One by one, explain each one of the six theories through summarization of key points (that includes reference to the key terms in each theory) One by one, summarize how each of those theories explains the phenomenon of creativity

THEORIES AND MODELS

Theories and models provide us with ways to understand development and learning. A number of prominent developmental theorists have also applied their theories to creativity and the process of creative thinking. This reading selection will review the key points of these theories and their relationships to the concept of creativity.

Psychoanalytic Theory (Freud)

One early theorist who has contributed to our understanding of creativity was Sigmund Freud. Freud’s contribution comes largely from his investigation into human psychology and personality. Freud believed that the human personality is formed in early childhood and that knowledge of how an individual’s drives, instincts, psychic energy, and psychosexual attitudes are formed during the first six years of life is crucial to an understanding of the personality.

Operating within the human personality is Freud’s concept of the conscious and unconscious mind. The conscious mind is what you are aware of at any particular moment, your present perceptions, memories, thoughts, fantasies, feelings, etc. But the largest layer of the mind is theunconscious (or subconscious). It includes all the things that are not easily available to awareness -- the memories, experiences, and conflicts that have been repressed during childhood. According to Freud, all of our biological drives, instincts, memories, and emotions associated with painful events or trauma become hidden in the unconscious. Painful feelings connected with childhood conflicts become repressed in the unconscious. Later in life, as similar conflicts are once again experienced, repression fails, and these feelings emerge, causing anxiety, discomfort, and sometimes irrational behavior. Thus Freud’s theory gave importance to the role of the unconscious in influencing human behavior.

Freud also examined the human personality and envisioned it to be divided into three basic components: the Id, the Ego, and the Superego. Freud believed that the Id, present at birth, is what allows us to see that our basic needs are met, and he further believed that the Id is based on the "pleasure principle." Simply put the Id wants (demands) whatever feels good at the time with no regard to anything or anyone else. Babies display their Id well, crying out when they are hungry, wet, soiled, uncomfortable, or simply in need of attention. Typically, they will continue to express their discontent until their desires are satisfied. They don't consider whether or not it's a convenient time for mom and dad to feed, change, or cuddle them -- they simply focus on what they want. The Id represents instincts, passions, and urges. Often these are unacceptable impulses -- sexual urges or hostility, for instance -- and the Id seeks tirelessly to gratify its needs.

Within three years, children begin to develop a part of the personality that Freud called the Ego. Unlike the Id, the Ego is based on the "reality principle," meaning that the Ego understands the reality of the circumstances. Because of this expansion of their viewpoints, children of three can understand that impulsiveness and self-centered behaviors often have unpleasant consequences. The Ego's job is to see that the Id's needs are met while being realistic about the manner in which these needs are tended. The Ego acts as a moderating force between the id and the external world. Like a computer, the Ego processes the Id’s demands and attempts to satisfy them within the limitations of reality.

According to Freud, the Superego develops by the age of five, completing the basic three factors determining a balanced personality. The Superego is what some people would call the conscience, since it helps to dictate our sense of right and wrong. Moral and ethical lessons taught by our parents and other caregivers really take hold at this age, with children being able to internalize the messages, making them a part of the long term personality. When we violate the values we have learned from parents and other adults, the conscience makes us feel guilty. When we act according to the Superego’s moral code, we feel pride in our “good” behavior.

The conflicts that result from the interaction between these three components of the personality (Id, Ego, and Superego) form the basis of Freud’s explanation for creativity. For Freud, an individual’s creativity originates in conflicts arising from the tension between the sexual urges and biological drives of the Id and the influences of the social conscience (Superego). But while these conflicts often form the basis of creativity, Freud’s theory proposes that they are also the source of neurosis or mental illness. Thus, Freud argues that there is a great similarity between neurosis and creativity -- but while neurotic behavior occurs when the ego cannot cope with the conflicting demands of the Id and the Superego, creativity occurs when those same conflicts are transformed (or sublimated) into socially acceptable, even productive forms of expression.

For Freud, a creative product (such as a painting or a poem) becomes a way of using the external as a pathway to the internal. In other words, the work(s) of a creative person reveals something about that individual’s personality and psychology. In particular, it reveals the individual’s inner feelings and desires, but more importantly their unconscious conflicts. The creation of the artist, in Freud's view, is primarily an expression of the creator's unresolved inner conflicts. In Freud’s view, creative individuals are inclined (or compelled) to sublimate much of the inner conflict coming from their sexual urges and biological drives into pursuits such as writing, drawing, composing, or investigating scientific puzzles.

Freud’s illustration of the centrality of unconscious processes underscored the point that creative activity is not a direct reflection of deliberate intention; much of its impetus and significance remain hidden from the individual creator and, quite possibly, from those in his or her community as well.

Freud’s convictions about the importance of infantile development also colored his view of creative activity. Freud was impressed by the parallels between the child at play, the adult daydreamer, and the creative artist. As he once phrased it,

Might we not say that every child at play behaves like a creative writer, in that he

creates a world of his own, or, rather, rearranges the things of his world in a new

way which pleases him? . . . . The creative writer does the same as the child at play.

He creates a world of fantasy which he takes very seriously – that is, which he

invests with large amounts of emotion – while separating it sharply from reality.

Behaviorism (Skinner)

B. F. Skinner (Burrhus Frederic Skinner) was an American psychologist who became the principal advocate in the U.S. of the behaviorist school of psychology, in which human behavior is explained in terms of physiological responses to external stimuli. He believed that that seemingly spontaneous action is regulated through rewards and punishment. Skinner believed that people don't shape the world, but instead, the world shapes them. Skinner also believed that human behavior is predictable, just like a chemical reaction.

What is Behaviorism?

Behaviorism is primarily concerned with observable and measurable aspects of human behavior. In defining behavior, behaviorist learning theories emphasize changes in behavior that result from stimulus-response associations made by the learner. Behavior is directed by stimuli. An individual selects one response instead of another because of prior conditioning and psychological drives existing at the moment of the action (Parkay & Hass, 2000).

Behaviorists assert that the only behaviors worthy of study are those that can be directly observed; thus, it is actions, rather than thoughts or emotions, which are the legitimate object of study. Behaviorist theory does not explain abnormal behavior in terms of the brain or its inner workings. Rather, it posits that all behavior is learned habits, and attempts to account for how these habits are formed.

In assuming that human behavior is learned, behaviorists also hold that all behaviors can also be unlearned, and replaced by new behaviors; that is, when a behavior becomes unacceptable, it can be replaced by an acceptable one. A key element to this theory of learning is the rewarded response. The desired response must be rewarded in order for learning to take place (Parkay & Hass, 2000).

In education, advocates of behaviorism have effectively adopted this system of rewards and punishments in their classrooms by rewarding desired behaviors and punishing inappropriate ones. Rewards vary, but must be important to the learner in some way. For example, if a teacher wishes to teach the behavior of remaining seated during the class period, the successful student's reward might be checking the teacher's mailbox, running an errand, or being allowed to go to the library to do homework at the end of the class period. As with all teaching methods, success depends on each student's stimulus and response, and on associations made by each learner.

Behaviorism Advocates

John B. Watson (1878-1958) and B. F. Skinner (1904-1990) are the two principal originators of behaviorist approaches to learning. Watson believed that human behavior resulted from specific stimuli that elicited certain responses. Watson's basic premise was that conclusions about human development should be based on observation of overt behavior rather than speculation about subconscious motives or latent cognitive processes (Shaffer, 2000). Watson's view of learning was based in part on the studies of Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936). Pavlov was studying the digestive process and the interaction of salivation and stomach function when he realized that reflexes in the autonomic nervous system closely linked these phenomena. To determine whether external stimuli had an affect on this process, Pavlov rang a bell when he gave food to the experimental dogs. He noticed that the dogs salivated shortly before they were given food. He discovered that when the bell was rung at repeated feedings, the sound of the bell alone (a conditioned stimulus) would cause the dogs to salivate (a conditioned response). Pavlov also found that the conditioned reflex was repressed if the stimulus proved "wrong" too frequently; if the bell rang and no food appeared, the dog eventually ceased to salivate at the sound of the bell.

Classical Conditioning

Figure 1. This illustration shows the steps of classical conditioning.

1. Food = salivation

2. Food + Stimulus = salivation (conditioned stimulus)

3. Bell alone produces salivation (conditioned response)

Expanding on Watson's basic stimulus-response model, Skinner developed a more comprehensive view of conditioning, known as operant conditioning. His model was based on the premise that satisfying responses are conditioned, while unsatisfying ones are not. Operant conditioning is the rewarding of part of a desired behavior or a random act that approaches it. Skinner remarked that "the things we call pleasant have an energizing or strengthening effect on our behavior" (Skinner, 1972, p. 74). Through Skinner's research on animals, he concluded that both animals and humans would repeat acts that led to favorable outcomes, and suppress those that produced unfavorable results (Shaffer, 2000). If a rat presses a bar and receives a food pellet, he will be likely to press it again. Skinner defined the bar-pressing response as operant, and the food pellet as a reinforcer. Punishers, on the other hand, are consequences that suppress a response and decrease the likelihood that it will occur in the future. If the rat had been shocked every time, it pressed the bar that behavior would cease. Skinner believed the habits that each of us develops result from our unique operant learning experiences (Shaffer, 2000).

Operant Conditioning

Figure 2. This illustration illustrates operant conditioning. The mouse pushes the lever and receives a food reward. Therefore, he will push the lever repeatedly in order to get the treat.

Educational Implications

Behaviorist techniques have long been employed in education to promote behavior that is desirable and discourage that which is not. Among the methods derived from behaviorist theory for practical classroom application are contracts, consequences, reinforcement, and behavior modification.

Simple contracts can be effective in helping children focus on behavior change. The relevant behavior should be identified, and the child and counselor should decide the terms of the contract. Behavioral contracts can be used in school as well as at home. It is helpful if teachers and parents work together with the student to ensure that the contract is being fulfilled.

Consequences occur immediately after a behavior. Consequences may be positive or negative, expected or unexpected, immediate or long-term, extrinsic or intrinsic, material or symbolic (a failing grade), emotional/interpersonal or even unconscious. Consequences occur after the "target" behavior occurs, when either positive or negative reinforcement may be given. Positive reinforcement is presentation of a stimulus that increases the probability of a response. This type of reinforcement occurs frequently in the classroom.

Behavior modification is an approach (based on the principles of operant conditioning) that replaces undesirable behaviors with more desirable ones through positive or negative reinforcement. One behavior modification technique that is widely used is positive reinforcement, which encourages certain behaviors through a system of rewards.

In addition to rewarding desirable behavior, behavior modification can also discourage unwanted behavior, through punishment. Punishment is the application of an aversive or unpleasant stimulus in reaction to a particular behavior. For children, this could be the removal of television privileges when they disobey their parents or teacher. The removal of reinforcement altogether is called extinction. Extinction eliminates the incentive for unwanted behavior by withholding the expected response. A widespread parenting technique based on extinction is the time-out, in which a child is separated from the group when he or she misbehaves. This technique removes the expected reward of parental attention.

Humanistic Theory (Rogers and Maslow)

Two scholars who articulate the Humanist perspective are Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow. In the humanistic theory, the creative person is viewed as a self-actualized person. She uses her talents to become a fully functioning and mentally healthy person. Self-actualization is seen as the highest level of personal development that can be reached only after basic needs are met (physiological needs, safety needs, the need for love and belonging, and self-esteem).

Maslow suggests that children who are hungry or worried about their home life will have difficulty engaging in art activities that focus on higher-level aesthetic needs. Understanding this means the teacher of young children must consider whether these basic needs are being met. If a child arrives at school hungry, it is important to provide breakfast or a snack. Physical and psychological safety can be met by establishing an environment that respects children, accepts mistakes, provides choices, and supports all levels of accomplishment. In the arts, where doing things differently is valued, children must feel safe to try new things and to venture into unexplored territory.

Maslow defines the self-actualized person as one who becomes what he or she is capable of being. It is interesting to note that a goal of most early childhood programs is to “help each child reach his or her potential.” For many children, the nurturing of creativity and enrichment with the arts may be the best way to reach this important goal. Such nurturing may be the spark that lights the interest of a child or helps him find a new possibility for joyful participation.

Maslow further explains that self-actualized people often live productive lives and tend to do things in a more creative manner. He explains that art education is important, not so much to develop an artist or a product, but to develop better people. For children to become full human beings, they have to move toward actualizing their potential. Education, through the arts, works to meet these goals. Instead of being regarded as a frill, art education should be taken seriously and recognized as the way to develop educational potential.

Carl Rogers believed that creativity was obtainable for most people. He described the ability to be creative as an attribute that every individual possesses but which may be buried under layers of psychological defense unless certain conditions are provided:

The farmer cannot make the germ develop and sprout from the seed; he can only supply the nurturing conditions which will permit the seed to develop its own potentialities. So it is with creativity. How can we establish the external conditions which will foster and nourish the internal conditions for creativity?

Rogers answers by identifying the condition which will maximize the likelihood of an emergence of creativity: psychological safety. A necessary condition for creativity is a safe environment, but a safe environment is not limited to only its physical parameters. Students must not only feel safe in the classroom physically, but emotionally and psychologically as well.

Rogers’ concept of the psychologically safe environment is an environment in which you feel safe and free to explore a range of feelings, thoughts, and responses. It is an environment based on acceptance, empathy and nonjudgmental guidance. When a teacher communicates her/his belief that each individual is valuable no matter what she/he is saying or the way she/he is behaving, the acceptance of the individual as of unconditional worth becomes realistic. Producing a psychologically safe environment also includes being honest and showing empathy towards children. Having empathy is acknowledging and understanding the feelings of the children without taking on those feelings. This can be demonstrated when responding verbally through the techniques of paraphrasing, reflecting, active listening or mirroring.

A psychologically safe environment is an environment where students feel free to take risks, such as answering a question or sharing thoughts without concern for ridicule or teasing by other students. Additionally, students must trust that the teacher will not ridicule, use sarcasm, or otherwise berate the student. In such an environment, individuals are accepted unconditionally and allowed to follow specific interests. It can be met by establishing an environment that respects children, accepts mistakes, provides choices, and supports all levels of accomplishment. In the arts, where doing things differently is valued children will feel safe to try new things and to venture into creativity.

The psychologically safe environment is a critical feature of programs that serve young children. Early childhood classrooms must meet the child’s basic needs, support ideas, and respect individual differences. It is an environment where risk can be taken and interesting materials explored without fear of criticism or ridicule. This psychological safety is an essential ingredient of an environment designed to nurture children’s cognitive and social-emotional development, as well as their creative abilities.

Carl Rogers believed that the following important conditions are necessary for creativity to occur:

1. Psychologically safe environment—an atmosphere where ideas are accepted

and people are respected.

2. Internal locus of evaluation—the personal characteristics of self-confidence and

independence. The individual makes a decision and is willing to accept

responsibility for the outcome.

3. Willingness to play with ideas and possibilities—a characteristic that allows the

individual to demonstrate playfulness.

4. Openness to experience—an attraction to new experiences and receptiveness

to new ideas.

The humanistic theory provides insight into environments that encourage creativity in young children. Such environments must be psychologically safe to support the efforts of each individual. The theory also identifies the need for the individual to become self-confident and independent. Included in this interpretation is the need to be playful and participate in new experiences. Although these conditions are necessary for becoming self-actualized adults, they also support the development of psychologically healthy children.

Cognitive Development (Piaget)

Jean Piaget (1896–1980), a Swiss psychologist, is best known for his pioneering work on the development of intelligence in children. From his observation of children, Piaget understood that children were creating ideas. They were not limited to receiving knowledge from parents or teachers; they actively constructed their own knowledge. Piaget's work provides the foundation on which constructionist theories are based. Constructionists believe that knowledge is constructed and learning occurs when children create products or artifacts. They assert that learners are more likely to be engaged in learning when these artifacts are personally relevant and meaningful.

According to the constructivist theory, individuals are active participants in the construction of their own knowledge. Knowledge is constructed by the assimilation of information into existing schema (frameworks or outlines). As the child actively engages her environment, new schemas are built as understanding expands. A classic example of this progression in thinking is observed when a young child sees a zebra for the first time. Carla calls out, “horsie.” She knows what a horse is, but she has never seen a zebra. As she gains more experience with zebras, she begins to understand that they are different from horses. She forms a new category for large, four-legged, striped animals and calls this zebra. This process of assimilation (taking in information from the world) and accommodation (applying new information to aid ideas or schemas) continues as she is introduced to other animals.

Schema → Assimilation → Disequilibrium → Accommodation

A two-year-old This two year The parent The child’s

child believes old sees a cat says “no, that’s definition of dog

that dogs are and says “Look not a doggie, changes: a dog

four legged at the doggie!” that’s a cat.” has four legs, is

animals with fur furry, and does

not say, “meow.”

In another example, when a parent reads to their child about dogs, the child constructs a schema about dogs. Later, the child sees a dog in the park; through the process of assimilation the child expands his/her understanding of what a dog is. When the dog barks, the child experiences disequilibrium because the child's schema did not include barking. Then the child discovers the dog is furry, and it licks the child's hand. Again, the child experiences disequilibrium. By adding the newly discovered information to the existing schema the child is actively constructing meaning through accommodation. At this point the child seeks reinforcement from the parent. The parent affirms and reinforces the new information. Through assimilation of the new information the child returns to a state of equilibrium.

Piaget's Stages of Cognitive Development

Piaget believed all children pass through these phases to advance to the next level of cognitive development. In each stage, children demonstrate new intellectual abilities and increasingly complex understanding of the world. Stages cannot be "skipped"; intellectual development always follows this sequence. The ages at which children progress through the stages are averages – they vary with the environment and background of individual children. At any given time, a child may exhibit behaviors characteristic of more than one stage.

The first stage, sensorimotor, begins at birth and lasts until 18 months-2 years of age. This stage involves the use of motor activity without the use of symbols. Knowledge is limited in this stage, because it is based on physical interactions and experiences. Infants cannot predict reaction, and therefore must constantly experiment and learn through trial and error. Such exploration might include shaking a rattle or putting objects in the mouth. As they become more mobile, infants' ability to develop cognitively increases. Early language development begins during this stage. Object permanence occurs at 7-9 months, demonstrating that memory is developing. Infants realize that an object exists after it can no longer be seen.

The preoperational stage usually occurs during the period between toddlerhood (18-24months) and early childhood (7 years). During this stage children begin to use language; memory and imagination also develop. In the preoperational stage, children engage in make believe and can understand and express relationships between the past and the future. More complex concepts, such as cause and effect relationships, have not been learned. Intelligence is egocentric and intuitive, not logical.

The concrete operational stage typically develops between the ages of 7-11 years. Intellectual development in this stage is demonstrated through the use of logical and systematic manipulation of symbols, which are related to concrete objects. Thinking becomes less egocentric with increased awareness of external events, and involves concrete references.

The period from adolescence through adulthood is the formal operational stage. Adolescents and adults use symbols related to abstract concepts. Adolescents can think about multiple variables in systematic ways, can formulate hypotheses, and think about abstract relationships and concepts.

Figure 1. The image above illustrates Piaget's four cognitive development stages; sensorimotor (birth-2 years), preoperational (2 - 7 years), concrete operational (7 - 11 years), and formal operational (adolescence - adulthood).

Piaget believed that intellectual development was a lifelong process, but that when formal operational thought was attained, no new structures were needed. Intellectual development in adults involves developing more complex schema through the addition of knowledge.

Educational Implications

An important implication of Piaget's theory is adaptation of instruction to the learner's developmental level. The content of instruction needs to be consistent with the developmental level of the learner. The teacher's role is to facilitate learning by providing a variety of experiences. "Discovery learning" provides opportunities for learners to explore and experiment, thereby encouraging new understandings. Opportunities that allow students of differing cognitive levels to work together often encourage less mature students to advance to a more mature understanding. One further implication for instruction is the use of concrete "hands on" experiences to help children learn. Additional suggestions include:

Provide concrete props and visual aids, such as models and/or time line
Use familiar examples to facilitate learning more complex ideas
Allow opportunities to classify and group information with increasing complexity
Present problems that require logical analytic thinking; the use of tools such as "brain teasers" is encouraged.

Social Constructivism (Vygotsky)

The work of Lev Vygotsky provides a foundation for understanding the social formation of learning. He theorized that children learn thought, language, and volition as they interact with others to master tasks or as they work independently on lesser complex operations. For Vygotsky learning is fundamentally social and interactive in nature. Specifically, Vygotsky believes that learning occurs, in part, when assistance from others is within the “zone of proximal development,” or “ZPD,” defined as "the distance between a child's actual developmental level, as determined by independent problem solving, and the higher level of potential development, as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers."

Vygotsky argued that every function in development begins at the social level through social interaction and then at the individual level. This is one of the reasons why children should be encouraged to talk to and interact with their peers and adults. He believes that social interaction is the generator of thought -- "Children not only speak about what they are doing, their speech and action are part of one and the same complex psychological function." It is through talking, discussing, listening, and problem solving that children develop new concepts, skills, and competencies.

Children need activities that give them something about which to talk. This is one reason why it is important to establish a classroom atmosphere that encourages children to converse informally as they work together on a block-building activity; improvising sociodramatic play; engaging in kitchen play; or using objects to represent ideas, events, other objects, or situations. Our role as teacher is to facilitate discussions on how children worked on a project, how they got the idea for an improvisation, or why they decided to use yellow crayons to represent a certain food in the kitchen center. "As children talk, listen, and discuss shared experiences, they gain insights into one another's perceptions of the experiences, how others view the world.”

According to Vygotsky, children need to pursue activities that urge them to move to higher levels of functioning. Vygotsky's theory and his understanding of how social interaction relates to child development gives us even more reasons to stop giving children socially isolated activities. This is one reason why giving children printed pictures to color and/or cut out while sitting quietly at their seats – a common activity in American schools – is not recommended. True, this activity keeps children occupied, but it does nothing to challenge them intellectually, undermines creative thought, and offers no social support. Such an activity creates no feeling of functioning in a community of learners; it is simply busywork that is frequently performed in quiet isolation.

Vygotsky believed that the origins of individual creativity can be found only in the individual’s social relationships with the world. Creativity, like all other higher psychological functions, begins in the social environment and then through the process of internalization moves from the “outside” into the “inside.” His view was the opposite of Piaget’s, who believed that intelligence is started and matured from inside the individual and then it is directed from the inside to the outside. Internalization, according to Vygotsky, is a dialectical process that occurs during a child’s interaction with others; children watch other people speak, think, or behave in certain ways and thus can learn how to speak, think, or behave this way themselves. A child can learn how to think creatively only by first trying to do it together with other people. After that, the child can then internalize and model what has been done socially at first. As a higher psychological function, creativity follows this pattern in development. Because Vygotsky believed that a child can acquire abilities for creative thinking through the interaction with adults, there was no doubt for him that creativity, and creative thinking could be enhanced through appropriate teaching. Vygotsky believed that good teaching can lead to the development of a child’s creativity if it is based on the principles of the zone of proximal development.

Vygotsky’s theory suggests that learning can develop through collaboration, a form of learning which occurs when a peer group cooperates to learn or achieve a specific goal while working to understand one another. Collaboration can be used as a tool to assist children in working together on projects, sharing ideas, clarifying thinking, and mediating problems: In the search for information, the teacher poses questions, guides thinking, and challenges the children to think in new ways. For example, in a collaborative group, the young children can work together to determine how to combine pieces of fabric and make a classroom quilt. Laurie suggests gluing the pieces, Rhonda thinks tape might work, and William shares how his grandmother sews quilts together. He explains to the group how this is done and the tools that are, used. They are very interested in the quilting frame that his grandmother uses and how many people work together to make beautiful hand-sewn quilts. William's knowledge about quilt-making has extended the understanding of the individuals in the group. In this way small cooperative groups and appropriate social interactions with both adults and peers can enrich and expand the creative possibilities for young children participating in the arts.

There is a middle ground between, at one extreme, leaving children entirely to their own devices and, at the other extreme, giving children a predetermined model to imitate. In creative activities, that middle ground is Vygotsky’s ZPD or zone of proximal development. It is the place where a teacher or more competent period can provide assistance so that a child can move beyond the level that could be reached on her or his own. Vygotsky calls this support a “scaffold” and, like a house painter’s scaffold, it provides the support needed to accomplish a task.

Vygotsky never studied “creative people” in the sense of people who had made a transformative contribution to art, science or invention; he studied how “regular” people used the imaginative function that he saw as common to everyone. For Vygotsky, creativity is not a property of only special people, but a positive, essential capability of all healthy-functioning individuals. It transforms both the creator through the personal experience of the process, and transforms other people via the creation of knowledge and innovative artifacts propagated through the culture to be appropriated by others. Creativity is both the goal and the means of personal and cultural development.

Multiple Intelligences Theory (Gardner)

Howard Gardner (1943- ) is best known in educational for his theory of multiple intelligences, a critique of the notion that there exists but a single human intelligence that can be adequately assessed by standard psychometric instruments. In 1983, Howard Gardner published the first edition of Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, a book which outlined his theory. Originally, the theory accounted for seven separate intelligences. Subsequently, with the publishing of Gardner's Intelligence Reframed in 1999, two more intelligences were added to the list. The intelligences are Verbal/Linguistic, Logical/Mathematical, Visual/Spatial, Bodily-Kinesthetic, Musical, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Naturalistic, and Existential.

Gardner's theory challenges traditional, narrower views of intelligence. Previously accepted ideas of human intellectual capacity contend that an individual's intelligence is a fixed entity throughout his lifetime and that intelligence can be measured through an individual's logical and language abilities. According to Gardner's theory, an intelligence encompasses the ability to create and solve problems, create products or provide services that are valued within a culture or society. Listed below are key points of Gardner's theory:

• All human beings possess all nine intelligences in varying degrees.

• Each individual has a different intelligence profile.

• Education can be improved by assessment of students' intelligence profiles and designing activities accordingly.

• Each intelligence occupies a different area of the brain.

• The nine intelligences may operate in consort or independently from one another.

• These nine intelligences may define the human species.

Although the theory was not originally designed for use in a classroom application, it has been widely embraced by educators and enjoyed numerous adaptations in a variety of educational settings. Teachers have always known that students had different strengths and weaknesses in the classroom. Gardner's research was able to articulate that and provide direction as to how to improve a student's ability in any given intelligence. Teachers were encouraged to begin to think of lesson planning in terms of meeting the needs of a variety of the intelligences. From this new thinking, schools such the Ross School in New York, an independent educational institution, and the Key Learning Community, a public magnet school in Indianapolis emerged to try teaching using a Multiple Intelligences curriculum.

The Eight Intelligences

Verbal/Linguistic

Verbal/Linguistic intelligence refers to an individual's ability to understand and manipulate words and languages. Everyone is thought to possess this intelligence at some level. This includes reading, writing, speaking, and other forms of verbal and written communication. Teachers can enhance their students' verbal/linguistic intelligence by having them keep journals, play word games, and by encouraging discussion. People with strong rhetorical and oratory skills such as poets, authors, and attorneys exhibit strong Linguistic intelligence. Some examples are T.S. Elliot, Maya Angelou, and Martin Luther King Jr. Traditionally, Linguistic intelligence and Logical/Mathematical intelligence have been highly valued in education and learning environments.

Logical/Mathematical

Logical/Mathematical intelligence refers to an individual's ability to do things with data: collect, and organize, analyze and interpret, conclude and predict. Individuals strong in this intelligence see patterns and relationships. These individuals are oriented toward thinking: inductive and deductive logic, numeration, and abstract patterns. They would be a contemplative problem solver; one who likes to play strategy games and to solve mathematical problems. Being strong in this intelligence often implies great scientific ability. This is the kind of intelligence studied and documented by Piaget. Teachers can strengthen this intelligence by encouraging the use of computer programming languages, critical-thinking activities, linear outlining, Piagetian cognitive stretching exercises, science-fiction scenarios, logic puzzles, and through the use of logical/sequential presentation of subject matter. Some real life examples people who are gifted with this intelligence are Albert Einstein, Niehls Bohr, and John Dewey.

Visual/Spatial

Visual/Spatial intelligence refers to the ability to form and manipulate a mental model. Individuals with strength in this area depend on visual thinking and are very imaginative. People with this kind of intelligence tend to learn most readily from visual presentations such as movies, pictures, videos, and demonstrations using models and props. They like to draw, paint, or sculpt their ideas and often express their feelings and moods through art. These individuals often daydream, imagine and pretend. They are good at reading diagrams and maps and enjoy solving mazes and jigsaw puzzles. Teachers can foster this intelligence by utilizing charts, graphs, diagrams, graphic organizers, videotapes, color, art activities, doodling, microscopes and computer graphics software. It could be characterized as right-brain activity. Pablo Picasso, Bobby Fischer, and Georgia O'Keefe are some examples of people gifted with this intelligence.

Bodily/Kinesthetic

Bodily/Kinesthetic intelligence refers to people who process information through the sensations they feel in their bodies. These people like to move around, touch the people they are talking to and act things out. They are good at small and large muscle skills; they enjoy all types of sports and physical activities. They often express themselves through dance. Teachers may encourage growth in this area of intelligence through the use of touching, feeling, movement, improvisation, "hands-on" activities, permission to squirm and wiggle, facial expressions and physical relaxation exercises. Some examples of people who are gifted with this intelligence are Michael Jordan, Martina Navratilova, and Jim Carrey.

Naturalistic

Naturalistic intelligence is seen in someone who recognizes and classifies plants, animals, and minerals including a mastery of taxonomies. They are holistic thinkers who recognize specimens and value the unusual. They are aware of species such as the flora and fauna around them. They notice natural and artificial taxonomies such as dinosaurs to algae and cars to clothes. Teachers can best foster this intelligence by using relationships among systems of species, and classification activities. Encourage the study of relationships such as patterns and order, and compare-and-contrast sets of groups or look at connections to real life and science issues. Charles Darwin and John Muir are examples of people gifted in this way.

Musical Intelligence

Musical intelligence refers to the ability to understand, create, and interpret musical pitches, timbre, rhythm, and tones and the capability to compose music. Teachers can integrate activities into their lessons that encourage students' musical intelligence by playing music for the class and assigning tasks that involve students creating lyrics about the material being taught. Composers and instrumentalists are individuals with strength in this area. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Louis Armstrong are examples.

Interpersonal

Although Gardner classifies interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences separately, there is a lot of interplay between the two and they are often grouped together. Interpersonal intelligence is the ability to interpret and respond to the moods, emotions, motivations, and actions of others. Interpersonal intelligence also requires good communication and interaction skills, and the ability show empathy towards the feelings of other individuals. Teachers can encourage the growth of Interpersonal Intelligences by designing lessons that include group work and by planning cooperative learning activities. Counselors and social workers are professions that require strength in this area. Some examples of people with this intelligence include Gandhi, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton.

Intrapersonal

Intrapersonal Intelligence, simply put, is the ability to know oneself. It is an internalized version of Interpersonal Intelligence. To exhibit strength in Intrapersonal Intelligence, an individual must be able to understand their own emotions, motivations, and be aware of their own strengths and weaknesses. Teachers can assign reflective activities, such as journaling to awaken students' Intrapersonal Intelligence. It’s important to note that this intelligence involves the use of all others. An individual should tap into their other intelligences to completely express their Intrapersonal Intelligence. Authors of classic autobiographies such as Jean Paul Satre and Frederick Douglas are examples of individuals who exhibited strong Interpersonal Intelligence in their lifetimes.

There is a ninth intelligence that has yet to experience full acceptance by educators in the classroom. This is Existential intelligence, which encompasses the ability to pose and ponder questions regarding the existence -- including life and death. This would be in the domain of philosophers and religious leaders.

Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom

There are many ways to incorporate Multiple Intelligences theory into the curriculum, and there is no set method by which to incorporate the theory. Some teachers set up learning centers with resources and materials that promote involving the different intelligences. For example, a teacher might create an area with art supplies in her classroom. Other instructors might design simulations that immerse students into real life situations. Careful planning during the lesson design process will help to ensure quality instruction and valuable student experiences in the classroom.

Other instructional models, such as project-based and collaborative learning may be easily integrated into lessons with Multiple Intelligences. Collaborative learning allows students to explore their interpersonal intelligence, while project-based learning may help structure activities designed to cultivate the nine intelligences.

It is important for teachers to carefully select activities that not only teach to the intelligences, but also realistically mesh with the subject matter of the lesson or unit. Multiple Intelligences theory should enhance, not detract from what is being taught.