The Top Ten Science Education Myths
There are many misconceptions surrounding science, here we set the record straight with hard facts.
| MYTH #1: | Kids hate taking science in school. |
| REALITY: | Half, 50 percent, of 10-17 year olds put science at the top or near the top of their list of favorite subjects. |
| MYTH #2: | Kids think that science is dull and boring. |
| REALITY: | 42 percent of 10-17 year olds say science is the subject (they) are most curious about. Science was ranked as boring by only 14 percent of the students. |
| MYTH #3: | Kids think science class doesn't relate to the real world. |
| REALITY: | 94 percent of 10-17 year olds say that science isn't just in the classroom; it's part of every day life in the world around you. |
| MYTH #4: | Kids think learning science is mostly about memorizing facts. |
| REALITY: | 89 percent of 10-17 year olds say science lets (them) be very creative. And 89 percent say the best way they can learn science is to observe things and do their own experiments. |
| MYTH #5: | Kids grow up believing that science is more for boys and not for girls. |
| REALITY: | 89 percent of all 10-17 year olds disagree. |
| MYTH #6: | Kids think science is for nerds. |
| REALITY: | 93 percent of all 10-17 year olds disagree, ranking science as the coolest. |
| MYTH #7: | Most kids are turned off science in school. |
| REALITY: | When 10-17 year olds were asked for positive and negative things about science, 91 percent could find good things to say while only 32 percent took the opposite view. |
| MYTH #8: | Most kids don't have access to computers at home. |
| REALITY: | 68 percent of 10-17 year olds say they have a computer in their home. |
| MYTH #9: | Kids just use computers to play games. |
| REALITY: | Of those 10-17 year olds who have and use computers, 75 percent do school work, 64 percent learn things on their own, and 41 percent get information on science topics on their computers. |
| MYTH #10: | Minority kids don't have access to computers at home. |
| REALITY: | While slightly more than half of African American and Hispanic 10-17 year olds don't, 46 percent of African Americans and Hispanic kids say they have a computer in at home. |
*Source: "The Bayer Facts of Science Education III: A U.S. Student Report Card on Science Education" (1997)