience research is an increasingly useful resource for guiding interventions in education. But not all "neurocontent" is created equal. With the overall rise in accessible education content has come a rise in the niche of neurological educational content -- content developed for educators based on how the brain works.
One of the more common snags here is the advent of "neuromyths," or content purportedly based on neuroscience that, while sounding plausible, is incorrect.
Neuromyths result from unsupported claims about interventions or products supposedly "proven by neuroscience research." These claims (usually with interventions for sale) are based on research that is either not scientifically valid or not supportive of the specific intervention being promoted.
Consider the financial and socioeconomic costs of commercial products falsely claiming neuroscience proof that all learners need what they offer. The expression "edu-cash-in" is a reasonable description of people trying to capitalize on unsupported claims about the research behind the design and promised outcome of their books, cure-all learning theories, curriculum packages, and edtech products. Further, the falsehoods that neuromyths perpetuate also make educators skeptical about educational practices that actually have a strong evidence base, adding another layer to the problem.
We study history, in part, to learn from the mistakes of the past. Analyzing educationally-relevant neuromyths helps us become more critical consumers, avoiding costly expenditures of inadequately-supported claims and products while remaining alert for important implications of valid neuroscience research.