Overview of Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

 “Creativity is as important in education as literacy. We should treat it with the same status.”  “If [kids] don’t know, they’ll have a go.” “If you are not prepared to be wrong, you will never come up with anything original.”  “Many highly talented, brilliant, creative people think they’re not—because the thing they were good at at school wasn’t valued, or was actually stigmatized.”  “We are educating people out of their creative capacities.”

 B. July 11, 1943, and is an American developmental psychologist, author, awarded many honorary degrees  Professor of Cognition and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education  Served as a co-director of Project Zero from 1972 to 2000

 Founded in 1967 at the Harvard Graduate School of Education by Nelson Goodman.  Project Zero’s mission is “to understand and enhance learning, thinking, and creativity in the arts, as well as humanistic and scientific disciplines, at the individual and institutional levels.”  Helps create communities of reflective, independent learners; to enhance deep understanding within disciplines; and to promote critical and creative thinking.

 Intelligence: “The capacity to solve problems or to fashion products that are valued in one or more cultural setting.”  The theory of multiple intelligences was developed in  Suggests that the traditional notion of intelligence, based on I.Q. testing, is far to limited.  Proposes eight different intelligences to account for a broader range of human potential in children and adults.

 A mastery of language  Ability to effectively manipulate language to express oneself rhetorically or poetically.  Uses language as a means to remember information.  Examples: Writer, Journalist, Poet  Strengths in the classroom: Notes, Overheads, Handouts; students can store, sort, and cross-reference information “to make an adventure of learning.”

 Ability to detect patterns, reason deductively, and think logically.  Formulates and tests hypotheses.  Examples: Scientist, Mathematician, Doctor  Strengths in the classroom: daily objectives, examples and statistics, keep class organized, exercises focused on higher order thinking skills that are essential in problem-solving.

 Ability to manipulate and create mental images in order to solve problems.  Not limited to sight, also formed in blind children.  Examples: Artist, Sculptor, Graphic Design  Strengths in the classroom: graphic organizers, slides, overheads, and movies are important keys to their learning because it moves students from passive observers to active thinkers.

 Ability to coordinate ones own body movements.  Manipulation of objects with hands.  Examples: Dancer, Athlete, Sculptor  Strengths in the classroom: “Do it themselves” tasks—using models, role- playing and scenarios

 “Know thyself”  Introspective, metacognitive thinking.  Examples: self aware/self motivated person  Strengths in the classroom: written reflections and papers

 Notices moods and changes in others— ”social butterfly”  Relates well to others.  Examples: Psychologist, therapist, salesperson  Strengths in the classroom: Q&A sessions, group projects, debating

 Ability to recognize and compose musical pitches, tones, and rhythms.  Communicates by writing or playing music.  Examples: composer, pianist, conductor  Strengths in the classroom: rhythmic learning (e.g. “Alphabet” or Grammar songs, changing the inflection of your voice

 Can discriminate amongst living things.  Example: Botanist, biologist, environmental activist  Strengths in the classroom: show how things relate to the world, scientific investigations or exploration. Students quickly grasp how their actions affect their world.

 What overlaps can you discern between Robinson and Gardner?  Is Gardner’s theory observed in schools? Is it considered within the development of curricula's objectives and goals, and assessments like standardized tests?  How many of Gardner’s identified intelligences are revered in traditional academia? Or, more specifically and generally speaking, at Fenwick?  How would Prose weigh in on this theory? Would she criticize or support Gardner’s theory in that its understanding is necessary within education?