When looking up information online for this week’s post, I discovered a name that sounded all too familiar from my undergrad education. Dr. Howard Gardner and his multiple intelligences theory. Gardner believed that we, human beings, are all born with a different combination of intelligences that is as unique as our fingerprints.
According to pbs.org, Dr. Gardner defines intelligence as “the ability to create an effective product or offer a service that is valued in a culture; a set of skills that make it possible for a person to solve problems in life; and the potential for finding or creating solutions for problems, which involves gathering new knowledge.”
I am listing an explanation of all 9 of intelligences from his theory for any who may be new to these ideas (you can find all of this and more information here: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/education/ed_mi_overview.html)
- Linguistic Intelligence: the capacity to use language to express what's on your mind and to understand other people. Any kind of writer, orator, speaker, lawyer, or other person for whom language is an important stock in trade has great linguistic intelligence
- Logical/Mathematical Intelligence: the capacity to understand the underlying principles of some kind of causal system, the way a scientist or a logician does; or to manipulate numbers, quantities, and operations, the way a mathematician does.
- Musical Rhythmic Intelligence: the capacity to think in music; to be able to hear patterns, recognize them, and perhaps manipulate them. People who have strong musical intelligence don't just remember music easily, they can't get it out of their minds, it's so omnipresent.
- Bodily/Kinesthetic Intelligence: the capacity to use your whole body or parts of your body (your hands, your fingers, your arms) to solve a problem, make something, or put on some kind of production. The most evident examples are people in athletics or the performing arts, particularly dancing or acting.
- Spatial Intelligence: the ability to represent the spatial world internally in your mind -- the way a sailor or airplane pilot navigates the large spatial world, or the way a chess player or sculptor represents a more circumscribed spatial world. Spatial intelligence can be used in the arts or in the sciences.
- Naturalist Intelligence: the ability to discriminate among living things (plants, animals) and sensitivity to other features of the natural world (clouds, rock configurations). This ability was clearly of value in our evolutionary past as hunters, gatherers, and farmers; it continues to be central in such roles as botanist or chef.
- Intrapersonal Intelligence: having an understanding of yourself; knowing who you are, what you can do, what you want to do, how you react to things, which things to avoid, and which things to gravitate toward. We are drawn to people who have a good understanding of themselves. They tend to know what they can and can't do, and to know where to go if they need help.
- Interpersonal Intelligence: the ability to understand other people. It's an ability we all need, but is especially important for teachers, clinicians, salespersons, or politicians -- anybody who deals with other people.
- Existential Intelligence: the ability and proclivity to pose (and ponder) questions about life, death, and ultimate realities.
- Question 1: Considering a commitment to viewing young children holistically (i.e., a commitment to "the whole child"), what, if anything, do you believe should be measured or assessed? Explain your reasoning.
To me, if I needed to assess the whole child, I would measure the intrapersonal intelligence of a person. I feel it is important for a person to understand him or herself, such as what you are good at, what your hopes and dreams are, things you don’t enjoy, things that help you become better as a person. To me, a person who understands him or herself is a well-rounded individual and can be more enjoyable than people who don’t take time for themselves, to do the things they enjoy and learn new hobbies.
For example, my friends and family tease me because I love to talk about my job and write on my teacher blog about things I do in my classroom. I also enjoy spending time at school, organizing my classroom and researching fun activities to do with my students. But since I have started doing this more often, I have become happy and more confident in my teaching abilities. I feel comfortable trying new things and sharing my ideas with others, because I KNOW that this is what I am good at.
Now I don’t know anyone like this, but if I thought about a person who was not intelligent intrapersonally- I envision someone who does a job they hate because they don’t know what else to do. They have not taken time to figure out what they love and enjoy, therefore they are probably more likely to be miserable in life and making others around them feel the same. I believe it’s important that everyone develops a passion in something and becomes active in that passion.
A good understanding of ourselves, leads to us enriching our lives through our hobbies and educating ourselves in things we enjoy and can use in our professions and hobbies. Imagine what a world we would live in, if we were all intrapersonally intelligent!
- Question 2: In what ways are school-age children assessed in other parts of the world? (Choose a country or region of the world for which you have a personal affinity.)
I chose to research how Finland assess their students. My dad recorded a new story on Finland and how the country has rebuilt their education system successfully and have become a world leader in student achievement. I found an article titled: “What we can learn from Finland’s successful school reform”. According to Linda Darling- Hammond (2010), “beginning in the 1970s, Finland launched reforms to equalize educational opportunity by first eliminating the practice of separating students into very different tracks based on their test scores, and then by eliminating the examinations themselves. This occurred in two stages between 1972 and 1982, and a common curriculum, through the end of high school, was developed throughout the entire system. These changes were intended to equalize educational outcomes and provide more open access to higher education.”
She also wrote about how Finlands take one final exam before going to a University called the matriculation exam. This exam is not required for graduating or entrance into university but it’s a not uncommon for most students to take this path. “There are no external standardized tests used to rank students or schools in Finland, and most teacher feedback to students is in narrative form, emphasizing descriptions of their learning progress and areas for growth. As in the NAEP exams in the United States, samples of students are evaluated on open-ended assessments at the end of the second and ninth grades to inform curriculum and school investments. The focus is on using information to drive learning and problem-solving, rather than punishment (Darling-Hammond, 2010).”
Teachers will have students do formative and summative reports to assess their learning, rather than taking an exam. They strive to teach their students how to learn through inquiry and providing open-ended questions to show student’s true understanding of the material. The article went on to say that it is rare to see teachers lecturing in front of a classroom for 50 minutes because they let students determine their weekly targets in specific subject areas and they are able to work at their own pace.
- Question 3: What additional ideas, comments, suggestions, examples, and/or concerns related to assessing young children would you like to share with your colleagues?
Wow- Finland’s ideas go back to my belief in letting children steer the direction of their learning. If a student enjoys what they are learning, imagine what they could be become! How successful they will be! In another article on Finland (found here: http://bctf.ca/publications/NewsmagArticle.aspx?id=7988) was a quote that really struck my attention… (talking about teachers in Finland): "Teachers focus on learning and teaching rather than preparing students for tests or exams.”
That is so true. I feel sometimes I am teaching my own kindergartners how to be successful in Dibels, rather than teaching to what my students enjoy because “they have to make gains in their scores.”
I truly hope that, our country will learn from Finland and begin to make changes sooner than later. Do you agree? I’d be interested in hearing my colleagues thoughts!
Jessica
Resources:
Darling-Hammond, Linda. (2010). What we can learn from Finland’s successful school reform. Retrieved on December 8, 2012 from
http://www.nea.org/home/40991.htm
Lombardi, Mike. (2005, March). Finland’s education system is tops: Here’s why. Retrieved on December 8, 2012 from
http://bctf.ca/publications/NewsmagArticle.aspx?id=7988
Author and date unknown. Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences Theory. Retrieved on December 8, 2012 from
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/education/ed_mi_tips.html
