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Article by Anne Guignon
Education World®
Copyright © 1998 Education World
Multiple Intelligences: A Theory for Everyone
Howard 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
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