MI+B2+Chapter+12

Abstract and Synthesis
This chapter discusses the relationship between the theory of[| Multiple Intelligences] and the field of cognitive psychology. The author suggests that there is a relationship between a MI classroom and how students retain information. The chapter also discusses the connection between Bloom's Taxonomy (6 facets of learning) and the Multiple Intelligences. Another new idea is the concept of "Christopherian Encounters" which is a theory based in the discovered learning of realities of the world (it gets its name from Christopher Columbus who proved the world was not flat by attempting to circumnavigate it). The idea is that many students leave school without understandings of realities of the world, and they will learn better if teachers can connect the curriculum to these sorts of discovered learning. The chapter used specific examples to show how the multiple intelligences can be used to emphasize Bloom's Taxonomy, "Christopherian Encounters", Memory, and Problem Solving in the classroom. Most of us wrote about how we liked the idea of using the multiple intelligences to improve memory and help students retain information. We identified with situations in which the teachers get frustrated when students seem to not retain any of the information given. The idea of "Christopherian Encounters" was new to many of us, but the idea of more practical discovered learning was very appealing. A few people mentioned that some of the examples given were better suited to younger age groups, but were helpful nonetheless. We also discussed how specific examples of memory skills and tools helped us when we were in school and how we would like to help our students in the same way. [|Here] are some examples of incorporating MI in an English classroom.

Megan Millette
In this chapter, Armstrong suggests that educators want to help their students develop thinking strategies. He then goes on to describe how MI theory can help in this area because it provides the students with the ability to make sense of their cognitive skills. The problem of memory comes up because many educators struggle with the problem of having their students not remembering information. MI theory can help these discouraged teachers because it allows students to relate things learned to a specific area of each of the intelligences, which makes it easy for the students to relate to and remember. As an educator in order to make this work in my class, I must help my students associate the material to the eight intelligences. Armstrong argues that students’ problem solving levels are less than exceptional and could use work. As an educator I need to use strategies like the ones listed in this chapter to help my students. One way of doing so is by having imagery to help the students picture the problems and the solutions. Once students can see these strategies they are more apt to pick which ones fit them best and then apply it to their life to help them improve their problem solving skills. Armstrong challenges teachers to enhance our students’ “multiple intelligences into higher levels of competence and understanding” (Pg. 167). Educators can do so by challenging the students’ beliefs and forcing them to take each of these over the edge to where they have to confront the contradictions to their own thinking. Through challenges brought forward in this chapter we educators are more apt to enhance our students’ cognitive thinking with MI theory.

Lauren Breton
Throughout the years, teachers have become increasingly interested in exploring how students think and in the development of students’ thinking strategies. For many teachers, it is frustrating when students do not retain the information that has been taught in previous classes. This chapter suggest incorporating all eight of the intelligences into memorization activities, as opposed to focusing on only the linguistic or logical-mathematical intelligences. This suggesting makes complete sense to me, because if students do not have well developed linguistic or logical-mathematical intelligences but do have highly developed musical or natural intelligences, we should be trying to activate their memory by having them sing their spelling words or spell them out with natural materials. Another aspect of the text that I found especially helpful was the section on promoting Christopherian encounters. This section emphasized the importance of challenging students’ beliefs and misconceptions by pushing them into deeper thinking. The text offers many ideas for how to push students’ thinking to a deeper level through each intelligence. For example, while reading a text, teachers could ask students to relate different parts of the text, such as specific characters, to their own personal experiences (intrapersonal). Also, by combining Bloom’s taxonomy and the MI theory, teachers can move into more complex cognitive thinking that can help to prepare students for the rest of their lives after school. By using some of the suggestions that the text provided (having students spell words with their bodies/classmates, solving problems by using analogies from nature, etc.) I hope to be able to push my students’ thinking into deeper, more complex realms. I also hope that they will use their highly developed intelligences and some of the options mentioned for memorization and recall of important information.

Lauren Scheidegger
Chapter twelve of __Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom__ by Thomas Armstrong focused on using the MI theory to focus on cognitive skills. The chapter begun by giving ways to assist student’s memories based on the intelligence they favor most. Many of the tactics seemed oriented towards a very young audience, but could easily be adapted to suit those at a higher level. It also went through ways to help students get through problems. An example of this might be to use a nature analogy for those who are more naturalists or to sketch things/ideas out for those who are visual. The chapter also went over the well known theory of “Blooms levels of Cognitive Complexity” also known as “Blooms Taxonomy”. Bloom created six levels of higher order thinking, they are: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation, in that order. Knowing this order of thinking allows teachers to see where their students are and where they should be going next. At the end of a unit all students will have hopefully gone through all levels of complex thinking. To help teachers accommodate to a student’s level of thinking the chapter included a chart that showed a way to go over every level of thinking for every intelligence. An example of one is a naturalist ready to synthesize might be asked to find ways to protect a certain species of plant or animal in their neighborhood from damage or disease or some other issue. I found the chart to be a very useful collection of information and a wonderful way to start thinking about helping every student reach every level of complex thinking.

Kevin Lind
This chapter is all about the connection between the eight multiple intelligences and how students think. The most interesting idea in this chapter for me is the idea that teachers can utilize the intelligences of their students to help them retain knowledge. This seems as though it would be effective because the intelligences are directly related to how students think, so making using the way they think to remember information makes sense. I could definitely use this while I am teaching to help my students remember the most important ideas about our government.

The chapter also makes reference to Bloom’s taxonomy, which is an important thing for all teachers to think about. Bloom’s taxonomy is similar to the six facets of understanding. Either one of these can be used to effectively help students to fully understand the material. I will need to keep both of these in mind while I am in the classroom to make sure I am leading students to a greater understanding,

Using the intelligences of students to help them with problem solving seems as though it could actually help many of them to succeed. By using strategies that fit into each students intelligences to help them solve problems, they are applying what they have learned in a completely new way. I really think that I will use something similar to this to help my students figure out problems. For example, the most obvious way for a musical learner to use that intelligent to help write an essay describing how a bill becomes a law is for them to learn the Schoolhouse Rock classic on that subject.

T.J. Hebert
Much like the previous chapter, this chapter begins by discussing Multiple Intelligence (MI) theory as a way to help students develop their particular skills by looking at how students think instead of what they think. One of the biggest issues that teachers talk about is students remembering what the teacher is teaching. A quote from the chapter that I like is “They knew it yesterday, but it’s gone today”. The question is how do we ensure our students are retaining the information. In order to help the students remember, we must first identify their intelligence strong points and then strategize within that intelligence to develop learning that the students will retain. The book provides several examples for each of the eight intelligences. The next area where MI theory can be applied is with problem solving, the U.S. ranks behind several countries in regards to higher order cognitive process and U.S. students is in need of serious improvement. I did not realize that the U.S. was lacking in higher order thinking, I would have thought the opposite. Perhaps it is because it took us longer to discover the different learning styles and intelligences than other countries? Maybe the U.S. was less accepting and is taking longer to adopt the principles of MI theory. Whatever the reasons for being behind, there is no good reason to continue to fall. With the MI theory, backward design, and differentiation we should be moving faster in the right direction. It is clear that MI theory plays a role in all aspects of education.

**Samy Tracy **
Chapter twelve of this text focuses primarily on how cognitive skills can be applied using MI theory. Armstrong suggests using the Multiple Intelligence theories when trying to help students memorize subject matter. Because there is no such thing as a “good” or “bad” memory in according to Gardner, there is just excelling in certain intelligences and not so well in others. Students have to figure out which intelligence they do extremely well in and the teacher’s job is to present the material to students using the intelligence that they prefer. I think getting students to think more about the learning style that works best for them will help in the long run so they can somewhat teach themselves when it comes to other teachers who do not use the MI theory. I really wish my teachers had taught me about multiple intelligence before I got to college even though one that I excel in is linguistic which is used primarily in schools. I also liked how teachers need to promote “Christopherian Encounters.” Simply because I had never heard these words put together before and the concept seems so interesting. This theory is based around Christopher Columbus, to challenge naïve beliefs, question things, and apply their newfound information to the world. This is especially important because it activates new ways of thinking and helps get students away from the norm.

Morgan Ware
Chapter 12 is about using the MI Theory and cognitive skills to better a students’ learning. There is no good or bad memory. Students either have a really good memory in their certain intelligence and poor memories in intelligences that are not their strongest. Students need to figure out what intelligence works the best for them and the teacher needs to be there to assist them. Memory will be best taught through all eight intelligences. Students need to use all intelligences to better understand other content materials and to problem solve. I think that I would have excelled better in high school if I knew about my intelligences before college. I think that teachers need to incorporate the multiple intelligences in their curriculum more. In my classrooms I will use the MI Theory to better allow my students to understand their own intelligences. This chapter also talks about using Blooms Taxonomy and the MI Theory. Teachers can use Bloom’s to see how well the students are reacting to multiple intelligences.

Alyssa Amari
Recently, educators have become involved in the task of helping students develop their thinking strategies. Teachers always wonder what their students think about, but what is more important is how they think. The MI Theory is a great basis for understanding student’s cognitive skills; each of the intelligences have their own cognitive capacity. Cognitive capacities such as memory are some of the biggest issues facing teachers; they cannot get their students to remember things. MI Theory suggest that memory strategies be differentiated for each intelligence because sometimes students have stronger memory in certain intelligences over others. MI Theory is also helpful in problem solving. Educators are frequently seeking ways to help their student think more effectively, especially in areas such as their logical-mathematical reasoning abilities, and the use of self-talk and other linguistic strategies. MI Theory suggests that teachers focus on the end states of problem solving processes. Blooms Taxonomy levels of cognitive complexity (knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation) can be used to that teacher instruction encourages and develops students higher order thinking capacities.

This is a very confusing subject; I feel like it is rare that teachers think about and consider this in the development of their lessons. It is a very confusing thing to try and motivate student thinking. I would like to learn more about this so all of my students can benefit in such a way that they use higher order thinking skills. This is most definitely an issue I will deal with in math, so I think it is important for me t learn to address it in my classroom.

Rachel Joiner
This chapter was all about using the MI Theory to improve cognitive skills, and to help with memory. I thought this chapter was very interesting and helpful. I found it helpful for myself, as a way to remember things. I found the memory tips helpful, to fit to what intelligence you need. I think this would also be helpful to the students. If you could show them this, then they could take it and apply it in their other classes as well. By teaching students how to use memorization to their advantage and make it work for them, it could really help them do better. I thought it was interesting when the book mentioned that you may have a poor memory in one area, but in another you can remember a lot. This is important to use with students, because if they are aware of their way for memorizing then they could apply it when they needed it. Students can gain a better awareness of themselves.  I found all the helpful hints in this chapter great. It was nice how the book kept giving you specific examples of using the MI Theory in different situations. I like the analogy of Christopher Columbus that the book makes. It says he challenged the idea that the world was flat, so we should challenge our students to push it to the next level and always be doing better. I thought this was an awesome analogy, and it really made sense for me. I found this chapter to be extremely helpful.

Mike Kahler
Chapter 12 in the MI book is focused on building up students cognitive skills through proper use of the multiple intelligences. One area that this can be used is in the area of memory. By utilizing a student’s strengths they can be taught to memorize through one specific intelligence so that it becomes easier for them. One example of this can be seen in the following example. Naturalists can be taught spelling by taking them to a nearby field. Here they can spell out words with sticks, twigs, and other natural objects. This will capitalize on their love of nature. Spelling will be easier to learn. The same applies to problem solving. By applying strategies built around different intelligences a student can make problem solving easier. Gardner also encourages “Christopherian encounters.” Since students commonly have misconceptions about certain subjects a teacher needs to take them over the edge into uncharted territory where they need to face the facts, and use their multiple intelligences to figure things out for themselves. These kinds of encounters are a great tool for my classroom. Showing students that things they believe about literature are not true is something that I plan on doing everyday. For example Mob Dick is a novel about a whale, but it’s not just about a whale. There are aspects to that novel that make it much deeper than that, and I want to show my students that their belief that Moby Dick is just a fish story is false. Through the multiple intelligences I can show my students things that they do not believe are true.

Emily McGee
Armstrong focuses on the important role of teachers in helping students cultivate their ability to problem solve and use higher-order thinking. He addresses the difficulties and strategies regarding memory and problem solving. According to Howard Gardner, memory is “intelligence specific” and thus information that needs to be memorized should be taught in all eight intelligences. He also addresses the importance of using each of the intelligences to help students problem solve. Armstrong challengea educators to find approaches effectively confronts students’ naïve beliefs, provokes questions, invites multiple perspectives, and ultimately allows students to apply what they know to other outside contexts. He also describes Bloom’s Levels of Cognitive Complexity as a quality control mechanism for instruction that stimulates students’ minds and helps students develop higher-order thinking capacities.

I think it is important to recognize one major flaw in contemporary public education. This is something that I noticed while in high school and have read about in some depth since graduating. Teachers cover so much information, expecting students to memorize it to be recalled for the test and then forgotten. Very little was I ever truly stimulated or expected to apply, analyze, synthesize, or evaluate. I truly think that is a major flaw. Aren’t those things the most important part of education. Why do we learn what we learn- for a letter grade or for conceptual understanding as a structural base for growth and “real-world” application? I would rather have a deep understanding of the quadratic formulas usages and applications, skills for manipulating it and embedding it, rather than how to recite it.

Patrick Hurley
This chapter is all about using the MI theory to help us as educators. A lot of teachers stick to the same old strategies that work for some students, while others are left in the dust. Teachers have to use all the different intelligences to reach all of their students so everyone learns the information. The chapter also says to question naïve beliefs to see things from the perspective of different intelligences. The MI theory gives students a chance to broaden their horizons and develop the different types of intelligences and become a well-rounded individual. It is the teachers job to get the students thinking, first in their preferred intelligence, then exploring the topic through other perspectives to gain a greater understanding of the topic. As a teacher I will have to think of clever ways to get my students to learn the information in a relevant way that will stick with them. I have to make sure they are branching out and looking at things through multiple perspectives, because I believe that is one of the best ways to gain a full understanding of a topic. Developing all types of intelligences is an important thing. I, as the teacher, need to have a good understanding of all 8 intelligences so that I can be able to relate things to all of my students.

Matt Roy
In Chapter 12 of Multiple Intelligences, Thomas Armstrong focuses on the new shift towards cognitive psychology in today’s educational setting. On page 161, Armstrong states that we have almost become too worried about //how// students think and not concerned enough with //what// they’re thinking. Armstrong goes on to state that, with a proper understanding of Multiple Intelligence theory, cognitive issues really are not that big of a problem at all. Armstrong uses this chapter to discuss how the four major aspects of cognitive ability (memory, problem solving, Christopheran Encounters and Bloom’s Taxonomy) can all be better understood with a proper grasp of Multiple Intelligence Theory. The issue of memory is of particular concern for teachers as much of the material needs to be remembered in one way of another. In developing an understanding of Multiple Intelligence theory, teachers can gain a deeper understanding of how students use the different intelligences to establish cues for remembering information. This entire book was very interesting because it forced us to view issues from different vantage points and consider how people who learn differently than we do might approach a particular topic. As pre-service teachers it is important for us to consider that we will be dealing with students who are entirely unique from anything we have ever encountered. Each student learns a little differently than the last so we may develop an ability to recognize and even predict patterns but we still must pay individual attention to the way each student learns.

Simone Thiry
The implication of using MI Theory to understand cognitive processes is immeasurably useful in the classroom. I was not surprised that teachers recall situations in which it seems as though they never taught the material because the students did not retain it. A huge part of the learning process is retaining information, and this is particularly true in math, where information builds on prior knowledge. While I tend to have no problem remembering mathematical formulas, I have remembered better all of the formulas that in my educational experience were set to a tune (e.g. the quadratic equation to pop goes the weasel). That is an example of using my musical intelligence to help me retain information that is logical/mathematical in nature. As a future math teacher, I was especially drawn to the ideas of problem solving in the different intelligences. I tend to think in a very logical, linear manner, and that is how I approach problems. I will need to learn different ways of approaching problems in order to relate mathematical problem solving to students who do not favor the logical mindset. Visualization is another big idea in the field of math, and so one way I can do this is by showing videos and displaying graphs before I talk about a problem. The idea of Christopherian encounters also demonstrates how critical it is for the concepts learned in school to have real-life connections. We need to make students think outside the box, and learn through experimentation. In math, this means creating problems from real life, not just writing out word problems because that’s what we’ve been taught to do.