Neuromyths and instructional illusions in higher arts education: initial development of the Teaching and Learning Misconceptions Questionnaire

Background The persistence of neuromyths among educators remains a significant concern worldwide. Although recent research has begun to expand toward other forms of misconceptions, including those related to instructional design, evidence from regional and local contexts remains limited. This preliminary study examined the prevalence of educational neuromyths and instructional illusions among Ecuadorian teachers and students in higher education arts programs and explores the internal structure of the Teaching and Learning Misconceptions Questionnaire, designed to assess erroneous beliefs about teaching and learning. Methods The sample consisted of 81 teachers and 208 students from an Ecuadorian higher education institution specializing in the arts. The questionnaire included 19 items assessing general brain knowledge, 2 highly prevalent neuromyths, and 16 filler items addressing instructional illusions. Results The results showed high levels of endorsement of multiple intelligences (94% of teachers and 89% of students) and learning styles (96% of teachers and 99% of students), as well as the engagement illusion (72.22% of teachers and 78.49% of students), student-centered illusion (59.26% of teachers and 76.08% of students), discovery illusion (68.21% of teachers and 62.02% of students), and transfer illusion (63.89% of teachers and 54.45% of students). General brain knowledge negatively predicted endorsement of neuromyths, but not of instructional illusions. Conclusion These preliminary findings suggest that educational misconceptions do not constitute a unitary category, but rather reflect distinct conceptual foundations and interrelated systems of pedagogical beliefs.