USING MY STRENGTHS IN MY TEACHING.

Howard Gardener came up with the theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI) where he asserted that human beings have different intellectual strengths and minds and that this has an important bearing on how people or learners learn. He came up with 8 intelligences which include:
Linguistic, Logical-Mathematical, Visual-Spartial, Naturalistic ,Bodily-Kinesthetic ,Interpersonal, Intra-personal, Musical. According to him, educators need to take into consideration these differences while teaching for authentic  learning to occur. Every body possesses all 8 with varying levels of aptitude giving each person a unique profile.

After taking the MI intelligence test I scored highest in Linguistic with 83% followed by Intrapersonal with  56%. Linguistic refers to an individual’s ability to analyze information and produce work that involves oral and written language such as speeches, books and memos. Interpersonal on the other hand reflects an ability to recognize and understand other people’s moods, desires and motivations. I can use these two in my teaching to benefit students in the following ways:

Ø  I would put the students into Discussion Groups to discuss Natural disasters occurring in the nation eg floods and landslides.

Ø  Keeping journals while on Geography field work trips thereby keeping clear records of what has been studied in the field so that conclusions and follow ups can be done later.

Ø  They could also use video recorders to record important facts while out in the field.

Ø  They can also produce graphs of Geography statistics, analyze them and make meaningful conclusions.

Ø  I would also have the ability to judge their moods and react appropriately eg when to encourage, when to be strict, when to counsel and when to correct them etc.

Before I can use the students intelligences to help improve learning, they themselves must first identify them. Together we would list them, and get them to take the MI intelligence test. I would encourage them to participate in activities that foster their strengths such as create songs, videos, art pieces, write plays, discussions  etc etc. They would then use their intelligences to improve their performance in their various disciplines.

 I would also remind them that they have all 8 but with varying levels of aptitude. This would make the lessons more student centered and therefore more interesting. The test also identifies their weaknesses which we would work on to improve, for an all round student in the final analysis. This would all result in authentic learning as put forward by Marilyn M Lombard’s which involves among others the elements of varieties of resources, collaboration, multiple interpretations and outcomes etc.