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Multiple Intellegence It is widely acknowledged that people understand and perceive the world in different ways, and that some are better at understanding some things than others. Instead of having one way of thinking, one ? intelligence,? it is becoming more widely recognised that we have several. These are colloquially called ?smarts?. Howard Gardener, in his 1983 publication-? Frames of mind?, proposed seven intelligences. He believed that people have various specific intelligences, rather than one general ability. His seven intelligences were- Linguistic intelligence- favouring words and comfortable with using them in an occupation. Logical intelligence- seeing numbers and patterns and enjoying analysis and deduction. Musical intelligence- relating to sound and music. A strong parallel to Linguistic. Bodily- Kinaesthetic- strong ? mental abilities to co-ordinate bodily movements (1) Spatial intelligence- ? potential to recognise and se the patterns of wide spaces and more confined areas? ( 1) Interpersonal intelligence- empathy with and enjoyment of others. Intra- personal- understanding oneself. Naturalist was added in 1999, and means that the individual is at ease with things natural- flora and fauna. There has been that more intelligences are under consideration. Many schools in Australia and New Zealand use a Problem based approach to learning, sometimes called Inquiry learning. Problems are identified, authentic and non-authentic, and students set about solving them, using the approach that they feel comfortable with- there is often no right way of solving the problem. Acknowledging Multiple intelligence means that problems can be solved in a variety of ways, often best by a team. One question leads to another. As more is learnt about Multiple intelligence it seems that the somewhat narrow view of intelligence of the traditional IQ test is falling short. Many people/students do not achieve on this measure, and unfortunately this often restricts employment opportunities and tertiary education. It can mean that a label is attached to a person. The implications of Multiple intelligence go beyond schools colleges and universities. They have relevance for families. Most parents know that each child has his/her own quirks- that?s what makes them individuals. We too often create boxes or types in which we require people to fit, and we become concerned if they don?t. It is important for educators to recognise that people are intelligent in their way, and to learn to recognise the type or types of intelligence that an individual may have, as there are many people who have multiple intelligences. It is important when considering Multiple intelligences that we see that these are not rigidly defined, ie. a person can be an all-rounder. In some subject areas, responses by a student can only be right or wrong, depending on the nature of the subject. In other areas there is a great deal more freedom. The implication of Multiple intelligence ,though, is that there are many ways of seeing things and often many different pathways to an end. I am reminded of a close friend- farming background, never reads for pleasure, not the most articulate man in the world, but a great guy. We were fishing and the starter cord on the outboard motor broke and wound back into the engine housing. We had to move to shore as the weather was changing- he used whatever was at hand, got the motor started and we were safely on the beach. To me, this friend is a highly intelligent man, for the way he perceives problems and a way to solve them. There are many musicians, artists, mechanics, farmers, plumbers, architects, surfers, basket ballers, builders, writers, lawyers, town planners, chefs, website designers, doctors, police men and women, parents, children, etc, who all have their own specialised skills and intelligences. Perhaps a more encompassing view of intelligence is needed. (600 words) References: 1- www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner 2- Wikipedia- Theory of Multiple Intelligences www.bgfl.org/custom/resources_ftp/client Birmingham City Council-Birmingham Grid for learning
