Chapter 12: MI and Cognitive Skills

Chapter twelve discusses cognitive skills and how they relate to the multiple intelligence theory. Educators are continually observing what a student is thinking, rather than focusing on how they are thinking. Teachers year after year become frustrated with the idea that they are teaching for nothing. They feel that if students are unable to retain the information they are being taught, then why teach them in the first place. Howard Gardner states that there is no “good” or “bad” memory, and that it all depends on how the information is being presented. All students are a little different, and will learn more efficiently when using a specific intelligence that is their strength. If a student is particularly good at remembering faces they probably have a strong spatial intelligence, or if a student is able to memorize music easily they are displaying a strong musical intelligence. In a traditional classroom most students are only able to use their verbal and spatial intelligence because of the instructional strategy used by their teachers. If educators are able to present ideas in a wide variety of ways they will be teaching to more intelligences, and more students will gain a better understanding of those ideas. The chapter continues by giving various examples of how to teach material to a range of intelligences. For example, a teacher may have one group of students work on their spelling by creating words with their bodies, while another group uses their singing talent to become better spellers. Educators who are able to associate the material they are teaching with the most intelligences will have more successful students. Students in the United States have shown improvements in spelling and arithmetic, but have showed a decline in problem solving abilities. The chapter describes strategies to improve higher order thinking and problem solving skills by using many intelligences in the learning process. Most students think of problem solving as just mathematical, this chapter discusses many ways people are able to enhance this skill by using other intelligences. The chapter then presents the “Christopherian Encounters,” the idea that students in the United States are only getting a surface level amount of information on specific topics. The example used in the book is how students were always taught that Christopher Columbus was the founder of country, and proved that the world wasn’t flat. This creates a problem for students because they may not be prepared for further education, and may be learning false ideas. Teaching all topics at an in-depth level is difficult because there is so much knowledge to learn and so little time for kids to learn it. Teachers must strive to push students thinking levels, strive to get students to “confront the contradictions in their own thinking.” This chapter closes by describing Blooms Taxonomy. Blooms Taxonomy which was created by Benjamin Bloom is made up of six levels of increasing complexity. Teachers can effectively judge a students true understanding by using the six levels of Blooms Taxonomy; knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. When a student is able to understand ideas using all six complexities they are displaying a deep understanding of those ideas.

This chapter discussed a variety of strategies educators may use to teach to a range of intelligences. It also talks about the ways students can use multiple intelligences to learn one area such as spelling or problem solving. It kind of made me mad when I read that teachers sometimes think; well if they aren't going to remember it then why should I teach it. I think that is just ridiculous. This chapter made it evident that getting all students to fully understand ideas is difficult but there are strategies for doing so. A teachers job is not easy by any means, but it is a profession which people should pick if they truly care about the development of students.