The Theory Of Multiple Intelligences

Ever since Spearman proposed the intelligence theory with G factor, there were several other intelligence theories proposed in response or as an alternative to Spearman’s. Among those, Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence and Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence Theory would be the most influential ones as they are widely accepted and used in real life. Both of the theories share a critical view towards the unitary perspective which is the traditional definition of intelligence. However, the two theories differ in which they don’t agree with what factors should be the measures of intelligence, as well as the emphasis of the two theories.

Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligence’s (MI theory) is a valuable resource for teachers, if they understood how they could apply this in the classroom (Snowman & McCown, 2012). In this class, there are multiple intelligences observed amongst the students; however, there is minimal differentiated instruction to allow the students the best opportunities for success. It is critical that teachers understand that their teaching methods may not be wrong, but they

Prior to this assignment, I believe that a person can have more than one learning style to obtain knowledge and apply it. I believe that Gardner’s multiple intelligences connect to different learning styles, such as visual, linguistic, bodily kinesthetic, etc. Personally, I believe I am a bodily kinesthetic learner and need hands-on experience to understand what is being taught. Moreover, these beliefs came from past experiences in my education along with past knowledge of learning styles in a couple of my previous courses.

Howard Gardner has came up with seven clear intelligences Visual-Spatial, Bodily-kinesthetic, Musical, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Linguistic, and Logical-Mathematical that outline individual's strengths and are designed based on different tasks, problem solving, and progress in various types of domains. According to Gardner's theory "we are all able to know the world through language, logical-mathematical analysis, spatial representation, musical thinking, the use of the body to solve problems or to make things, an understanding of other individuals, and an understanding of ourselves”(Lane , C. (n.d.). Multiple Intelligences). Visual-Spatial in Gardner's theory is when a person is taught how to remember things through drawings and verbal and physical imagery. Bodily-kinesthetic is used when a person uses communication through there body language, like role playing, hands on learning,

Howard Gardner introduced the theory of multiple intelligences stating that each person possesses a blend of at least eight different kinds of intelligence: verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, visual/spatial, bodily/kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and environmental/naturalistic (Bruno, 2009).

In “A Rounded Version: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences”, Howard Gardner illustrates how there are a variety of intelligences. Gardner starts off with an example how IQ tests may predict achievement in school but may not predict achievement in life. After finding out certain parts of the brain are responsible for certain functions, such as “Broca’s Area” which is responsible for sentence production, Gardner proposes the existence of multiple intelligences. Multiple studies later led him to propose seven distinct intelligences; Musical, bodily-kinesthetic, logical-mathematical, linguistic, spatial, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. Each intelligence has certain classifications. According to Gardner’s classifications, I realized my intelligences are bodily-kinesthetic, logical-mathematical, and intrapersonal.

Gardner's theory consisted of seven intelligences the first is linguistic ability, which enables us to read, write, and speak well. The second is logical/ mathematical ability which

Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence theory challenged traditional beliefs in the field of education and cognitive science. He is a psychologist professor at Harvard University's Graduate School of Education. According to a traditional definition, intelligence is a uniform cognitive capacity people are born with. Simply put, intelligence is the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills. Gardner’s theory of Multiple Intelligences proposes that all human beings possess each of the nine intelligences in varying amounts. In addition, he claims that these intelligences are located in different parts of the brain which can work together or independent of each other, and that the multiple intelligences can be strengthened or weakened depending how you treat each intelligence. The nine intelligences are as follows:

‘‘Gardner’s multiple intelligences theory can be used for curriculum development, planning instruction, selection of course activities, and related assessment strategies. Instruction which is designed to help students develop their strengths can also trigger their confidence to develop areas in which they are not as strong. Students’ multiple learning preferences can be addressed when instruction includes a range of meaningful and appropriate methods, activities, and assessments. Gardner’s early work in psychology and later in human cognition and human potential’ led to the development of the initial six intelligences. Today there are nine intelligences and the possibility of others may eventually expand the list. These intelligences (or competencies) relate to a person’s unique aptitude set of capabilities and ways they might prefer to demonstrate intellectual abilities’’ ( (Armstrong, T., 2010). Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences

Howard Gardner, the father of such a theory encour-ages educators to feel free to apply the theory and use it in the ESL and EFL environment.” 1 In his book “Frames of Mind” (New York, 1983, Basic Books) he proposed that intelligence falls into eight different areas.2 “My True Intelligence”3 is a quiz based on Gardner’s theory de-signed to find out where a student’s intelligence lies.

Children learn in various ways, and need various teaching methods and styles to accommodate those styles. The educational theorist Howard Gardner theorized his theory of Multiple Intelligences in 1983. This theory has influenced my teaching throughout my teaching thus far. It was most obvious during two times in my first practicum. The first time was during our Practicum 1 retreat. In order to become closer with our cohort, and predetermine how we all would work best together, we took various types of learning style quizzes. The test that stuck out the most to me was Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences. During this test our cohort discovered that even though some of us may self-classify as a “visual” or “auditory” learner we also learned that we identified as a mathematical and/or spatial learners. Just as we all learn differently, so will our future students. Also, during my first placement in a Kindergarten classroom at Oak Grove Elementary I quickly discovered that even at the beginning of a student’s educational career they all learn

Howard Earl Gardner is a developmental psychologist known for his theory of multiple intelligences. His parents, Ralph and Hilde, were German-Jewish immigrants who fled Germany before World War II. In 1983, Gardner proposed the theory of multiple intelligences in his book Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Essentially, his theory states that intelligence is differentiated into multiple “modalities,” rather than being dominated by a single general ability. Overall, mainstream psychology has widely criticized the theory for its lack of empirical evidence and its dependence on subjective judgement.

Because different students learn in a variety of ways, Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences was taken into consideration when planning this lesson. Verbal and linguistic learners are able to learn through verbal teaching, logical learners through the classifying activities, visual learners are accommodated through the use of pictures and slides, interpersonal learners can interact during peer sharing or group work and intrapersonal learners can also engage in individual activities (Winch-Dummet,

If a teacher is having difficulty reaching a student in the more traditional linguistic or logical ways of instruction, the theory of multiple intelligences suggests several other ways in which the material might be presented to facilitate effective learning.

Howard Gardner recognizes that intelligence is more than the single logical-mathematical processing of stored facts that intelligence tests assess. He views intelligence as problem-solving, problem-creating, and problem-finding across a range of situations. There are a total of eight Multiple Intelligences: Logical-Mathematical, Linguistic, Musical, Spatial, Bodily-Kinesthetic, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, and lastly, Naturalist Intelligence. These Intelligences allow educators to carefully integrate several content areas within a specific curricula.