Multiple Intelligences - New Horizons

312 Pages·2009·2.01 MB·English

by  Howard Gardner

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Multiple Intelligences
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Other Books by Howard Gardner
The Quest for Mind (1973)
The Arts and Human Development (1973)
The Shattered Mind (1975)
Developmental Psychology (1978)
Artful Scribbles (1980)
Art,Mind,and Brain (1982)
Frames ofMind (1983)
The Mind’s New Science (1985)
To Open Minds (1989)
The Unschooled Mind (1991)
Multiple Intelligences (1993)
Creating Minds (1993)
Leading Minds (1995)
Extraordinary Minds (1997)
The Disciplined Mind (1999)
Intelligence Reframed (1999)
Good Work (2001)
(with Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and William Damon)
Making Good (2004)
(with Wendy Fischman,Becca Solomon,and Deborah Greenspan)
Changing Minds (2004)
The Development and Education ofthe Mind (2006)
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Multiple
Intelligences
New Horizons
Howard Gardner
A Member ofthe Perseus Books Group
New York
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Copyright © 2006 by Howard Gardner
First edition © 1993 by Howard Gardner
Published by Basic Books
A Member ofthe Perseus Books Group
All rights reserved.Printed in the United States ofAmerica.No part ofthis book may be
reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of
briefquotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
A catalog-in-publication record for this book is available from the Library ofCongress.
ISBN 10: 0-465-04768-8
ISBN 13: 978-0-465-04768-0
06 07 08 / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Contents
Introduction vii
I The Theory
1 In a Nutshell 3
2 The View After Twenty-five Years 25
3 Beyond Intelligence:Other Valued Human Capacities 39
4 The Bridge to Education 53
5 Frequently Asked Questions About Theory and Practice 63
II Educational Perspectives
6 Nurturing Intelligences in Early Childhood 89
7 Projects During the Elementary Years 113
8 Multiple Entry Points Toward Disciplinary Understanding 123
9 Disciplined Inquiry in High School:An Introduction
to Arts PROPEL 147
10 Assessment in Context:The Alternative to
Standardized Testing 167
III New Vistas
11 Societal Contexts 193
12 At the Workplace 213
13 The Future 233
v
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Contents
Appendices
A.Acknowledgments 257
B.Chapter Credits 259
C.Works Related to Multiple Intelligences 263
D.References 277
Subject Index 293
Names Index 299
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Introduction
My research in developmental and neuropsychology, which led to the
theory of multiple intelligences (MI), began in the early 1970s. The
main lines of the theory had been completed by 1980,and my book Frames
of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences appeared in the fall of 1983.
Though my editor and publisher had high expectations for the book,I don’t
think anyone anticipated the attention that these ideas would initially at-
tract, particularly among educators, or the keen and continuing interest
twenty-five years later in many regions ofthe world.
During the decade that followed,I became involved in a variety of edu-
cational projects that emanated, in one way or another, from MI theory.
For the time being, I avoided an explicit compendium or revision of the
theory.In 1993,I issued Multiple Intelligences: The Theory in Practice,a col-
lection in which I reviewed the major points ofthe theory and reported on
several educational experiments. Shortly thereafter, I began explicitly to
address some ofthe misunderstandings and misuses ofthe theory.In Intel-
ligence Reframed(1999),I provided a briefupdate ofthe theory;responded
to many questions,conceptions,and criticisms;and explored the relation-
ship of intelligence to other concepts that I had subsequently investigated,
such as leadership,creativity,and morality.
In the middle of the first decade of the twenty-first century,twenty-five
years after the idea of multiple intelligences first gelled, I determined to
provide an up-to-date and comprehensive overview of MI theory.The re-
sult is the present volume.
Multiple Intelligences: New Horizonsis divided into three parts.In part I,
“The Theory,”I provide both a summary ofthe original theory (chapter 1)
and a discussion of major ways in which the theory has changed (chapter
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Introduction
2): the addition of intelligences,the distinction between domains and in-
telligences,and the differentiation among various conceptions of intellect.
There follows a delineation of the relation between intelligence and other
human cognitive capacities,such as creativity,expertise,and genius (chap-
ter 3).I describe the way in which a psychological study evolved into a set
ofeducational issues and recommendations (chapter 4).And I answer ma-
jor questions and criticisms that have been raised in the past quarter cen-
tury (chapter 5).
In part II,“Educational Perspectives,”I focus on specific educational ex-
periments.These range from efforts to nurture and assess the intelligences
of preschoolers to attempts to inculcate in adolescents the major discipli-
nary ways of thinking,including those featured in the arts (chapters 6–9).
Also included is a discussion ofthe major purpose ofeducation (chapter 8)
and a detailed proposal for new forms ofassessment (chapter 10).
In part III,“New Vistas,”I turn my attention to an emerging view of in-
telligence that takes into account the different social and cultural contexts
in which young persons grow up (chapter 11).There follows a considera-
tion ofhow ideas ofmultiple intelligences are being used and could be fur-
ther implemented at the workplace (chapter 12). The final essay (chapter
13) looks toward the future:the direction of research on intelligence,new
sources of information about the intelligences,the changing audiences for
MI theory,and the place of the theory in a rapidly changing,increasingly
globalized world.
Much of the material in this book is new;some of it was adapted from
my 1993 book or from other writings.The essays have been ordered so that
the book can be read from cover to cover.For the most part,I have replaced
redundancies with references to earlier chapters;but on occasion,I permit
a modest amount ofrepetition for ease ofreading.
As will be apparent,MI theory and practice have taken on lives of their
own.There are literally hundreds of books,hundreds of dissertations,and
thousands ofscholarly and popular articles on the theory.Hundreds,ifnot
thousands, of schools all over the world claim to be implementing MI
ideas. I do not even try to keep up with these works and enterprises, al-
though I hope that the most important and most intriguing efforts will
come to my attention.In an appendix to this book,I list some of the most
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Introduction
important efforts and provide an up-to-date bibliography ofmy own writ-
ings on the topic.
From the beginning,my work on multiple intelligences could not have
been pursued without an overwhelming amount of support, human as
well as financial. Dozens of students and collaborators, both at Harvard
and elsewhere,have helped to push forward the agenda of multiple intelli-
gences and have contributed important ideas and practices. I have also
benefited from many funders,both private foundations and generous indi-
viduals.It is not possible to thank everyone,but I do list the major funders
in a separate acknowledgments section.At this time,I single out for special
mention Seana Moran, an outstanding student who helped me with all
facets of the preparation of this book and took the lead in drafting the
chapter on MI at the workplace; my assistant Lindsay Pettingill who has
worked deftly with Seana and me in the preparation ofmaterials;my other
assistant,Christian Hassold,who is always willing to lend one of his many
skilled extra hands; my editor, Jo Ann Miller, Editorial Director of Basic
Books;John J.Guardiano,my copy editor;Felicity Tucker,in charge ofpro-
duction; and, with great appreciation, my colleagues Mindy Kornhaber,
Mara Krechevsky,and Joseph Walters,who allowed me to reprint materials
that we coauthored.
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