Things you were taught that were incorrect?

[o1pickleboy]

In varies threads over the years I have wrong about something because I was taught it in school. In most cases in was about historical stuff as history seem to be the subject most mis-taught. After numerous thread I learn my lesson for the most part and held off posting anything historical I learned as fact . After reading Howard Zinn's "A Peoples history of the United State" my annoyance with the history classes really peaked. Now I know I am not the only one that was mis taught and I am sure they are more things that as kids and young adults we were taught that were wrong or incorrect.

What have you been taught that you learned later was incorrect?

[Paradox]

Not quite exactly the same category, but for years my mother refused to believe I hadn't just made up the word "humongous". She TRIED to teach me wrong, but it didn't take.

EDIT: Oh, and there was my ninth grade English teacher in the same category (tried to, but failed) who insisted that the word "apothecary" was pronounced "ah-pock-rah-thee" and would brook NO correction!

[Lord Bravery]

I was once taught the idea that "no opinion can be wrong". My time on the internet has proved this to be false, in sometimes spectacular and hilarious fashion.

[Paradox]

Various myths, also, about George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were taught to me as fact. We really needed a snopes.com back then.

[GozertheGozarian]

U.S. history is full of them. Paul Revere's ride and Franklin's kite are exaggerations of the true story.

[Michael P]

U.S. history is full of them. Paul Revere's ride and Franklin's kite are exaggerations of the true story.

"When the truth and legend collide, print the legend."

Hey, there's one: The truth is always preferable to a lie.

[Jorriss]

Like everyone, most of US history was taught incorrectly. Unfortunately, I have not taken many college history courses so I do not even know the extent of the incorrect information given or if college courses would be fully accurate (upto normal errors).

I was especially mistaught about why we should celebrate Columbus day.

No one ever told me as a kid Thomas Edison was not a very good scientist and was kind of an asshole.

A lot of science is taught incorrectly, but that can happen when you have unqualified people teaching it.

[Kees_L]

What have you been taught that you learned later was incorrect?

I find that what helps me to not be making an ass of myself due to not getting things right would be to just keep trying to be getting things right, with acknowledging others their knowledge both as 'fessing up to my own mistakes.

I don't want to ever be going "don't blame me but blame my education" or "don't blame me but blame my upbringing or my environments". As such would seem stupid to me.

To my mind nobody would be above or free of making mistakes, nobody not ever. But anyone apparently capable of getting something right or having a point at some point should be to deserve my complete attention.

Plus it will be logical that there will be a lot of mistakes to make, a lot of getting stuff wrong instead of quite right, for literally anyone. So it will be logical that people should be ready for and capable of dealing with getting proven wrong or not right - especially on anything other than but the simplest or most straightforward things.
It will be possible for anyone to get simple things not quite right - but it will be likely to get difficult things not totally right all the time.

[worstblogever]

Columbus being heroic, and not a motherf***er who got lost, kept insisting he was in China, and then went mad with power as a viceroy, literally hunted Native Americans in the Caribbean for sport. I remember him being painted in a much kinder light, and it wasn't until high school they started to correct some of that.

[Matt Algren]

"Catch a tiger by the toe."


Didn't find out the original lyric until I was in my 30s.

[finfangfool]

I remember one history textbook mentioning the superiority of the generals of the confederacy (which by all accounts was true with few exceptions), but also saying literally confederate soldiers were each worth 10 union soldiers (as in fought as well as 10 of our soldiers). I remember thinking that I wasn't a history or math expert, but even with the supply advantage they should have whupped us handily if that were the case. This was in a Vermont school (for those not familiar with Vermont, it's about as far from the South culturally and politically as you can get then or now), but I suppose the textbook could have been written and printed somewhere else. Also the usual cherry tree, log cabin, manifest destiny BS we're all familiar with.

[kmeyers]

That Marijuana makes you able to fly.

[Rasputin9977]

The Alamo being part of US patriotism and freedom just makes no sense.

[Johnny P. Sartre]

[dupont2005]

Not quite exactly the same category, but for years my mother refused to believe I hadn't just made up the word "humongous". She TRIED to teach me wrong, but it didn't take.

EDIT: Oh, and there was my ninth grade English teacher in the same category (tried to, but failed) who insisted that the word "apothecary" was pronounced "ah-pock-rah-thee" and would brook NO correction!

I used the word "bastardized" in front of my mom and she started laughing hysterically. She said she was going to look the word up on Urban Dictionary, I told her she could just use the regular dictionary if she wants