|
Multiple Intelligences: A Theory for EveryoneHoward
Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences makes people think
about "IQ," about being "smart." The theory is changing the
way some teachers teach.
When Howard Gardner's book, Frames of Mind: The Theory
of Multiple Intelligences (Basic Books, 1983) burst on the
scene, it seemed to answer many questions for experienced
teachers. We all had students who didn't fit the mold; we knew
the students were bright, but they didn't excel on tests.
Gardner's claim that there are several different kinds of
intelligence gave us and others involved with teaching and
learning a way of beginning to understand those students. We
would look at what they could do well, instead of what they
could not do.
Later Gardner books, such as The Unschooled Mind: How
Children Think and How Schools Should Teach (Basic Books,
1991) and Multiple Intelligences: The Theory in
Practice (Basic Books, 1993) helped us understand how
multiple intelligences could help us teach and evaluate our
students in new and better ways.
WHO IS HOWARD GARDNER?
Howard
Gardner, Ph.D. is a professor at Harvard University and
the author of many books and articles. His theory of multiple
intelligences has challenged long-held assumptions about
intelligence -- especially about a single measure of
intelligence. Dr. Gardner also co-directs Harvard's Project
Zero.
THE ORIGINAL SEVEN INTELLIGENCES
Howard Gardner first identified and introduced to us seven
different kinds of intelligence in Frames of Mind.
- Linguistic intelligence: a sensitivity to the
meaning and order of words.
- Logical-mathematical intelligence: ability in
mathematics and other complex logical systems.
- Musical intelligence: the ability to understand
and create music. Musicians, composers and dancers show a
heightened musical intelligence.
- Spatial intelligence: the ability to "think in
pictures," to perceive the visual world accurately, and
recreate (or alter) it in the mind or on paper. Spatial
intelligence is highly developed in artists, architects,
designers and sculptors.
- Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence: the ability to
use one's body in a skilled way, for self-expression or
toward a goal. Mimes, dancers, basketball players, and
actors are among those who display bodily-kinesthetic
intelligence.
- Interpersonal intelligence: an ability to
perceive and understand other individuals -- their moods,
desires, and motivations. Political and religious leaders,
skilled parents and teachers, and therapists use this
intelligence.
- Intrapersonal intelligence: an understanding of
one's own emotions. Some novelists and or counselors use
their own experience to guide others.
Then, Gardner identified an eighth intelligence, the
naturalist intelligence.
HOWARD GARDNER TALKS ABOUT AN EIGHTH INTELLIGENCE
Gardner discussed the "eighth intelligence" with Kathy
Checkley, in an interview for Educational Leadership, The First Seven... and the Eighth. Gardner
said, "The naturalist intelligence refers to the ability to
recognize and classify plants, minerals, and animals,
including rocks and grass and all variety of flora and fauna.
The ability to recognize cultural artifacts like cars or
sneakers may also depend on the naturalist intelligence.
…(S)ome people from an early age are extremely good at
recognizing and classifying artifacts. For example, we all
know kids who, at 3 or 4, are better at recognizing dinosaurs
than most adults."
Gardner identified Charles Darwin as a prime example of
this type of intelligence.
The naturalist intelligence meshed with Gardner's
definition of intelligence as "…the human ability to solve
problems or to make something that is valued in one or more
cultures." And the naturalist intelligence met Gardner's
specific criteria:
- "Is there a particular representation in the brain for
the ability?
- "Are there populations that are especially good or
especially impaired in an intelligence?
- "And, can an evolutionary history of the intelligence be
seen in animals other than human beings?"
IMPLEMENTING GARDNER'S THEORY IN THE CLASSROOM
When asked how educators should implement the theory of
multiple intelligences, Gardner says, "(I)t's very important
that a teacher take individual differences among kids very
seriously … The bottom line is a deep interest in children and
how their minds are different from one another, and in helping
them use their minds well."
An awareness of multiple-intelligence theory has stimulated
teachers to find more ways of helping all students in their
classes. Some schools do this by adapting curriculum. In
"Variations on a Theme: How Teachers Interpret MI Theory,"
(Educational Leadership, September 1997), Linda
Campbell describes five approaches to curriculum change:
- Lesson design. Some schools focus on lesson
design. This might involve team teaching ("teachers focusing
on their own intelligence strengths"), using all or several
of the intelligences in their lessons, or asking student
opinions about the best way to teach and learn certain
topics.
- Interdisciplinary units. Secondary schools often
include interdisciplinary units.
- Student projects. Students can learn to "initiate
and manage complex projects" when they are creating student
projects.
- Assessments. Assessments are devised which allow
students to show what they have learned. Sometimes this
takes the form of allowing each student to devise the way he
or she will be assessed, while meeting the teacher's
criteria for quality.
- Apprenticeships. Apprenticeships can allow
students to "gain mastery of a valued skill gradually, with
effort and discipline over time." Gardner feels that
apprenticeships "…should take up about one-third of a
student's schooling experience."
With an understanding of Gardner's theory of multiple
intelligences, teachers, school administrators, and parents
can better understand the learners in their midst. They can
allow students to safely explore and learn in many ways, and
they can help students direct their own learning. Adults can
help students understand and appreciate their strengths, and
identify real-world activities that will stimulate more
learning.
Article by Anne Guignon
Education World®
Copyright ©
1998 Education World
02/16/1998
Links Updated 11/11/2004
|
