Becoming a Multiple Intelligences School

129 Pages·2000·1.18 MB·English

by  Thomas R. Hoerr

Cover 9/27/04 12:18 PM Page 1
Education
$23.95
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B
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F F H G N
ROM THE OREWORD BY OWARD ARDNER
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IN THIS INVALUABLE BOOK, TOM HOERR RELATES A DECADE’S
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worth of MI experiences at St. Louis’s New City School.We learn about the
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staff’s initial exposure to MI theory,the many activities (some more successful
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than others) that were undertaken by faculty and staff in teaching,curriculum, T
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adult development, and assessment; the challenges that the leader faces in P
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attempting to bring about significant and lasting change.Especially compelling
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are the continuing efforts to develop the personal intelligences during a period
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when issues of diversity,multiculturalism,and standards loom so large. N
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Hoerr underscores the centrality of collegiality,the problems posed by transient E
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students and faculty,the complementary role played by public exhibitions and L
standardized test scores, the role of friends in determining the activities (and I
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intelligences) favored by children, the delicate line between support and chal- E
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lenge that the leader must walk,the tension between excellence and perfection.
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I value the concrete examples,as well as the ties to important conceptual work, E
such as that undertaken by Roland Barth on collegiality,Peter Salovey on emo- S
tional intelligence,and Peter Senge on the learning organization. S
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Achieving excellence has always been a process.Hoerr makes it abundantly clear H
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that the effort to use MI ideas effectively must remain on the agenda.Still,I can
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testify that, over a 10-year period, clear, palpable, impressive progress can be L
made.We can improve schools significantly,but only if we take the long view
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and do not settle for patchwork fixes.

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THOMAS R. HOERR is the director of the New City School in St. Louis, O
Missouri.Under Hoerr’s leadership,the faculty began implementing the theory E
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of multiple intelligences in 1988. R
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LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Hoerr,ThomasR.,1945-
Becomingamultipleintelligencesschool/ThomasR.Hoerr.
p.cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
“ASCDstockno.100006.”
ISBN0-87120-365-0
1. Multipleintelligences—Casestudies. 2. Cognitivestylesin
children—Casestudies. 3. NewCitySchool(SaintLouis,Mo.)
4. Curriculumplanning—Casestudies. I.Title.
LB1060.H622000
370.15’2—dc21 99-050514
06 05 04 03 02 01 00 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
B
E C O M I N G
M I
A U LT I P L E N T E L L I G E N C E S
S
C H O O L
Foreword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x
1.TheTheoryofMultipleIntelligences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2.TheNewCitySchoolJourney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.Collegiality:LearningandGrowingTogether . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.AssessingandReportingStudentGrowth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
5.CreativeRoutestoMI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
6.TheImportanceofthePersonalIntelligences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
7.ThePhasesofMIImplementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
8.SupportingTeacherGrowthwithLeadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
9.What’sNext?TheFutureofMI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Afterword:ExcellenceversusPerfection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
AppendixA:MIInventory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
AppendixB:SampleProgressReport. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
AppendixC:SampleWorksheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
AppendixD:SpringParentSurvey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
AbouttheAuthor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

F
O R E W O R D
We would all love to remake ourselves, or our significantteamworkoverseveralyears.Onelearns
worlds,overalongweekend.Perhapsthatiswhy themostfromschoolsthathaveexploredtheeduca-
there is a perennial market for self-improvement tional implications of MI theory for more than a
booksaboutweightandappearanceandacontinu- decade,suchastheKeyLearningCommunityinIn-
ous demand for three-day seminars that promise dianapolis.
greatercreativity,aricherspirituallife,orthetrans- In this invaluable book, Tom Hoerr relates a
formationofschools. decade’sworthofMIexperiencesatSt.Louis’sNew
Inlife,however,miraclesarefew.Ifoneseeks CitySchool.Welearnaboutthestaff’sinitialexpo-
suretoMItheory;themanyactivities(somemore
fundamental changes, one is better off heeding
successfulthanothers)thatwereundertakenbyfac-
WinstonChurchillwho,duringthebattleofBritain,
ultyandstaffinteaching,curriculum,adultdevel-
promisedhiscountrymennothingbut“blood,toil,
opment, and assessment; and the challenges that
tears, and sweat.” Educational systems that are
theleaderfacesinattemptingtobringaboutsignifi-
trulyimpressive,suchasthepreschoolsofReggio
cantandlastingchange.Especiallycompellingare
Emilia,Italy,ortheselectiveliberalartscollegesof
thecontinuingeffortstodevelopthepersonalintel-
New England, achieve their status over decades;
ligences during a period when issues of diversity,
moreover, they devote enormous energy and re-
multiculturalism,andstandardsloomsolarge.
sources simply to maintaining their distinctive
edge.
Ilearnedmuchfromthisbook.Hoerrunderscores
Flavor-of-the-month slogans or manipulations
thecentralityofcollegiality,theproblemsposedby
havelittletodowithgenuineeducationalchange.I
transient students and faculty, the complementary
include in this characterization the set of educa-
roleplayedbypublicexhibitionsandstandardized
tional ideas with which I am most closely associ-
testscores,theroleoffriendsindeterminingtheac-
ated—the theory of multiple intelligences (MI
tivities(andintelligences)favoredbychildren,the
theory). While appealing on the surface to many
delicatelinebetweensupportandchallengethatthe
educators,theapplicationofMItheorytoschoolsis
leader must walk, the tension between excellence
aprocessthatdoesnotpermitquickfixes.Theeffort and perfection. I value the concrete examples, as
totakethedifferencesamongindividualsseriously, wellasthetiestoimportantconceptualwork,such
and to recast curriculum, instruction, and assess- asthatundertakenbyRolandBarthoncollegiality,
ment in light of those differences, requires
v
BECOMING A MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES SCHOOL
PeterSaloveyonemotionalintelligence,andPeter fixes. Reading about the struggles and victories of
Sengeonthelearningorganization. theNewCitySchoolfamily,Iwasremindedofan-
Achieving excellence has always been a pro- other memorable remark of Winston Churchill’s:
cess.Hoerrmakesitabundantlyclearthattheeffort “Thisisnottheend.Itisnoteventhebeginningof
to use MI ideas effectively must remain on the theend.Butitis,perhaps,theendofthebeginning.”
agenda.Still,Icantestifythat,overa10-yearperiod,
clear, palpable, impressive progress can be made.
Wecanimproveschoolssignificantly,butonlyifwe HOWARDGARDNER
takethelongviewanddonotsettleforpatchwork CAMBRIDGE,MA
vi
P
R E FA C E
The New City School is an independent school in thousands of dollars; 500 yards to the north are
thecityofSt.Louis,Missouri,serving360students boardedupapartmentbuildingsandvacantlots.
from three years old through the 6th grade. The Beginning with 100 children, New City has
schoolhouse is turn-of-the-century, originally built grown to be the largest independent elementary
asanall-girlsdayschool,elementarythroughhigh schoolinSt.Louis.Theschoolwasfoundedonthe
school. We make good use of our space, with premise that children learn best when they learn
with those who are both similar to and different
wooden lofts built in most classrooms to take ad-
fromthemselves,andthisthrustfordiversitycon-
vantage of the high ceilings. Giant concrete sculp-
tinuestoday.Duringthe1999–2000schoolyear,33
tures sit on our lawns—a huge frog, turtle, and
percentofourstudentsareminorities(mostlyAfri-
serpents—tellingeveryonewhopassesbythatthis
can American); 26.7 percent of our student body,
is not a typical school! An eight-foot-tall, multi-
students of all races, receive need-based financial
headed papier-mâché dragon greets everyone just
aid; and students are enrolled from 50 zip codes,
inside the front door, each head corresponding to
representingnearlyalloftheSt.Louismetropolitan
oneoftheoriginalmultipleintelligences.Forexam-
area,althoughamajorityofstudentsliveinthecity
ple,oneheadwearsgiantreadingglasseswhilean-
ofSt.Louis.Althoughanindependentschool,New
other has a coach’s whistle. Once inside the
City’senrollmentpoliciesarequiteinclusive.Space
building,visitorswalkthroughhallsadornedwith
permitting, the overwhelming majority of the stu-
students’workreflectingtheirusealloftheintelli-
dentswhoapplytoNewCityareadmitted.Wedo
gences.
notseektoenrollthe“bestandbrightest.”
NewCitySchoolopeneditsdoorsin1969,cre-
Because we are an independent school, we
atedbyneighborswhowantedaschooltobeanan-
havesomeadvantagesnotoftenavailabletopublic
chorandstemthedisinvestmentofpropertyvalues.
schools.Ourclasssizesaverage17:1ingrades1–6
In some respects, New City has succeeded in this
and parents choose us based on our mission. Al-
missionandiscreditedbymanyasakeyfactorin
thoughweareinclusiveinouradmissionspolicies,
therevitalizationofSt.Louis’scentralwestend.Yet
we do not get a cross-section of students; families
St.Louisstillstruggleswithmanyofthepovertyis- chooseusbecausetheyvalueeducationandthatis
suesfacingallmajorcities.Fivehundredyardsdi- anincredibleadvantage.
rectly south of New City are renovated mansions Weacceptthechallengesofbeinganindepend-
built in the early 1900s, worth hundreds of
vii
BECOMING A MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES SCHOOL
ent school, too. Each year parents decide whether 6th graders must take competitive tests and go to
we are truly worth thousands of dollars of tuition various secondary schools for personal interviews
and“votewiththeirfeet”aboutwhethertheywish to determine whether they will be accepted. We
toremainatNewCity.Ifwearenotmeetingtheir help our students view the application and
children’sneedstheywillnotstay.Parentalexpecta- interviewprocessasalearningexperience,onethat
tionsareincreased;parentswhopaytuitionfeelthat will begin to prepare them for the many
theyhavetherighttoexpectmorefromaschool. applications they will submit throughout their
Beinganindependentschoolmeansthatthere lifetime, but there is no denying the stress for our
isadditionalpressureplacedonourstudents.Our studentsandtheirparents.
viii
A
C K N O W L E D G M E N T S
Iamindebtedtomanypeople.First,Icannotbegin about the future. I read Frames of Mind (Gardner,
toexpressthegratitudeIfeeltowardHowardGard- 1983)andlifehasneverbeenthesameforanyofus!
ner.IoweHowardagreatdeal,notjustforhiscon- On a personal level, much of who I am, the
ceptionofthetheoryofmultipleintelligences,but good anyway, is due to the support of my wife,
forhiskindnessandsupport. Karleen. She is a woman of many strengths and I
IowemuchtotheentireNewCitySchoolcom- have gained much from her. My mother, Rita
munity.Ourfaculty,asyouwillgatherfromreading Curtis, has been unwavering in her confidence in
thisbook,isexceptional.Theyarecaring,talented, me.Herloveandsupporthavemadeallthediffer-
creative, and dedicated. I feel fortunate to work ence.IowemuchtoPaulineWolff,myformersecre-
withteachersandadministratorswhoputkidsfirst tarywhohelpedmefindadegreeoforganization
in everything that they do. Their willingness to amidst the detritus on my desk and in my head.
search for a better way to help all of our students AndbothJohnO’NeilandDarcieRussell,myedi-
learn is inspiring. (Plus, they tolerantly and pa- torsatASCD,warrantmuchappreciationfortheir
tientlyrolltheireyesatmybadjokes.)Ourstudents skillandsupportinhelpingmeturnideasintoread-
andfamiliesarealsospecial.Theytrustusandcare ablesentences.
forusinmanyways.Educationisapartnershipand Finally,althoughshenolongerwalksthisearth,
ourfamilieswalkwithusinoureffortstodiscover I would be remiss if I did not take a moment to
newwaystohelpstudentslearn.Themembersof acknowledgemy1stgradeteacher,Mrs.Mayfield.
theNewCityBoardofDirectorsdeservespecialrec- At Monroe School, in south St. Louis, Helen
ognitionfortheircommitmenttoexcellence.Years Mayfield was everything that a good teacher
agotheyexpressedtheirappreciationofandconfi- shouldbe.Shebelievedinmeandshepushedme.
denceinmebygrantingmesometimeawayfrom WhateverscholasticsuccessIhaverealizedstarted
school,aminisabbatical,toread,reflect,andthink withher.Ithinkofheroften.
ix