Pedagogues and educators rely on the latest advances in neuroscience to confirm some of the theories in relation to learning, until recently unquestionable. One of the most widespread and accepted myths is that we only use 10% of the brain. Although it is very possible that we have said it ourselves on occasion and we have heard or read it as something safe, it is proven that this is a false belief.
In any case, if we only used 10% of the brain, what could we do with the remaining 90%? Geniuses are geniuses because they use more than this 10%? Can we stimulate the remaining part? These and many other questions open up infinite evolutionary possibilities and can give false hope regarding everything that we can still evolve and the type of human beings that we could become (telekinesis, telepathy …), in addition to offering a pseudoscientific vision of phenomena that are considered inexplicable.
All regions of the brain are active
It has been shown that inactive areas of the brain can only be seen when a brain injury has been sustained and causes serious damage. It has also been found that, even when we sleep, all parts of our brain have some level of activity, which would be impossible if we only used 10% of the brain. If we are faced with a complex operation, our brain will require a superior intervention. If learning is excessively simple, obviously our brain will save energy and reduce its use to a minimum; but if we subject it to simulations, to fantasy readings, or to exercises that require using the imagination, the areas of the brain that come into play will increase, and consequently the percentage used will be much higher.
The myth could be supported by the fact that until recently only 10% of our brains had been mapped. However, at present it has been possible to map almost 100% and we know that there are different regions in charge of the different types of information processing, and the most relevant thing is that no area has been found that does not fulfill some type of function.
From a pedagogical point of view, knowing that we can and should use more than 10% of our brain should open the doors to curiosity. The brain is no longer that black box that, according to behaviorism, could not be accessed. This new reality should lead us to ask ourselves questions, related, for example, to neurogenesis or neuronal flexibility, and to try new ways of teaching and learning.
Anna Forés is co-director of the Neuroeducation postgraduate course. Learn with all our potential, from the University of Barcelona. This article has been written in collaboration with the Communication Unit of said University.
