Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences Prepared by Susan Vo

According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, Howard Earl Gardner is an American developmental psychologist who has written hundreds of research articles and thirty books that have been translated into more than thirty languages.

He is best known for his theory of multiple intelligences, as outlined in his 1983 book Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences.

According to Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, humans have several different ways of processing information and these ways are relatively independent of one another.

The theory is a critique of the standard intelligence theory, which emphasizes the correlation among abilities.

• There are at least seven ways that humans perceive and understand the world

• Theorized by Howard Gardner in 1983

Linguistic or Verbal Learners• Sensitive to meanings, sounds and rhythms of words• Especially like storytelling and creative writing• They learn better by reading, memorizing, playing word

games, and making up rhymes and puns

Logic-Mathematical Learners• Sensitive to order and sequence• Especially like problem solving, noting and creating patterns

and experiments• They learn better by recording information systematically,

setting up experiments, playing strategy games, analyzing data, and asking logical questions

Musical Learners• Sensitive to singing, playing instruments, drumming• Especially like the human voice, sounds from nature,

instrumental music• They learn better by listening to recordings, talking to

themselves, making up songs, mentally repeating information, reading aloud, and changing tempo

Spatial or Visual Learners• Sensitive to visual cues and images• Especially like day-dreaming and art• They learn better by studying pictures, watching videos,

using visual, tangible aids, doing mazes, puzzles, and making predictions

Body-Kinesthetic Learners• Sensitive to activity, athletics and physical gestures while

talking• Especially like role-playing, touching and feeling• They learn better by doing role plays, constructing physical

examples, exercising while reviewing, visiting museums, institutions, parks, and asking logical questions

Interpersonal Learners• Sensitive to leadership opportunities, others’ feelings; “street

smart”• Especially like helping others, peer tutoring, working

cooperatively• They learn better by studying in groups, comparing

information with others, interviewing experts, relating personal experiences, being a teamplayer, and doing cooperative projects

Intrapersonal Learners• Sensitive to their own feelings, personal motivation• Especially like day-dreaming, working alone• They learn better by avoiding distractions, establishing

personal goals, playing solitary games, setting own pace, and working alone.

7 Intelligences – by Dr. Howard Gardner 1983

Linguistic or Verbal

Logic- Mathematica

l

Musical Spatial or Visual

Since 1999, Gardner has identified the eighth intelligence:

Naturalist Learners• Sensitive to patterns in and connecting to nature• Especially like animals and natural phenomena• They learn better by studying outside, learning in the

presence of plants and pets, relating environmental issues to topics, smelling, seeing, touching, and tasting, and observing natural phenomenon

Gardner is informally considering two additional intelligences:

existential and pedagogical

Many teachers, school administrators, and special educators have been inspired by Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences as it has allowed for the idea that there is more than one way to define a person's intellect.