QUIRINO STATE UNIVERSITY

College of Teacher Education

Bachelor of Elementary Education
…promoting pedagogical excellence

Module 9 Multiple Intelligences

Competencies 1. Describe the different learning styles and multiple

intelligences and;
2. Pinpoint students’ own multiple intelligences
3. Identify the relationship of learning styles and multiple
intelligences to improve student learning.

Discussion
The theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI) was first described by
Howard Gardner in Frames of Mind (1983). Gardner defines
intelligence as “an ability or set of abilities that allows a person to
solve a problem.

His most current research

indicates that there are nine
distinct forms of intelligences. In
order to facilitate learning
effectively, teachers should use
strategies that match these
kinds of intelligences.

Gardner claims that all human

beings have multiple
intelligences. These multiple
intelligences can be nurtured
and strengthened or ignored and weakened. His research from 1991
identified seven intelligences; in the intervening time, he has come
to believe there are a total of nine intelligences:

 Verbal-Linguistic Intelligence: Well-developed verbal skills

and sensitivity to the sounds, meanings and rhythms of
words.

 Mathematical-Logical Intelligence: The ability to think

conceptually and abstractly, and the capacity to discern
logical or numerical patterns.

 Musical Intelligence: The ability to produce and appreciate

rhythm, pitch and timbre.

 Visual-Spatial Intelligence: The capacity to think in images

and pictures, to visualize accurately and abstractly.

 Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence: The ability to control one's

QUIRINO STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
Bachelor of Elementary Education
…promoting pedagogical excellence

body movements and to handle objects skillfully.

 Interpersonal Intelligence: The capacity to detect and

respond appropriately to the moods, motivations and desires
of others.

 Intrapersonal Intelligence: The capacity to be self-aware

and in tune with inner feelings, values, beliefs and thinking
processes.

 Naturalist Intelligence: The ability to recognize and

categorize plants, animals and other objects in nature.

 Existential Intelligence: The sensitivity and capacity to

tackle deep questions about human existence, such as the
meaning of life, why we die and how we got here.

While all people possess some level of each intelligence, most will
experience more dominant intelligences which impact the way they
learn and interact with the world around them.

Multiple Intelligences and Learning Styles

Learning styles are how

we approach different
tasks, whereas Multiple
Intelligences are a
representation of
different intellectual
abilities.

We process information
in a variety of different
ways – visual (see),
auditory (hear) and
kinaesthetic (touch) and
reflective (think), etc.
However, learning
experiences do not have
to relate directly to your strongest area of intelligence. e.g.
someone with a more linguistic leaning does not have to learn
primarily through lectures. Often the easiest path to understanding
is through multiple avenues. Limiting learning to a single avenue
can be counter-productive. Our brains are complex, we learn
different skills in different ways. Sometimes it is easier to fully
understand a concept by using multiple avenues. e.g. seeing,
hearing and interacting with a concept to improve understanding.
QUIRINO STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
Bachelor of Elementary Education
…promoting pedagogical excellence

MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCE ACTIVITIES

One of the most significant results

of the theory of multiple
intelligences is how it has provided
eight different potential pathways to
learning. If a teacher is having
difficulty reaching a student in the
more traditional linguistic or logical
ways of instruction, the theory of
multiple intelligences suggests
several other ways in which the
material might be presented to
facilitate effective learning:
 Words (linguistic intelligence).

 Numbers or logic (logical-mathematical intelligence).

 Pictures (spatial intelligence).

 Music (musical intelligence).

 Self-reflection (intrapersonal intelligence).

 A physical experience (bodily-kinesthetic intelligence).

 A social experience (interpersonal intelligence).

 An experience in the natural world (naturalist intelligence).

You don't have to teach or learn something in all eight ways.

However, simply knowing the possibilities available can enable you
to decide which particular pathways interest you the most or seem
to be the most effective teaching or learning tools.

HOW DO WE BENEFIT FROM UNDERSTANDING MULTIPLE

INTELLIGENCES?

George Evans said "every student can learn, just not on the same
day or in the same way." Each student has his or her way of process
information in terms of how they learn and how they retain the
knowledge. Majority of students learn and understand a particular
concepts through traditional lecture. Students learn best when
teacher adopts various instruction techniques. Some students learn
best when they can reflect the things they have learned. They learn
by listening, brainstorming and sharing ideas with others. On the
other hand, some students learn best through conceptual learning
 QUIRINO STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
Bachelor of Elementary Education
…promoting pedagogical excellence

and logical thinking. Some students need to be actively involved in

their own learning by practicing hands-on problem solving.

Every person has strengths and challenges in abilities. No two

people are the same. As a result, it is not fair to assume every
student will learn best with the same instructional strategy. By
teaching the dominant learning intelligences, teachers will find
students to be more productive, more receptive and more willing to
engage in the learning process. Each student has unique multiple
intelligences and the different ways to learn. In other words, not
every person learns best from a single teaching approach. As a
teacher, one must constantly be aware of the learning styles of
students in order to incorporate instructional strategies that will
enhance their learning potential.
When educators are given the
freedom to move away from the
traditional, visually-based methods
of teaching, they will have the
opportunity to reach more students,
more effectively.

Teaching Strategies guided by

Thinking/Learning Styles and multiple Intelligence
1. Use questions of all types to stimulate various levels of
thinking from recalling factual information to drawing
implications and making value/judgements.
2. Provide a general overview of material to be learned so that
students’ past experiences will be associated with the new
ideas.
3. Allow sufficient time for information to be processed and then
integrate using both the right and left brain hemispheres.
4. Set clear purposes before any listening , viewing or reading
experience.
5. Warm up before the lesson development by using
brainstorming, set induction, etc.
6. Use multisensory means for both processing and retrieving
information. (write directions on the board and give them
orally)
7. Use a variety of review and reflection strategies to bring
closure to learning (writing summaries, creation of surveys,
etc.)
8. Use descriptive feedback rather than simply praising (“The
example you have provided is an excellent one to point to the
concept of..…..”).
References Lucas, Ma. Rita, Corpuz, Brenda B. 2014. Facilitating Learning: A
Metacognitive Process (OBE & K-12 Based). Quezon City: LORIMAR
Publishing, Inc.
QUIRINO STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
Bachelor of Elementary Education
…promoting pedagogical excellence

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