Preview

Earth to Parents: Not All Kids Are Equal

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
813 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Earth to Parents: Not All Kids Are Equal
Is a high-school diploma a basic human right?

In Ontario, the answer appears to be yes. Parents of kids who can't pass the Grade 10 literacy test are taking the government to court to force it to let the kids graduate anyway. Plenty of people in the education establishment are on their side. "There is no fallback for students who, through no fault of their own, are not successful on that one aspect of literacy," says John Myers, an instructor with the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.

OISE, as it's known, is the place that teaches teachers. It is the gold standard for colleges of education, and its influence extends across Canada. What future teachers learn there might surprise you.

It certainly surprised John Lambersky.

Mr. Lambersky, 24, is halfway through OISE's teacher-training course. A blazingly articulate young man with a masters degree in history, he is passionate about education and clearly very smart. Smart, however, is a no-no word at OISE, because it is elitist and out-of-date.

"The progressive orthodoxy runs rampant here," he says. "You're not allowed to say that, unfortunately, not every kid is as bright as the next one."

The hottest thing in education theory is something called "multiple intelligence," which holds that every kid is smart in his or her own way if only you can find out what it is. Developed by a Harvard psychologist named Howard Gardner, the theory of multiple intelligences has taken its place alongside such concepts as critical-thinking skills and higher-order thinking as a cornerstone of enlightened education. It's not hard to see why. In an egalitarian age, it is anti-elitist. And by redefining intelligence, it seems to topple the cruel tyranny of IQ. "It appeals to the benign belief that all our children must be good at something," says Mr. Lambersky.

By the logic of multiple intelligences, the ability to read and write is just one kind of intelligence, no better and no worse than any other

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In 1983 a professor of education at Harvard University, Dr. Howard Gardner, developed the theory of multiple intelligences. This theory states that there are eight different ways in which a person is intelligent. These different forms of intelligence are as follows: linguistic, or word smart; logical-mathematic, or reasoning/numbers smart; spatial, or picture smart; bodily-kinesthetic, or body smart; musical, or music smart; intrapersonal, or self-smart; and naturalist, or nature smart (“Multiple Intelligences” para. 1-2). It is not difficult to pinpoint which of these intelligences standardized testing primarily measures. For students who are not linguistically or mathematically gifted, the tests do not accurately show the students’…

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences utilizes aspects of cognitive and developmental psychology, anthropology, and sociology to explain the human intellect. Although Gardner had been working towards the concept of Multiple Intelligences for many years prior, the theory was introduced in 1983, with Gardner's book, Frames of Mind.…

    • 2102 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Howard Gardner’s most popular theory is the Theory of Multiple Intelligences. It was proposed in 1983 as a model of intellectual capability that distinguishes intelligence into various specific theories. Like someone who learns to multiply faster than another person isn’t automatically smarter. Someone who takes more time to master simple multiplication 1) may learn best under a different approach, 2) may be better in a different area of studies, 3) may be looking at and understanding the multiplication process at a deeper level, or as an entirely different method. A deeper understanding can look like slowness and can hide the mathematical intelligence possibly higher than that of the other child.…

    • 369 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    (Myers, 2010, pg 406) Since the mid-1980’s, some psychologists have sought to extend the definition of intelligence beyond Spearman’s and Thurstone’s academic smarts. “Howard Garner views intelligence as multiple abilities that come in packages”. (Myers, 2010, pg 407) Robert Sternberg agrees that there is more to success than traditional intelligence, and he agrees with Gardner’s idea of multiple intelligences. “However, he proposes a triarchic theory of three, not eight. They are analytical intelligence, creative intelligence, and practical intelligence”. (Myers, 2010, pg 411) The author David Myers discussed that intelligence test scores maybe misinterpreted as literal measures of a person’s worth and potential. He argued that we must remember the competence that general intelligence tests sample is important, but it only reflects one aspect of personal competence. Our practical and emotional intelligence are important too, as do the other forms of creativity, talent and character. Genetic and environmental influences shaped our intelligence, and thus there are many ways of being successful, our differences are variations of human adaptability. (Myers, 2010, pg 439)…

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1983 Dr. Howard Gardner, a Harvard Psychologist, developed the theory of multiple intelligences. His theory expanded the limits of the traditional I.Q. tests, so as to account for a broader range of human potential in children and adults. The theory includes 9 different intelligences; verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, bodily kinesthetic, musical-rhythmic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalistic, and existential.…

    • 862 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Multiple Intelligences

    • 1253 Words
    • 6 Pages

    In 1983, Howard Gardner, a Harvard University professor, changed the way people perceive intelligence and learning with his theory of Multiple Intelligences. Intelligence is an ability to solve problems or fashion products that are useful in a particular cultural setting or community. Gardner believed that there are at least eight intelligences possessed by all people, and that every person has developed some intelligence more fully than others. According to this theory, when you find a task or subject easy, you are probably using a more fully developed intelligence. Using a less developed intelligence is considered when you have trouble. “The theory distinguishes eight kinds of intelligence: musical, bodily/kinesthetic, spatial, linguistic or verbal, logical/mathematical, naturalist, intrapersonal, and interpersonal. Gardner argues that intelligences can be isolated based on a number of criteria, including their neurological independence, the presence of savants (who are severely deficient in major intellectual respects but have pockets of giftedness), and their different developmental courses. Someone could be a brilliant mathematician but inhabit the lowest percentiles of interpersonal intelligence.” (Kowalski & Western, 2009.) To learn successfully, one would need to maximize their strengths and compensate for the weaknesses.…

    • 1253 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Learning Styles Inventory

    • 4037 Words
    • 17 Pages

    Howard Gardner 's Multiple Intelligence Theory which teaches many aspects of human intelligence, learning style, personality and behaviour - in education and industry forms the major input for the study.…

    • 4037 Words
    • 17 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Society that is all about being included and being accepted and of looking at individual strengths of each child in an educational setting, it is only natural that we tend to look to the “genius” of each student. The use of the term "genius" in this context redefines the usual perspectives and asks us to stretch our understanding to include the potential capabilities of every learner and what it is that they bring with them to make a unique individual worth developing. In his book Awakening Genius in the Classroom, Thomas Armstrong coaxes each reader to examine his or her own belief system and to see "genius" as a conceptualization of the best that we each have to offer. The redefining of a commonly understood word in this way is a strategy modeled after Howard Gardner in his explanation of multiple intelligences (1983).…

    • 2042 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Rogerian Theory

    • 2259 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Carl Rogers contributed a great deal to not just psychology, but psychotherapy. He was raised in a relatively normal American family around the turn of the century. His later studies, subsequent clinical experience, and research lead him to the conclusion that all living beings strive for biological success. Humans also strive for this success but are often thwarted by society, giving rise to a real self and an ideal self. Disparages between these two selves gives rise to neurosis and psychosis. Rogerian therapy attempts to lead clients to self actualization, realizing what one’s real self desires, with passive and indirect assistance.…

    • 2259 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Analyzing Piaget's Theory

    • 367 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Gardner provides a theory of multiple intelligences states people have nine different types of intelligences. In addition, people express these intelligences in different ways and different strategies. In addition,…

    • 367 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    I was reading and studying a lot about the theory of multiple intelligence, by Howard Gardner. That is why I chose this topic, and to show how I think it’s possible to strengthen student’s motivation and self confidence by using multiple intelligence theory as a pedagogical method in the classroom.…

    • 2073 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    In the MI classroom, the teacher continually shifts the method of presentation from linguistic to spatial to musical and so on, often combining approaches to different kinds of intelligences in creative ways. According to John Goodlad’s pioneering “A Study of Schooling” projects, which involved researchers’ observing more than 1,000 classrooms nationwide, nearly 705 of classroom time was consumed by teacher talk. The second, most widely observed activity was students doing written assignments. (Goodlad, 1984)…

    • 1348 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    One problem modern American education continues to face is the measurement of intelligence. Often it is merely test scores, or even a single test score which determines IQ and either brands or exalts many children for life. “Howard Gardner has questioned the idea that intelligence is a single entity, that it results from a single factor, and that it can be measured simply via IQ tests” (Smith 2). In essence, Gardner is telling educators not to judge a book by its cover. He also pointed out that simply because a child does not do well in, say, English or spelling, does not mean the child is not more gifted in other areas. “Dr. Gardner says that we should also place intelligences: the artists, architects, musicians, naturalists, designers, dancers, therapists, entrepreneurs, and others who enrich the world in which we live. Unfortunately, many children who have these gifts don’t receive much reinforcement for them in school” (Armstrong 3). It would seem that Gardner’s theories are more critical these days when the notion of “No child left behind” focuses on test scores of a school district, rather than evaluating the achievements and progress of each individual child. American education, one can easily say, has to stop the numbers game, where IQ tests are supposed to prove the success of “teaching.” Gardner is opposed to the theory that schools must teach facts, students must remember them and recite them on a test. “When students are lectured on a subject, they are overloaded with facts, statistics and other nuggets of information that are to be regurgitated at a later date in the form of some assessment test. But what does a student gain by completing the statement ‘________ was the English general who surrendered at the end of the War.’ An answer of Lord Cornwallis gives the student the good grade and the school administrators the statistics to wave around and say, ‘Another educational objective has been met.’” (Carvin…

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    emotional intelligence

    • 6130 Words
    • 30 Pages

    Veenema, S., Hetland, L., & Chalfen, K. (1997). Multiple Intelligence: The Research Perspective. Harvard Graduate School of Education: President and Fellows of Harvard College.…

    • 6130 Words
    • 30 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Howard Gardner claims that all human beings have multiple intelligences. These multiple intelligences can be nurtured and strengthened, or ignored and weakened. He believes each…

    • 14455 Words
    • 58 Pages
    Powerful Essays