The Theory of Multiple Intelligence - Case Study Example

Why Multiple Intelligence Is Important In The room I. Introduction The theory of Multiple Intelligence (MI) is a product of years of research conducted by Dr. Howard Gardner. Dr. Gardner proposed the MI theory in his book Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences which was published in 1983. In defining intelligence, Dr. Garner said that "Intelligence is a biopsychological potential to process information that can be activated in a cultural setting to solve problems or create products that are of value in a culture" (Gardener H. 1999 page 34). According to Dr. Garner, intelligence should not be measured by the IQ of the person alone and that without productivity, high IQ should not be equated with intelligence (Gardener H. 1999). For him, intelligence cannot be measured through an IQ test. In fact, IQ is but one of the areas for measuring intelligence. Originally, Dr. Gardner suggested seven core intelligences in human beings namely (1) linguistics (2) logical-mathematical (3) spatial (4) bodily-kinesthetic (5) musical (6) interpersonal and (7) intrapersonal (Gardner, H 1983). Later on, he added another core intelligence which is the naturalistic intelligence (Gardner H. 1999). Although the theory of MI introduced by Dr. Gardner was widely criticized by the educational theory community and the psychology community citing that MI is largely based on the intuition of Gardner and not much on empirical data (Morgan, 1996; Klein, Perry, D. (1997); Waterhouse, Lynn (2006) many educators around the world embraced the MI theory. Many schools from different parts of the world adapted MI as pedagogy and many teachers use MI to impart knowledge to their students inside and outside of the classroom. Despite the many arguments about MI in both the psychology and education communities, studies have shown that the use of MI is the classroom produce positive results. A study initiated by Harvard University showed that the use of MI is the classroom created a culture of respect, hardworking and more open relationship between the teacher and the students (Kornhaber, Mindy (2004). By adopting MI is the classroom, both the teacher and the students learn from each other (Kornhaber, Mindy. (2004). II. Why MI Is Important In The Classroom There are a number of reasons why educators should adopt MI in the classroom. First, MI helps in diversifying classroom instruction. When the theory of MI was introduced by Gardner in 1983, several authors caught on the subject and wrote extensive materials about MI and how it can be implemented inside and outside of the classroom (Davies 1996). Due to the many books and educational materials that are created in line with the MI theory, teachers can now easily create interesting classroom activities for their students (Davies 1996). Moreover, the fact that the MI framework is more flexible compared to the traditional concepts of education, teachers can now easily update old curricula and make these curricula more responsive to the needs of the students. MI techniques are flexible. If the teacher feels that the curricula do not give enough room for the students to grow and maximize their potentials, the teacher can always modify the curricula to help the students attain their full potentials. The teacher does not even have to stick to a uniform curriculum for all students if he or she feels that a uniform curriculum is not effective in helping his or her students achieve their full learning potentials. Practically, the work of the teacher in terms of lesson planning is made easier with the introduction of MI into the educational system (Davies 1996). MI does not have rigid rules when it comes to lesson planning. It nurtures the creativity of the teacher in planning the lessons for his or her pupils. It gives the teacher more latitude to help his or her students learn and be more productive inside and outside of the classroom. The second reason why MI is important in the classroom is that it helps the student feel more empowered by facilitating bridging techniques and study skills. Since MI does not just focus on one aspect of learning, the teacher can easily create a more diversified and personalized teaching method. The fact that the MI theory is very versatile made it possible for teachers and educators to more creative in imparting knowledge to their students. This situation is especially favorable to teachers in the elementary level. Note creativity is very important when it comes to dealing with small children. By thinking out of the box, the teacher has more chances of engaging his or her students into more productive activities in the classroom. The MI theory is especially helpful is creating a more personalized teaching method for students who have learning difficulties. Yes, creating a personalized teaching method for certain students may sound like added burden to teachers but since MI is open to a lot of modifications, the idea of creating something special for students with learning difficulties is not really so repulsive to most teachers. In fact, most teachers rise to the challenge of teaching a student with learning difficulties. These dedicated teachers use the eight intelligences suggested by Gardner to reach out to their students and help them improve their learning skills. For instance, if the student is musically inclined, the teacher may create a music based lesson for that student. On the other hand, if the student is more inclined towards numbers, the teacher can help the student learn better by using numbers in guiding the students. The general idea here is to "awaken" the mind of the student and make it more ready for learning. Yes, the whole process of "awakening" the mind may take a lot of hard work, patience and time on part of the student and the teacher but in the end, when the student does start to learn, the whole business of investing time and effort into learning is well worth it. Aside from helping students with learning difficulties, MI is also very useful in enhancing the learning skills of students. The MI theory and techniques can help a lot to convey the importance of the different types of metacognitive functions. Bear in mind that metacognition is a very important aspect of learning. Metacognition helps the student assess the strengths of their memory and how their perception of their memory strength affects their decision-making process (Shimamura, A. P. (2000). When applied with MI, metacognition can help the student feel more in control of his or her mind (Shimamura, A. P. (2000), thus, in theory; he or she becomes more open to learning. Creating learning aids that are easily remember and apply can make the student learn more easily that the traditional teaching and formal classroom instructions (Justin Kruger, David Dunning (1999). For instance, a student who is more inclined towards music can be made to memorize passages from a book by associating the passages with musical notes. Indeed, this learning technique is a lot more fun than the traditional formal teaching methods. The third reason why MI is important in the classroom is that it serves a tool for understanding the self and other others. The MI theory open up the potential for developing higher levels of personal, interpersonal, cultural and professional understanding between students and teachers. By viewing intelligence in different angles, one can expand his or her understanding of him/herself and others. You see, MI recognizes the difference between individuals. For teachers, MI opens up different doors for understanding their students. The general framework of MI encourage both the teacher and the students to view intelligence in a more complex manner instead of viewing it as a one way street where the teacher teaches and the students learn. MI allows for more dynamic interaction between teachers and students. The whole process of dynamic interaction is very important to facilitate learning. Moreover, it prevents stereotyping and typecasting of students in certain categories at school. Instead of simply relegating a certain student to the category of slow learners, MI gives the teacher the latitude to explore the strengths of the student and focus on that strength to help the student learn better. When the student feels that he or she is on familiar grounds, he or she will feel more comfortable and open to learning. According to a study initiated by Harvard University, students who were educated using the MI theory reported that they feel more confident and at home in the classroom. Aside from facilitating a more dynamic interaction between teachers and students, MI also helps facilitate understanding between cultures. According to Gardner, Western culture is different from other cultures so there is a need to consider cultural differences of students in the classroom (Gardner 1983, 1993; Armstrong 1994). Western culture value linguistic and mathematical intelligence more than other groups of people while Asian and European tend to lean more into the artistic side (Armstrong 1994). Since decision-making processes of different groups of people are influence by their cultural background, it is therefore important to take into consideration the culture of the place where the students come from. Both teachers and students can benefit much from understanding their cultural difference. On the part of the teacher, firm understanding about cultural diversity can help him or her expand his or understanding of his or her students. Moreover, knowledge about different cultures can help the teacher guide his or her students towards deeper understanding of cultural diversity. On the other end, exposure to diverse culture can help students understand each other better. The fourth reason why MI is important in the classroom is that it taps into the natural talents of the students to create a state of "flow". The general idea is here is to channel the energy of the students towards the subject matters or tasks that interest them most in order to create a state of flow. The state of flow can be described simply as intense state of concentration or well focused attention (Csikszentmihalyi 1996). As students into a state of flow, they become more attuned to the task at hand. Normally, a state of flow can only be achieved if the person is very much interested in what he or she is doing. Moreover, if a person is very much interested in something, he or she will not really mind the time and efforts that he or she put into the task. In fact, if a person is truly interested in the task at hand, he or she can work on that task with high level of concentration for a sustained period of time. For instance, if you ask a musically inclined person to learn music, he or she is more like to jump into the chance of learning music than the next person who is not really interested in music at all. Moreover, he or she is more likely to devote a lot of time and effort into his or her studies compared to the other person who is not really so interested in the subject. Creating positive educational experiences for students is very important and this can be done with the use of the MI theory. Education should a pleasurable experience and not some kind of torture. MI techniques can help motivate students to learn and continue learning on their own even after formal classroom instruction is over. As a continuing process, education should not only occur inside the classroom. The best way to encourage the students to continue learning on their own is to project education as a pleasurable experience by tapping into their natural talents. MI theory facilitates the validation of the natural talents of teachers and students. A lot of good teachers are highly intuitive when it comes to their students. Even when qualitative assessment tells them that a certain student is intellectually challenged, most teachers have that gut feeling that that certain student has natural talents that lies dormant inside him or her, waiting to be discovered. In the traditional method of classroom instruction where the students are treated in the same way, a student who appears to be intellectually challenge do not usually get the attention that he or she needs. On the other hand, with MI, that same student gets a second chance to prove his or her worth. III. Conclusion While some experts may argue about the fact that MI theory is not based on empirical facts, it cannot be denied that MI is very important in the classroom. A singular psychometric approach is measuring intelligence such as the IQ test is not enough to measure the intelligence of a person. Just because a person has IQ score that is not an assurance that he or she will become productive. To measure the true intelligence level of a person, a holistic approach must be taken. A person is a complex being and it would be unfair to simply just assume that he or she has low intelligence level but simply using a singular psychometric approach. Understanding and using MI theory in the classroom is therefore very important if we want our students to be more productive. Students are not the only ones who benefit from the use of MI in the classroom. MI transforms the classroom into a dynamic learning place where the teacher and the students can learn from each other. If facilitates better understanding of human diversity, different learning patters and different levels of intelligence. References: 1. Armstrong, T. (1994 ) Multiple Intelligence in the classroom. Alexandria, VA: The Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development. 2. Csikszentmihaly, M. (1996 ) Creativity: Flow and the psychology of discovery and invention. New York: Harper/Collins. 3. Gardner, H. (1999a. Intelligence reframed: Multiple intelligences for the 21st century. New York: Basic Books 4. Gardner, Howard. (1983) "Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences." New York, Basic Books 5. Justin Kruger, David Dunning (1999) Unskilled and Unaware of It: How Difficulties in Recognizing Ones Own Incompetence Lead to Inflated Self-Assessments, Cornell University, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 77 No. 6 pp 1121-1134 American Psychological Association 6. Klein, Perry, D. (1997) "Multiplying the problems of intelligence by eight: A critique of Gardners theory", Canadian Journal of Education, 22(4), 377-394 7. Kornhaber, Mindy. (2004) "Psychometric Superiority? Check the Facts 8. Shimamura, A. P. (2000). Toward a cognitive neuroscience of metacognition. Consciousness and Cognition, 9, 313-323 9. Waterhouse, Lynn. (2006b). "Inadequate Evidence for Multiple Intelligences, Mozart Effect, and Emotional Intelligence Theories." Educational Psychologist, 41(4), Fall 2006, pp. 247-255 Read More