Professional paper
https://doi.org/10.32633/eb.11.1.5
From misconceptions to learning opportunities
Melita Povalec
orcid.org/0009-0003-7111-9228
; Školska knjiga d. d.; Jure Kaštelana Elementary School, Zagreb
Vida Bilogrević Gatolin
orcid.org/0009-0007-1855-2347
; 2 Ive Andrića Elementary School
*
* Corresponding author.
Abstract
This paper aims to analyse the most common misconceptions – false beliefs originating from popular culture and everyday media content – and to examine their influence on the understanding of science and natural phenomena. The analysis includes examples from animated films, advertisements, public campaigns, and online articles that spread inaccurate notions about biological concepts. The method of qualitative content analysis was used to compare widespread claims with verified scientific explanations. The results show that the media often oversimplify and sensationalise science, thereby shaping erroneous perceptions. Examples such as the identification of a hare and a rabbit in the character of Bugs Bunny (Zekoslav Mrkva), the belief that the colour red enrages bulls, or that shampoos "repair" hair demonstrate how trivial messages can have a lasting impact on the perception of science. Such content confirms Van Riper’s observation (2003) that popular culture "shapes most people’s understanding of science more than formal education" (EMBO Reports, 4(12), 1104–1107), and Schiele’s findings (2020) that pseudoscientific narratives in the media foster skepticism toward scientific authorities (Journal of Science Communication, 19(02), L01). The conclusions emphasise that the debunking of misconceptions is crucial for the development of scientific and media literacy. Teachers have a decisive role in this process by recognising the fallacies that students bring from the media environment, encouraging critical thinking, and comparing popular claims with proven facts, thereby creating new learning opportunities. Systematically incorporating topics about fallacies into science and biology curricula contributes to the understanding of science as a dynamic, investigative process, and science and biology educational outcomes that thematise science provide an opportunity to resolve these misconceptions. Teachers and educators can turn media misconceptions into powerful teaching incentives for research, argumentation, and source verification through guided analysis, clear distinctions between facts and interpretations, and instruction in how to verify claims.
Keywords
misconceptions; popular culture; media; science literacy
Hrčak ID:
343033
URI
Publication date:
27.12.2025.
Visits: 408 *