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| Gardner’s
Multiple Intelligence Theory |
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The contemporary science has achieved really outstanding
results in different field but the problem of intelligence
remains one of the main mysteries specialists still argue
about and cannot arrive to any definite conclusion that could
combine the variety of views on intelligence. In this respect,
the work of Howard Gardner seems to be one of the most arguable
since his multiple intelligence theory, being relatively new,
has already provoked numerous discussions as for its reliability.
Nonetheless, Howard Gardner’s multiple intelligence
theory is quite interesting for research, especially when
it is applied to the sphere of education where intelligence
has traditionally being one of the basic concepts.
First of all, it is necessary to point out that a strong connection
between Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory and education
is not occasional because this theory is a psychological and
educational theory which espouses seven kinds of intelligence
that exist in humans. In fact, the creator of the theory emphasizes
that each kind of intelligence is closely related to a definite
sphere of life or human activity and, in such a way, individuals
with different kinds of intelligence dominating may be more
or less successful in different fields respectively to their
kinds of intelligence.
In such a situation, it is quite natural that, applying this
theory to education, the supporters of the multiple intelligence
theory state that educators should develop all types of intelligence
in their classroom in order to achieve possibly better results
and reveal the potential of each student due to the development
of different intelligences with an emphasis on particular
ones typical for each individual student.
Obviously, such a recommendation may be quite helpful because
it actually suggest to unite the class on the basis of the
combination of a variety of intelligence being developed in
the process of education. At the same time, ideally, not a
single student remains deprived of a possibility to develop
his/her individual kind of intelligence since he/she receives
a possibility to develop his innate skills and abilities.
Theoretically, what Gardner and his followers suggest is the
development of all intelligences which would help to define
what kind of intelligence each of the students in the classroom
tends to. After that teachers should develop the defined type
of intelligence in each student that would presumably enforce
other types of intelligence.
Naturally, in order to properly evaluate the efficiency of
the suggestion of the supporters of the multiple intelligence
theory, it is necessary to analyze in details this theory
and critically evaluate it. Basically, the multiple intelligence
theory has been already defined above but it is worthy to
note that speaking about the main points of his theory Howard
Gardner, in response to traditional views on intelligence,
underlines that “there exists a multitude of intelligences,
quite independent of each other; that each intelligence has
its own strengths and constraints; that the mind is far from
unencumbered at birth” (1999:99).
It is also extremely important to say that, according to Gardner,
intelligence is “the capacity to solve problems or to
fashion products that are valued in one or more cultural setting”
(Gardner and Hatch 1989:433). At the same time, such a definition
of intelligence seems to be really large and even, to a certain
extent, vague. In order to be more persuasive, Howard Gardner
attempts to substantiate his theory to the evidences of potential
isolation by brain damage, a distinctive development history,
along with definable set of ‘end-state’ performances,
support from experimental psychological tasks and psychometric
findings, the existence of idiot savants, prodigies and other
exceptional individuals, an evolutionary history and evolutionary
plausibility, an identifiable core operation or set of operations,
susceptibility to encoding in a symbol system (Gardner 1998).
Nonetheless, regardless all his attempts to make his theory
possibly more understandable and less susceptible to criticism,
Howard Gardner obviously failed, at least at some points.
Firstly, it should be said that the definition of intelligence
in his interpretation is still unclear and imprecise and,
consequently, severely criticized. Naturally, it is quite
difficult to apply an unclear term at any field, especially
in education where such a lack of precise definition threatens
to progress of chaos in the process of education based on
multiple intelligence theory. For instance, it is not a secret
that the followers of multiple intelligence theory suggest
their own kinds of intelligence. Being applied to education
it may result in the situation when each student would need
a particular definition of his/her intelligence if the existing
ones did not fully correspond.
Moreover, such an obscure definition of intelligence often
leads to misinterpretation of such notions as intelligence
and abilities. In fact, Gardner’s critics emphasize
that he denies the existence of intelligence, as it is traditionally
understood, and instead uses the word intelligence whenever
other people have traditionally used words like ‘ability’
(Sternberg 1989). Obviously, from this point of view the multiple
intelligence theory is just another variation of theories
suggesting to develop a variety of abilities of students taking
into consideration their inmate predisposition to certain
skills and abilities.
In such a situation, Garnder’s response that “I
balk at the unwarranted assumption that certain human abilities
can be arbitrarily singled out as intelligence while others
cannot” (1998:102). Actually, such a statement makes
Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory hardly applicable
to education because it is unclear who would differentiate
abilities from intelligences. Consequently, the introduction
of such a theory would produce a great mass in classroom if
any ability could be interpreted as intelligence and vice
versa.
Eventually, there would remain little room for the development
of general abilities or intelligences of students. Such a
situation is quite dangerous, especially in the context of
recent trends to develop students in different fields that
could make education broader and more efficient that found
its reflection in California’s proposition 227 and No
Child Left behind Policy. In fact, if Gardner’s critics
are really right at the point that the application of his
theory would dramatically narrow the areas students would
deal with in their education than it will be really unwise
to apply multiple intelligence theory to practice in educational
establishments.
This is why it is possible to conclude that, being innovative
and research worthy, Gardner’s multiple intelligence
theory cannot be fully practically applied because of the
lack of precision and clearness in its key concepts, including
the notion of intelligence.
Bibliography:
1. Gardner, Howard. “A Reply to Perry D. Klein’s
‘Multiplying the problems of intelligence by eight’”
Canadian Journal of Education, 23(1), 1998, pp.96-102.
2. Gardner, H., & Hatch, T. (1989). “Multiple intelligences
go to school: Educational implications of the theory of multiple
intelligences”. Educational Researcher, 18(8), 4-9.
3. Sternberg, R. J. “How much Gall is too much gall?
Review of Frames of Mind: The theory of multiple intelligences”.
Contemporary Education Review, 2(3), 1983, pp. 215-224.
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