Multiplying the Problems of Intelligence by Eight: A Critique of Gardner's Theory

Abstract

Howard Gardner has theorized that the mind comprises seven (or eight) intelligences. Multiple intelligence theory has inspired educational innovations across North America, but has received little critical analysis. I contend that Gardner is on the horns of a dilemma. A weak version of multiple intelligence theory would be uninteresting, whereas a strong version is not adequately supported by the evidence Gardner presents. Pedagogically, multiple intelligence theory has inspired diverse practices, including balanced programming, matching instruction to learning styles, and student specialization. However, the theory shares the limitations of general intelligence theory: it is too broad to be useful for planning curriculum, and as a theory of ability, it presents a static view of student competence. Research on the knowledge and strategies that learners use in specific activities, and on how they construct this knowledge, may prove more relevant to classroom practice.

Cite this work

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 137 citations exist upstream.

Papers that cite the same references — the relational fallback while embeddings are still backfilling.