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How does understanding Multiple Intelligences help us understand students better?

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Professor Howard Gardner on Multiple Intelligences | 100 Stories

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What is the issue with equating "multiple intelligences" with "learning styles?"

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Howard Gardner's Eight Intelligences

The theory of multiple intelligences challenges the idea of a single IQ, where human beings have one central "computer" where intelligence is housed. Howard Gardner, the Harvard professor who originally proposed the theory, says that there are multiple types of human intelligence, each representing different ways of processing information:

Verbal-linguistic intelligence refers to an individual's ability to analyze information and produce work that involves oral and written language, such as speeches, books, and emails.

Logical-mathematical intelligence describes the ability to develop equations and proofs, make calculations, and solve abstract problems.

Visual-spatial intelligence allows people to comprehend maps and other types of graphical information.

Musical intelligence enables individuals to produce and make meaning of different types of sound.

Naturalistic intelligence refers to the ability to identify and distinguish among different types of plants, animals, and weather formations found in the natural world.

Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence entails using one's own body to create products or solve problems.

Interpersonal intelligence reflects an ability to recognize and understand other people's moods, desires, motivations, and intentions.

Intrapersonal intelligence refers to people's ability to recognize and assess those same characteristics within themselves.

The Difference Between Multiple Intelligences and Learning Styles

One common misconception about multiple intelligences is that it means the same thing as learning styles. Instead, multiple intelligences represents different intellectual abilities. Learning styles, according to Howard Gardner, are the ways in which an individual approaches a range of tasks. They have been categorized in a number of different ways -- visual, auditory, and kinesthetic, impulsive and reflective, right brain and left brain, etc. Gardner argues that the idea of learning styles does not contain clear criteria for how one would define a learning style, where the style comes, and how it can be recognized and assessed. He phrases the idea of learning styles as "a hypothesis of how an individual approaches a range of materials."

Everyone has all eight types of the intelligences listed above at varying levels of aptitude -- perhaps even more that are still undiscovered -- and all learning experiences do not have to relate to a person's strongest area of intelligence. For example, if someone is skilled at learning new languages, it doesn't necessarily mean that they prefer to learn through lectures. Someone with high visual-spatial intelligence, such as a skilled painter, may still benefit from using rhymes to remember information. Learning is fluid and complex, and it's important to avoid labeling students as one type of learner. As Gardner states, "When one has a thorough understanding of a topic, one can typically think of it in several ways."

What Multiple Intelligences Theory Can Teach Us

While additional research is still needed to determine the best measures for assessing and supporting a range of intelligences in schools, the theory has provided opportunities to broaden definitions of intelligence. As an educator, it is useful to think about the different ways that information can be presented. However, it is critical to not classify students as being specific types of learners nor as having an innate or fixed type of intelligence.

Practices Supported by Research

Having an understanding of different teaching approaches from which we all can learn, as well as a toolbox with a variety of ways to present content to students, is valuable for increasing the accessibility of learning experiences for all students. To develop this toolbox, it is especially important to gather ongoing information about student strengths and challenges as well as their developing interests and activities they dislike. Providing different contexts for students and engaging a variety of their senses -- for example, learning about fractions through musical notes, flower petals, and poetic meter -- is supported by research. Specifically:

Providing students with multiple ways to access content improves learning (Hattie, 2011).

Providing students with multiple ways to demonstrate knowledge and skills increases engagement and learning, and provides teachers with more accurate understanding of students' knowledge and skills (Darling-Hammond, 2010).

Instruction should be informed as much as possible by detailed knowledge about students' specific strengths, needs, and areas for growth (Tomlinson, 2014).

As our insatiable curiosity about the learning process persists and studies continue to evolve, scientific research may emerge that further elaborates on multiple intelligences, learning styles, or perhaps another theory. To learn more about the scientific research on student learning, visit our Brain-Based Learning topic page.

References

Darling-Hammond, L. (2010). Performance Counts: Assessment Systems that Support High-Quality Learning . Washington, DC: Council of Chief State School Officers.

Hattie, J. (2011). Visible Learning for Teachers: Maximizing Impact on Learning. New York, NY: Routledge.

Tomlinson, C. A. (2014). The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of All Learners. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Resources From Edutopia

Additional Resources on the Web

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Multiple Intelligences: What Does the Research Say?

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The theory of multiple intelligences challenges the idea of a single IQ, where human beings have one central "computer" where intelligence is housed. Howard Gardner, the Harvard professor who originally proposed the theory, says that there are multiple types of human intelligence, each representing different ways of processing information: Verbal-linguistic intelligence refers to an individual's ability to analyze information and produce work that involves oral and written language, such as speeches, books, and emails.

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3) Learning Styles vs Multiple Intelligences 

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3) Learning Styles vs Multiple Intelligences 

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"One common misconception about multiple intelligences is that it means the same thing as learning styles. Instead, multiple intelligences represents different intellectual abilities. Learning styles, according to Howard Gardner, are the ways in which an individual approaches a range of tasks" (Edutopia, 2013).

How do you use your understanding of a students intellectual abilities to guide you in aiding their learning style, or approach to the task?

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How does being aware of one's intelligence lead to potential learning styles?

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Listen to this episode from Focus on the Family Minute on Spotify. Dr. Kathy Koch discusses how knowing your strengths can improve your self-esteem. (Original air date: Aug.