12. The Challenge for an Educator
Emotional response can be a sensitive
topic because it connects on an
interpersonal, group, and cultural level
and what one culture may not deem
significant emotionally, another culture
may.
(Zeidner, Matthews, & Roberts,
2009)
13. Strategies of Success for an
Educator
Ask questions, probe, and be
sensitive about cultural
differences.
14. Conclusion
All three theories have important roles to
educators in the classroom so they
understand the importance of solid
advanced preparation for an adult
education environment. A multiplicity of
cultures and norms, learning styles,
intelligences, differences in values, and
personalities can be an ideal
environment for learning to thrive.
15. References
American Ballet Theater. (2016). American Ballet Theater.
Retrieved from
http://www.abt.org/dancers/detail.asp?Dancer_ID=56
Ekinci, B. (2014). The Relationships Among Sternberg's
Triarchic Abilities, Gardner's Multiple Intelligences, and
Academic Achievement. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.contentproxy.phoenix.edu/docvie
w/1534013196?pq-origsite=summon&accountid=458.
Merriam, S. B., & Bierema, L. L. (2014). Adult Learning.
Somerset, NJ: Jossey- Bass.
Zeidner, M., Matthews, G., & Roberts, R. D. (2009). What
We Know about Emotional Intelligence. Cambridge, MA:
MIT.
Editor's Notes
My name is Roger Cosgrove and it is my pleasure to join you today to talk about some theories of intelligence. For this presentation, we were to research the nature of intelligence as it relates to adult development and learning. Furthermore we were to look at the how culture influences the perception and/or the application of each theory and the practical implications that result.
The three theories we will be reviewing are Multiple Intelligences by Howard Gardner, the Triarchic or Practical Theory of Intelligence espoused by Robert Sternberg, and the Emotional Intelligence Model of Daniel Goleman.
Multiple intelligences theory is defined as a “bio-psychological potential to process information that can be activated in a cultural setting to solve problems or create products that are of value in a culture (Merriam & Bierema, 2014).” The first four of the eight intelligences are spatial or space, body or touch, musical, and interpersonal. In the spirit of this assignment, I have included some graphical representations of the concept.
The fundamental idea is that people have some intelligence in all these areas, but there is usually a dominant intelligence in most people. An example of this is the first black principal dancer of the American Ballet Theater, Misty Copeland, who has highly developed skills in dance (American Ballet Theater, 2016). She also happened to be trained initially in ballet in the town I live in San Pedro, California.
The final four of Gardner’s intelligences are intrapersonal, linguistic or language, logic or mathematical, and orientation to nature. An visual representation of a logical intelligence or mathematical intelligence would be the character Spock.
From an adult education and learning standpoint, Gardner’s theory makes sense in the respect that as educators and facilitators of adult education, our orientation is to introduce subject matter and facilitate and explore the topics as they relate to the learners life experiences, which is where the richness of the adult learning environment comes into play. The difficulty is being able to integrate the topic into a culturally mixed environment with learners who have different dominant intelligences and learning styles.
This is where the work begins for the educator. The first step in order to make it work in a mixed cultural environment with different dominating intelligences and different learning styles, is to analyze the composition of the members of the class. The teacher must assess the nationality and cultural background of the participants in the class. For example, if a number of the members of the class are from Pakistan, it would be important to get a handle on where education is valued in the Pakistan culture, how men and women are perceived, and get an understanding of what is the motivation of these students for taking this course. It would also be important to understand how learning occurs in Pakistan. It would be valuable to know if the educational system is a shared learning environment between the teacher and learner or one where the teacher is the dominant factor in the classroom environment.
The implication of all this information for a teacher is actually pretty simple. You teach! However, you teach with sensitivity and you teach with a world view approach where the classroom becomes an environment of enrichment in both culture and subject matter. In the process, you will become a better teacher.
You would introduce the culture through your lesson. For example, when you plan a geography lesson, using my previous example of Pakistan, you would do a lesson on Pakistan one evening. During the discussion, you would ask those students about the cultural aspects of the country and what they miss most about home. You would ask open-ended questions to find out many things about their country. Perhaps discuss the food and the climate. Then and this is critical, you ask the other students in the class about their country of origin and specifically ask if there are any similarities. The idea being that your are sharing and demonstrating similarities between distinct cultures. From an intelligence standpoint, you would bring in a vegetable, herb, or food from that country and maybe have native music from Pakistan and other countries playing throughout the night for the musically oriented learner. You could show pictures of the prevalent architecture in that country to capture the interest of the spatially oriented in the class. All these methods serve to reinforce both learn geography and appreciate cultural diversity.
Sternberg was a dissenter from the traditional general intelligence community. His theory of intelligence encompasses the area of analytical ability, creative ability, and practical ability or common sense (Ekinci, 2014, p. 627). Analytic ability is comparable to general intelligence. Creative intelligence is thinking in a different way than the norm. Intelligence in the area of practicality is using our learned knowledge from experience to handle life on a daily basis. The balancing of these three aspects of intelligence is what helps to have a fulfilled life.
From an adult learning standpoint, educators are trying to introduce subject matter which can be easily connected to the experiences of the adult learner. Sternberg’s theory fits this model and while acknowledging the analytical and creative capability of a student, it also recognizes the practical knowledge of a person. In fact, adult learning theory is banking on practical knowledge in life experiences to be a significant part of the sharing and learning experience for the group.
The key to success for an educator in this case is to make the students use their creativity and practical knowledge in class and on assignments. For example, instead of asking a group of graduate students to write a paper on intelligence theories, I would have them create a slide show on learning theory but ask them to do so trying out some new tools. This would appeal to those students with a creative orientation and would help those in the class who are less creative to discover they are able to learn new things and be creative. From a multicultural aspect, I might arrange for them to work on a project together in order to get a perspective on teamwork with someone from another country. I might have them do a presentation together and have them discuss how the process worked, what difficulties they had, and ask them about the most positive aspect of the experience. I would have them share their experiences with the class so other students benefit their learning and growth.
Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence theory is predicated on a belief that success in life is driven by the recognition of, response to, and management of emotions. The model consists of self-awareness or knowing oneself, self-regulation or managing one’s emotions and adapting, social skills or managing other’s emotions, empathy or relating to and recognizing the emotion in others, and putting it all together in relationship management (Merriam & Bierema, 2014). This theory ties into adult education quite well.
A big challenge with emotional intelligence theory has to do with the perception of emotion from a multicultural perspective. Emotional response can be a sensitive topic because it connects on an interpersonal, group, and cultural level and what one culture may not deem significant emotionally, another culture may (Zeidner, Matthews, & Roberts, 2009).
As an educator the key is to ask questions and probe and be sensitive. Nobody can know everything, so it is key is to keep communication link open, ask students questions about their culture and background and then listen to them. They will tell you what they need.
All three theories have important roles to educator in the classroom so they understand the importance of solid advanced preparation for an adult education environment. A multiplicity of cultures and norms, learning styles, intelligences, differences in values, and personalities can be an ideal environment for learning to thrive.
For those interested in finding out more information about the topic of intelligences, here are some of the sources for the presentation. Thank You.