Howard Gardner - Research Paper Example

As a result of further research Gardener and his colleagues have stated that there could be an addition of another 3 possible intelligences to the initial list of seven (Smith, 2002, 2008). The presence of one kind of intelligence is determined from several perspectives or criteria which were drawn from several fields such as biology, logical reasoning and various psychological factors. With this he concluded that every child whether normal, mentally or physically challenged will have their unique set of intelligences in which they will shine and both teachers and parents will have to employ a broad range of learning methods in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses of a child.

Thus with his research on multiple intelligences Gardener sought to bring about a change in the system of learning with focus on the inherent abilities and interest of a child so that they will be able to pursue their interests and not succumb to external factors such as peer pressure (What are Multiple Intelligences? n.d). . e candidate intelligences in an individual include: the potential for brain isolation by brain damage, presence of an evolutionary history or possibility, a set of identifiable core operations, susceptibility to encoding, distinct developmental progression in which there is a defined end-state performance, the existence of idiot-savants, prodigies and other such unique individual, and aided with suitable support from psychological experiments and other psychometric findings (Gilman, 2001; Smith, 2002, 2008).

The seven intelligences initially included in the MI theory are linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial, interpersonal and intrapersonal. Of the seven the first two intelligences namely linguistic and logical have been used in the school curriculum to assess the language and reasoning skills of the students. The linguistic intelligence is the ability to read, write and effectively communicate in a language. Through this an individual should be able to express themselves and accomplish their set goals.

The logical-mathematical reasoning is the ability to reason and analyze scientific issues and mathematical problems. The next three intelligences are associated with performing arts as they involve a coordination of the mind and the body. The musical intelligence includes performance, composition or listening skills in music. Understanding the musical pattern will enable an individual to compose pitches, rhythms and tones. Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence involves the effective use of bodily parts to perform an action.

For example athletes, dancers and medical surgeons and craftsman have a high capacity for this intelligence. According to Gardener, this intelligence includes both the mind and the physical body as activities are performed