Multiple Intelligence

Picasso Head inspired by the Multiple Intelligence quiz.

My scores for Multiple Intelligence were (1) Kinesthetic Learning, (2) Intrapersonal Learning, and (3) Interpersonal Learning. Kinesthetic deals with body and movement  Intrapersonal deals with self, and Interpersonal deals with people. This Picasso Head is inspired by those three aspects of my Multiple Intelligence.

Learning styles are important to be aware of as a teacher, but they shouldn't be controlling the classroom. In an article entitled "Learning Styles," Don Clark, the author, explains, "Thus, learning styles are not really concerned with what learners learn, but rather how they prefer to learn (Clark, 2000)." Yes it is true that different students prefer to learn different ways, but it is also true that you can't change the content of the information you are teaching to best cater to the audience. For example, you cannot visually teach a student how to pronounce a French word, that is an audible lesson. I do firmly believe that as a teacher, I should be as creative as possible in how I present lessons and information, but that does not necessarily mean that every student will be taught the way that is easiest and most comfortable for them to learn. 

David Glenn, author of "Matching Teaching Style to Learning Style Might Not Work" highlights an interesting point, "Instead, teachers should worry about matching their instruction to the content they are teaching (Glenn, 2009)." Teachers should be more focused on how to present the information the best way possible, that way every learning style will be able to grasp and understand the material. As a future teacher, I want to do just that. I want to be able to stimulate every type of learning style by presenting the information the best way for the information's sake. For example, if  I am teaching new vocabulary words, I need to audibly tell my students how to pronounce the words. I can do this multiple ways, and still be creative in my teaching. 

My Multiple Intelligence, as previously stated, were (1) Kinesthetic Learning, (2) Intrapersonal Learning, and (3) Interpersonal Learning. Upon research I discovered ways in which students like me would connect to information well and retain it. Kinesthetic is very hands-on and active. In this article, Kelly O'Connor explains that kinesthetic learners should use all five senses. She suggests that games are great tools to stimulate kinesthetic learners. Online gaming could therefore be used not only as a fun use of technology but also a way to engage students (O'Connor, 2013). Steve Johnson explains different ways to use technology for different types of Multiple Intelligence. For Bodily-Kinesthetic Johnson suggests skype, schooltube, and American Sign Language Vocab which is described as "video illustrations of many words and phrases (Johnson, 2011)."  The suggestions for Intrapersonal Intelligence include blogging, screen recording, and podcasting. Interpersonal Intelligence would benefit from collaborative white boards such as Scribblar, Dimdim, and Flockdraw, along with Epals and Ning. 

References 

Clark, D. (2000, May 29). Learning styles and preferences . Retrieved from http://nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/styles.html

Glenn, D. (2009, December 15). Matching teaching style to learning style may not help students. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/Matching-Teaching-Style-to-/49497/

Johnson, S. (2011, March 31). Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence . Retrieved from https://sites.google.com/site/techwithmi/bodily-kinesthetic-intelligence

Johnson, S. (2011, March 31). Intrapersonal intelligence . Retrieved from https://sites.google.com/site/techwithmi/intrapersonal-intelligence

Johnson, S. (2011, March 31). Interpersonal intelligence . Retrieved from https://sites.google.com/site/techwithmi/interpersonal-intelligence

O'Connor, K. (2013, March 1). Kinesthetic learners. Retrieved from http://www.studyguidezone.com/kinestheticlearners.htm