Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences

Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences

• Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI) suggests 8 human intelligence modalities.
• The theory was proposed by American Psychologist Howard Gardner.
• Gardner believes "Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."

8 Criteria for Considering an Intelligence

• There should be evidence of potential isolation by brain damage.
  • For example, damage to Broca's area hinders language production.
• An intelligence should have an evolutionary history and plausibility.
  • Evidence of antecedents should be identifiable in other species with a plausible evolutionary explanation of how it may have been selected.
• An intelligence should have one or more core operations that deal with a particular type of input, like language or music.
• An intelligence should have a distinctive development progression with a definable end-state.
  • Evidence of an expert level should be recognizable.
• An intelligence should be reflected by exceptionalities and savants, those with a single exceptional talent, or prodigies, who demonstrate remarkable abilities in a small number of areas.
• An intelligence should be supported by experimental psychological tasks (like reasoning, language, and spatial cognition).
• An intelligence should be supported by psychometric findings, especially those that assess linguistic and logical/mathematical capabilities.

Linguistic Intelligence

• Sensitivity to meaning and order of words
• Facility with words and languages
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Maya Angelou (Poet)
  • Stephen King (Writer)
  • Martin Luther King (Civil Rights Leader and Orator)
• Located in the left hemisphere, temporal lobe.

Logical-Mathematical Intelligence

• Ability to reason logically and recognize patterns and order.
• The ability to reason logically, solve problems, and think abstractly.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Bill Gates (Former CEO of Microsoft)
  • Stephen Hawking (Physicist)
  • James Watson (Biologist)
• Located in the left parietal lobe for verbal naming and right hemisphere for spatial organization.

Musical Intelligence

• Sensitivity to pitch, melody, rhythm, and tone.
• The ability to perceive, create, and appreciate music.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Yo Yo Ma (Cellist)
  • Mariah Carey (Singer)
  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Composer)
• Located in the right anterior temporal lobe and frontal lobes.

Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence

• Ability to use one's body skillfully and handle objects adroitly.
• The ability to use one's body skillfully and to control physical movements.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • David Copperfield (Magician)
  • Kobe Bryant (Basketball Player)
  • Mia Hamm (Soccer Player)
• Located in the cerebral motor strip, thalamus basal ganglia, cerebellum.

Spatial Intelligence

• Ability to perceive the physical environment accurately and to recreate aspects of the environment.
• The ability to perceive and manipulate visual information.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Frank Lloyd Wright (Architect)
  • Pablo Picasso (Painter)
  • Georgia O'Keeffe (Painter)
• Located in the right hemisphere, parietal occipital lobe.

Naturalist Intelligence

• Ability to recognize and classify numerous species of flora and fauna.
• The ability to recognize and categorize patterns in nature.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Charles Darwin (Biologist)
  • Jane Goodall (Primatologist)
  • E.O Wilson (Biologist)
• Located in the left parietal lobe for discriminating living from nonliving.

Interpersonal Intelligence

• Ability to understand people and relationships.
• The ability to understand and interact effectively with others.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Bill Clinton (Politician)
  • Ronald Reagan (Politician)
  • Madeline Albright (Diplomat)
• Located in the frontal lobes.

Intrapersonal Intelligence

• Access to one's emotional life as a means to understand oneself and others.
• The ability to understand oneself, including one's emotions, thoughts, and motivations.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Oprah Winfrey (Talk Show Host)
  • Bono (Singer, Philanthropist)
• Located in the frontal lobes.

Spiritual Intelligence

• Individuals who exhibit a proclivity to pose and ponder questions about life, death, and ultimate realities.
• People who exemplify this intelligence include:
  • Albert Einstein (Scientist)
  • Socrates (Philosopher)
  • Dalai Lama (Tibetan Monk)
• Hypothesized as specific region in the right temporal lobe.

Traditional vs. Multiple Intelligences Classrooms

• Traditional classrooms focus on scholastic intelligence, creating a hierarchy of intellect, and emphasize acquiring information and facts.
• Multiple Intelligences (MI) classrooms are tailored to the variety of human intelligences by using all students' intelligences to help them learn.
  • Teachers value personal intelligences, emphasizing that "Who you are is more important than what you know."
  • Students learn in a constructivist way, creating meaning, and the classroom is child-centered.