Australian scientists conducted a survey among 563 educators working with young children. During the study, it was found that most of them believed in neuromyths.

Researchers from several Australian universities conducted a large-scale survey among teachers of young children. Participants were found through social networks and email.

About 75% of respondents worked in kindergartens, the rest in schools. Most of them (35.5%) had professional experience ranging from 20 to 40 years. Teachers and educators who have worked for up to three years made up 4.9 percent. Participants were asked to evaluate as incorrect or correct 14 statements about common myths, such as "Our brains turn off when we sleep," and 13 true statements, such as "Healthy nutrition is one of the most effective ways to help children develop their brains."

Some myths were correctly assessed by the participants as false. More than 90% of respondents correctly identified the statements "Our brains turn off when we sleep" and "Intellectual ability is determined only by heredity and cannot be changed by environment or experience" as completely incorrect.

However, it turned out that some of the myths were incorrectly assessed. In particular, only seven percent of the participants knew that the not only outdated, but also completely incorrect theory about "visual," "audial," and "kinesthetics" was never confirmed by reliable experimental evidence. Only 15 percent of them understood that the "logical" and "sensory" hemispheres of the brain do not exist.

The ability to possess precise knowledge of neuropsychology and critically evaluate myths is what researchers call neural literacy. On average, teachers received a low score - 13.7 out of 27 points. Scientists did not find statistically significant differences related to age, experience, and other factors. However, the indicators of self-esteem, that is, confidence in one's capabilities and expectations of success in their implementation, differed significantly. Teachers with work experience from 31 to 40 years rated themselves the highest - 7.28, the youngest - 5.65; Teachers with 41 years or more of experience - 8.22. Teachers and educators received an average of 6.66 points out of 10.

The scientists' conclusions were published in the journal Trends in Neuroscience and Education. Unfortunately, not only Australian teachers and educators believe in "psychological" myths. Spanish scientists analyzed 24 studies in dozens of countries and found that the knowledge of most teachers in the field of neuropsychology is not at the required level.