Customer Reviews

Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom, 2nd edition

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Did you know that a child who misbehaves in class is unconsciously telling you how he/she needs to approach learning? As a special education teacher and devotee of multiple intelligence theory, this book satisfied my thirst for knowledge on how to recognize and honor children for who they are, not simply who and what we want them to be. Armstrong covers MI theory not only in relation to learning academic subjects, but behavior, classroom management, and life in general. You will never look at education the same way!

I have been fascinated with the idea of multiple intelligences since I first learned of Howard Gardner's theory. Thomas Armstrong provides a review of the basics of that theory, but then takes it a step further. Armstrong provides countless examples of how each intelligence can be used in the classroom as well as how those intelligences can be assessed. Armstrong also provides ideas on what to include in a M.I. portfolio and how to assess each student's learning through their unique intellectual proclivities. Finally, Armstrong shows us how the traditional paradigm of special education can change and benefit from the application of M.I. theory. This book is well organized, an easy read, and one meant to be read again and again.

Have you considered restructuring your 2000-2001 teaching program or, if you are a school administrator, your entire school program around Dr. Howard Earl Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI)? If you answered that important question in the affirmative, then Thomas Armstrong's "Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom 2nd Edition" is a must read.

In "Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom 2nd Edition", Armstrong reinforces Gardner's (1983) MI theory as a confirmed classroom application. This revised and expanded book encourages all types of teachers, be they special education teachers, regular classroom teachers, or teachers of students identified as intellectually exceptional, to show a more holistic view that validates students for who they truly are.

The 156 pages of this book outline innovative strategies for integrating an eighth intelligence, the naturalist, into a classroom/school program. Moreover, Armstrong presents new outlooks, including three potential predicaments, about the possibility of a ninth intelligence--the existential--the intelligence of concern with ultimate life issues and its potential.

Armstrong's insights for teaching and learning, recent case studies and research on the effective uses of MI theory represents a welcomed update to his initial 1994 book of the same title.

Armstrong is to be commended for his comprehensive comments on nurturing students' intelligence strengths. He suggests practical strategies for reducing or (even possibly) eliminating achievement gaps between all types of learners. Moreover, he provides (those busy) classroom teachers and school administrators with new insights for developing a MI learning environment. This 2000 revised book is a necessary read for all who are interested in MI forms of schooling.

For years educators and psychologists presumed that one could "measure" intelligence by giving a test to students in an artificial setting, scoring their multiple choice responses against a norm, and then giving a numerical label to the child. The problem with this sort of assessment is that it has little to do with how intelligence is used in the real world, namely as a way of solving problems within a specific cultural setting. Enter Howard Gardner. In 1983 Gardner offered a new vision of intelligence which suggested that humans were hardwired with 7 separate intelligences, or modalities of problem solving. These were linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial reasoning, interpersonal, intrapersonal, musical and bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. He later concluded that naturalist intelligence, the ability to derive meaning from and relate concepts to the natural world, was an 8th form of intelligence. Each type of intelligence, Gardner argued, has value and can be used for problem solving. Many of us have gifts in one or more of these intelligences, but others are relatively weak or undeveloped.

Education professionals were among the first to see practical applications for Gardner's theory. In the first instance, it explained quite a bit. Little Johnny may not be able to read well, but he certainly has a knack for music. Incorporating musical elements into instruction can help little Johnny develop his own talents and also assist him in language arts. Similarly, the child figetting in the corner may well have real talent for bodily expression and could learn faster if these talents were incorporated into the classroom curriculum. Indeed, one of the author's key contentions is that a child's "misbehavior" in a traditional classroom setting may well offer clues as to what that child's intellectual strengths are.

The value of this book is that the author, Thomas Armstrong, gives many practical applications for ways lessons can incorporate all intelligences. Some of these are rather trite. (Naturalistic intelligence nearly always gets the short end of the stick. I can't count the number of times Armstrong recommends that students draw an animal to remember a concept.) But many of these are solid. Chants and song to help remember concepts in history, science, and math are excellent learning aids. Associating body movements with concepts and operations is also helpful. Another implication of MI theory is that assessments need not always be of the paper and pencil variety. But Armstrong also offers a more radical vision in this 2000 book: perhaps the very content of our curriculum should be structured around developing the intelligences our kids have rather than molding them into some preconceived vision of what an "educated" child should be. What a radical vision! Treating children as individuals rather than little blank slates to be written upon by teachers and administrators is one of those wonderful libertarian visions that could benefit society as a whole by developing each unique individual part.

Alas, it is also not going to happen. Innovative as the ideas in this book are, they fly in the face of the current political climate educators work in. In 2001 Republicans and Democrats united to pass "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) legislation, a cornerstone of the Bush administration's new education policy. Like almost all other "bipartisan" legislation, this bill could best be described as an unqualified disaster. Flying in the face of nearly 20 years of research inspired by Gardner, NCLB narrowly defined education as proficiency in math and language arts. This pleased the back to the basics conservatives while the heavy federal controls and uniform bureaucratic implementation of the bill insured the strong support of such liberals as Sen. Kennedy. But in terms of helping students, it has damaged education beyond measure. As schools have struggled to meet the 100% proficiency requirements, courses that emphasize other intelligences have fallen by the wayside. PE, art, music, theatre, and industrial arts programs are now virtually non-existent in elementary and middle schools, and declining rapidly in high schools. Indeed, one middle school in my district now offers only six academic periods: three in language arts and three in math. They even dropped science in a desparate attempt to mold their kids into test taking maestros in these two federally approved subjects so they can meet the increasingly rigid NCLB standards. Talk about a failure of education.

It is no surprise then that this book, immensely popular when it first came out, has not seen a new edition since 2000. Just as multiple intelligences were starting to make a significant difference in educational communities across the country, the whole project was derailed. I strongly recommend it nonetheless. As public schools abandon their responsibilities to students in order to meet federal mandates, parents and private schools will need to pick up the slack. This book should give informed citizens an appreciation of what education can be. It offers an alternative vision for the future, one in which each child has an opportunity to explore and develop her talents to the fullest. Only then will no child be truly left behind.

As a teacher, I have read much on the theroy of M.I. Here Armstrong takes the next step by offering specific applications of this theory. I have loaned my book to others and I'm sure I will re-read it again myself. - JVM High School Physics Teacher

Reading Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom literally changed my life, by allowing me to recognize my learning strengths and then to embrace them. We all have different degrees of many intelligences, making us unique in our learning styles and abilities. If every educator could be required to read this book, I know it would at least begin to change the face of education in America. This book can change your life!

This book is very informative and makes the concepts applicable for teachers to use in the classroom every day. I have learned a lot and it is enhancing my teaching methods!

So many times I've ordered an book, whether for one of my Education classes, or now as a licensed educator, and the author uses technical terminology befitting their theories. Armstrong however takes Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences and offers a readable view to understand this approach. The book is extremely well organized and broken down into manageable, helpful parts. Also, for once a book that is designed for all educators truly does help those in the upper levels! Elementary through high school teachers would find this an excellent resource to add to their collection. What I enjoy best about this book is that I can incorporate it into my current methods!

Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom
A real research opening new gates and showing paths to regard every child (and human being in general) as "mines rich in gems of precious value". Written in a sincere and clear language, it gives an accessible way to discover and deepen how we learn, how we understand, how we feel, how we live in this world.
It is a good call for education to go further in this kind of research !

One of the best written resources for applying the concepts of Multiple Intelligences in the classroom. Teacher friendly