SEEING ‘INTELLIGENCE’ IN A NEW LIGHT

 

Intelligence is the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills. Individuals differ from one another in their ability to understand complex ideas, to adapt effectively to the environment, to learn from experience, to engage in various forms of reasoning, to overcome obstacles by taking thought. Although these individual differences can be substantial, they are never entirely consistent: a given person's intellectual performance will vary on different occasions, in different domains, as judged by different criteria.

 

Everyone likes to think of themselves as intelligent, and enjoys to hear themselves called 'clever' by other people. We have all heard of IQ tests, and most of us have heard of the three main intelligence groups: visual, auditory and kinesthetic. The first idea is a little out of fashion, and the second never really caught on. According to a famous Harvard Professor of Education, Howard Gardner, both ideas fail because there are actually 9 intelligences! And, wonderfully, we all possess these intelligences to uniquely differing degrees. Gardner defines intelligence 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”

 

Multiple Intelligences: An Educational Theory

Howard Gardner, Ph.D. has spent the latter part of his career finessing the theory that all humans share nine distinct 'intelligences' to varying degrees. He first proposed the theory of multiple intelligences in his 1983 book Frames of Mind, where he broadens the definition of intelligence and outlines several distinct types of intellectual competencies. Rather than intelligence being something that can be described as if on a spectrum, i.e. 'this man is more intelligent than that man', every individual has a unique set of intelligence skills. And this is not wishy-washy make-believe, but a renowned psychological theory from a Harvard expert.   His theory has been associated with the recent trend in schools to focus on so called ‘child centered’ learning, because traditional teaching assumes one single type of intelligence, which is unfair on those of us who don't fit that straight jacket. 

 

Gardner would prefer that learners take an active role in their own assessment, internalizing the kind of adjustments they need to make based on their experience of feedback from trained professionals (teachers). He compares this with how people learn and master sports, music and arts. But these examples can be expanded to include all of us in our daily lives, not just kids at school. After all, everyday is a school day in the real world!

 

So, what are the 9 Different Intelligences?  These are:

 

1. Musical-rhythmic and harmonic (Music Smart)

Have you always had a tremendous understanding of the relationship between feeling and sound? Perhaps you enjoy a particular awareness and appreciation of sound, with superb recognition of patterns of tone and rhythm. People with high skills in this area often become successful as: composers, DJs, entertainers, music producers, musicians, voice coaches. How much of this intelligence do you think you have?

 

2. Visual-Spatial (Picture Smart)

All those years ago at school did you enjoy making art? Then you probably have a very high visual spatial intelligence. Even if you didn’t do very well at art you still have this intelligence to some degree. We all have a certain understanding of the relationship between different images, and between space and effects. People who do well in these areas often spend their professional life in these fields: architecture, art, engineering, graphic designing, inventing, photography, landscaping, sculpting. Have you ever fancied doing jobs like these? Perhaps you have already done so.

 

3. Verbal-linguistic (Word Smart)

If you feel very comfortable expressing yourself using the written and spoken word, interpreting and explaining ideas with language, then you must have a very high verbal-linguistic intelligence. The kind of jobs you would be suited for would include: journalist, lawyer, poet, teacher, TV/radio presenter, writer. Does this sound like you?

 

4. Logical-mathematical (Logic Smart)

If you are good at analyzing problems, noticing patterns and have always had skill at making mathematical calculations then you surely possess logical-mathematical intelligence in great abundance. People with such intelligence are suited to these jobs: banker, computer programmer, engineer, scientist, and trader. Are you such a person?

 

5. Bodily-kinesthetic (Body Smart}

Not often thought of as an intelligence, people who rank highly in this area of the mind exhibit good body to eye coordination, great manual dexterity and enjoy poise, balance and agility. People who excel at bodily-kinesthetic intelligence often succeed in careers as: athletes, dancers, nurses, biologists, physical therapists, sign-language interpreters. How well could you have seen yourself doing in jobs like these? Needless to say, these may deteriorate with age and illness.

 

6. Interpersonal (People smart)

This intelligence describes our ability (or lack of ability) to relate to other people. People’s behavior often requires interpretation, and that’s where this part of our intelligence kicks in. People who really excel at reading their neighbors can do very well in these types of employment: advertising, care giving, coaching/mentoring, counseling, education, HR, mediation, politics, psychology, sales, teaching, training, therapy. Do you believe you can read people well?

 

7. Intrapersonal (Self Smart)

This intelligence should not be confused with interpersonal, which describes our relations with our neighbors. Intrapersonal intelligence is our sense of self-awareness. Do you understand yourself? Can you react to your own needs and changing circumstances? How aware are you of your place in relation to others? This kind of intelligence is necessarily subjective, therefore only a trained intelligence expert can be expected to tell you how much of this intelligence you have. Perhaps it is something that we can control ourselves through meditation.

 

8. Naturalistic (Nature Smart)

This intelligence was a late addition to Gardner’s theory. It describes the kind of intelligence required to understand our relationship with our natural surroundings. For example, in earlier parts of our evolutionary story we would have had to understand the differences between flora and fauna, and develop our skills in hunting, farming and domestication. It has been suggested that not only farmers, hunters and modern day gatherers (or foragers) possess abundance of this intelligence, but also chefs and botanists. So if you are a bit of an amateur biologist and a keen cook, you probably are a true Naturalist.

 

9. Existential

This is one of my favorite intelligences, because it is clearly something we all have inborn. As a child did you ask a lot of existential questions, such as ‘why is there something, and not nothing?’, ‘why is grass green?’ Or have you heard your grandkids asking the same questions – and been unable to answer? If so, you probably have something in common with some of the world’s greatest philosophers and spiritual leaders. 

 

Other possible intelligences

In the future it's possible that Gardner may add at least one more intelligence to his list. As a world famous educator it's perhaps unsurprising that he is beginning to recognize something called the 'teaching-pedagogical intelligence.' This may be enabling us to pass on information to other people. What else? Well, many people have argued that humor and sex require their own separate intelligences; Gardner however does not believe that these are intelligences by themselves.

 

Multiple Intelligence Test

So now you have had a good think about yourself and how intelligent you are, why not take this quick 5 minute test to see what kinds of percentages you possibly posses. However, there are no right answers, just your unique self. No matter what, you possess all of these different intelligences in varying degrees and they all go towards making you the special person you are. 

Try to think about how well cultivated these 9 parts of your mind are. Do you possess some of these intelligences naturally? Have you improved upon others? Which have you been neglecting? Learning Gardner's theory will really help you think about yourself as a whole person. 

 

Gardner’s theory has had significant impact on education. It encourages pluralistic teaching methods, where educators present material in multiple ways to encourage different intelligences. Thus, a lesson might combine story telling (linguistic), hands on experiments (bodily-kinesthetic), and visual aids (spatial) to reach a wider range of learners.

Critics argue that labeling these abilities as separate intelligences broadens the definition of intelligence beyond traditional scientific standards, raising questions about empirical validation. Despite this objection Gardner's framework provides a more nuanced understanding of human cognitive abilities, highlighting individual strengths and encouraging diverse educational strategies. A monkey can not be declared smarter than the elephant because it can climb up a tree!

 

 

TEACHERS AND PARENTS – A FORMIDABLE TEAM IN COLVIN

 

You can call it a generation gap. Parents and teachers often remember their childhood, and expect the children and the students of today to be just like them, little realizing that times have changed and so have the values and the priorities of  their offsprings and students. During these years many parents and teachers are "caught in the trap" and make common mistakes in raising and educating their children, however, this situation can be avoided. Making mistakes is human, and the wisdom is to know this and to understand that there are certain statements that create strong resistance in the minds of adolescents which process in a way that’s completely different than what you could fathom.

I was brought up in a middle class Bengali family that had moved from Calcutta to Lucknow because of my father’s transferable job but once we came to this city, we knew we are never going to leave it. My parents would only settle for the best school in town, and though it was a very expensive one they chose Colvin for me. I distinctly remember my interview in the Principal’s office. The principal, Mr. Kashyap, after a few run of the mill qusetions which a student of Class II was supposed to answer, asked “Son, what is your father?” I don’t think I understood the question very well and so very confidently said “He is a man.” “Wonderful”, he exclaimed, “and that is exactly what we want to make one out of you, a good, honest and sincere gentleman, who would one day be the pride of your family, this school and this country!” He then turned to my father and said “Mr. Bhattacharya, Colvin today may not be in a position to promise that your son will be an outstanding scholar, but the fact that he will be an outstanding human being, who will stand out in the crowd, I have no doubt about that.”

I have, in my previous blogs, documented in great details about the teaching in Colvin, about the teachers and their innovative punishments. You can read it by clicking: https://surajitbrainwaves.blogspot.com/2023/11/remembering-my-teacher-and-my-father_16.html

Today I will share with you some pages from my father’s diary, written almost 60 years ago after a parent – teacher meeting. Beyond academics, these meetings allowed teachers to discuss the child’s behaviour, attitude towards learning, and social interactions with peers. This comprehensive feedback helped parents to understand how their child adapted to the school environment. A child’s academic success is often closely linked to how involved their parents are in their education. These meetings in Colvin motivated parents to take an active role, offering them a chance to better understand the curriculum and the school’s expectations. But this parent teacher meeting, which my father kept a note of, was very different.

My father wrote that it was attended by around 20 parents and Class teachers of all sections of Class VI and two senior teachers, Mr. M.G. Rao and Mr. P.N. Chaube. The contents of this meeting was most fascinating, the two senior teachers were in fact teaching the parents the secrets of good parenting. No doubt, they were very experienced in parenting, having raised their own families, but the golden experience of being a teacher in Colvin too gave them the authority. Today, I can  not imagine such a meeting and the parents might take offence, but the sagacity of the senior teachers and the humility of the parents both deserve a lot of respect, for it was purely passing down of invaluable wisdom! What they were actually telling the parents was why they should avoid certain common admonitions while disciplining their children. These are a few of them:

1. "It's not that I don’t trust you, but..."

There is nothing more irritating to adolescents than adults who turn to them and begin their spiel with this sentence - it means to them that they simply do not trust them. It is very important that you don’t say these words because the meaning hidden in this sentence is very confusing. If you don’t trust your teens, just tell them that. Give your adolescent children a little more credit - if you tell them you don’t trust them, they will try to find a way to gain your trust.

2. "Because I said so."

Let's be honest with ourselves, as parents, we also don’t like to hear these words, and between us, this argument is very weak. When you say this sentence your adolescent children are probably thinking that you have no real reason behind your decision, or that you simply don’t want to explain your thought process to them. If you are going to say that you are not allowing them to do something, you must also explain why you aren’t allowing them to do so. If you explain yourself correctly and clearly, this will leave no room for debate and prevent feelings of frustration in the future for both sides.

3. "You’ll understand when you get older"

Your teens have one foot in the door and one foot out, and when you use this statement, they realize that they are still young and that you think they’re stupid. It's true that this isn’t your intention, but think about it, if they are old enough to learn how to ride a bicycle, decide which extracurricular activities they want to join, and start thinking about what colleges they want to attend, they are mature enough to have an opinion on a particular subject. Just because their opinion is not based on a lot of experience or is different from their parents' opinion, doesn’t mean they are immature or don’t understand, it just proves that they are different from you, and that's okay. Instead of using this phrase, try telling your adolescent children about the life experience that led you to a particular opinion, and ask them challenging questions about dealing with certain situations to develop their thinking and readiness for life.

4. "When I was your age, I was never ..."

We all know that this statement is far from true, and it is perceived by your adolescent children as a fact that you were perfect boys and girls during your teenage years. Moreover, no matter how perfect you think you were when you were young, you had to have made at least one mistake along the way. Perhaps you’ve decided to forget all your mistakes or chose not to share them with your adolescent children because you don’t want them to repeat your mistakes. However, what they need most is a human role model, someone who has made mistakes in his past and can identify with them. Sometimes, being the perfect parent is not necessarily what your children need. And have you ever thought that the children’s grandparents can spill all the beans of your childhood and falsify your story!

5. "What are you not telling me?"

Most of us agree that it is a good thing to know what adolescent children do, where they spend their time and with whom. The problem is that asking questions about these issues is interpreted as an investigation, especially when they don’t want to tell you about something they’ve done. All in all, this is simple logic, but there is a very fine line between worrying about your children and trying to take out skeletons that don’t exist in their messy closet. It is very important to take your teen's word for it and if you can’t, then there is a trust problem that needs to be solved, maybe even just on your part. Ideally your kids should have absolute confidence in you and confide in you, but for that you need to make a friendly atmosphere at home, not a hostile one.

6. "Why can’t you be more like your sister/ brother?"

One of the worst things you can do as a parent is to compare your children to others, within the family and in general, and at any age. When you turn to them with such a statement what they’re actually hearing is that they aren’t good enough; Such a statement undermines them and makes them worry and convince themselves that they aren’t living up to your expectations. Instead of asking "Why can’t you be more responsible like your sister?" Ask "Why can’t you be more responsible?" His sister is a different person, with a different personality. This child is most certainly not like his sister, but still he can be trained to be responsible.

7. "Money doesn‘t grow on the trees"

When you choose to say that phrase, your adolescent children understand that what they are asking for is too expensive and that you aren’t going to buy it. Because this sentence is so commonly used, it doesn’t have the same impact it once would have. Instead of being snarky, simply tell them that what they're asking for is too expensive, and you can’t buy it. If you want to teach them about the importance of money and wise economic conduct, you need to do so without using condescending phrases and talk to them at eye level.

8. "What are you doing in your room all the time?"

It is perfectly normal for teenagers to have the desire to break away from their families and escape to their rooms. They are with their families every day and it is okay to allow them some independence. What you’re actually trying to convey to them with this sentence is that you miss them and want to spend time with them, so just tell them that! Their brains are busy with a lot of thoughts and they probably just aren’t aware that they’ve become a recluse. This sentence will only drive them deeper into their teenage caves.

 

I am amazed at the contents of this meeting, not only because of the extent to which the teachers in Colvin would go into character building of their students, but how easily they could team up with the parents to make a formidable team. Academic performances of individual students were also discussed with their class teachers, but what I can understand from my father’s diary is, that was certainly not the most important part of the meeting. These interactions went far beyond the basic exchange of information—they helped build a meaningful partnership that supported the children’s academic and personal growth. Parents, teachers, and students in Colvin would work together to ensure that each child received the best possible education, with everyone contributing to their success.

THE EIFFEL TOWER

 

 

One of the most recognizable landmarks in France is the Eiffel Tower, designed by Maurice Koechlin to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution, and named after Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. Construction ended in 1889, and its location marked the entrance to the 1889 World’s Fair. Since then, the tower has become synonymous with Paris. The tower is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower from 1887 to 1889.

Locally nicknamed "La dame de fer" (French for "Iron Lady"), it was constructed as the centrepiece of the 1889 World's Fair, and to crown the centennial anniversary of the French Revolution. Although initially criticized by some of France's leading artists and intellectuals for its design, it has since become a global cultural icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world.

 

For Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the decision was made to combine one of the strongest symbols of the Olympic Games - the medals - with the most iconic symbol of the French nation - the Eiffel Tower. Chaumet, expert French jewelers designed every Olympic and Paralympic medal by adorning them with a highly symbolic and invaluable piece of metal: the original iron used in the construction of the Eiffel Tower! The tower itself played a vital role in the Olympic Games, hosting the Beach Volleyball and providing a scenic backdrop to road cycling, marathon, judo ad wrestling. It also remained a silent backdrop to various other activities during the Olympic Games and was the central hub of activities during the Games.

 

I have been to Paris on several occasions and have seen the Eiffel Tower with friends and all by myself. I have picked up brochures from various places, listened to Walkman audios and watched many YouTube videos, and these are the few things I want to share with you all about the Eiffel Tower:

1. The tower stands 324ft (98m) tall, and is constructed of 18,038 metal beams, weighing over 7,300 tons.

2. Painting the tower required 60 tons of paint, and a new coat is needed every seven years.

3. The architect the tower is named after, Gustave Eiffel, also designed the Statue of Liberty. The design of the Eiffel Tower is attributed to Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier, two senior engineers working for the Compagnie des Établissements Eiffel.

4. The tower’s construction was not popular, and many artists and architects protested against it.  A petition called "Artists against the Eiffel Tower" was sent to the Minister of Works and Commissioner for the Exposition, Adolphe Alphand, and it was published by Le Temps on 14 February 1887: ‘We, writers, painters, sculptors, architects and passionate devotees of the hitherto untouched beauty of Paris, protest with all our strength, with all our indignation in the name of slighted French taste, against the erection ... of this useless and monstrous Eiffel Tower’

5. Originally, the Eiffel Tower was planned to stand for only 20 years.

6. In 1905, the French newspaper L’Equipe held a race to the first level. The winner’s time was three minutes and twelve seconds (the winner won a bike).

7. In 1964, the city of Paris celebrated the Eiffel Tower’s 75th anniversary by televising a group of mountaineers, climbing to the top of the tower.

8. On the tower’s 100th anniversary, a tightrope walker named Philipe Petit walked over a 2,296ft (700m) tightrope between the Tower and the Palais de Challiot.

9. During WWII, at the First Battle of Marne, the allies used the tower to block Nazi radio signals, facilitating their victory.

10. During the winter, the tower shrinks by six inches (15cm).

11. Winds and heat cause the tower to sway as much as seven inches (18cm).

12. Gustave Eiffel actually had a small apartment on the top floor, which he used to entertain friends and family.

13. These days, the 2nd floor is the home of the world-famous Jules Verne restaurant.

14. Surprisingly, the majority of tourists who visit the tower are French.

15. Every night, over 20,000 light bulbs illuminate the tower.

16. Before the installation of elevators, visitors who wished to get to the top had to use the 1,665 steps.

17. Over seven million people visit the tower annually. The Eiffel Tower received 5,889,000 visitors in 2022.

18. The tower is 330 metres (1,083 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-storey building, and the tallest structure in Paris. Its base is square, measuring 125 metres (410 ft) on each side.

19. It was the first structure in the world to surpass both the 200 meters and 300 meters mark in height. Due to the addition of a broadcasting aerial at the top of the tower in 1957, it is now taller than the Chrysler Building by 5.2 metres (17 ft). Excluding transmitters, the Eiffel Tower is the second tallest free-standing structure in France after the Millau Viaduct.

20. The tower has three levels for visitors, with restaurants on the first and second levels. The top level's upper platform is 276 m (906 ft) above the ground—the highest public observation deck in the European Union.

21. Tickets have to be purchased to the three levels. Both lifts and stairs service the lower and middle levels with a 300 and 600 stairs ascent. There are stairs to the top level but is is accessible only by lift. A ticket for two, valid for 90 minutes costs INR 4000 and with summit option it costs INR 4570.

 

A walk from Notre Dame to Eiffel Tower, along the Seine river is a leisurely 5 Km early morning pleasure, which you can not avoid if you are in Paris. You can also do this journey through Champ de Mars, down rue St Dominique, right on Blvd St Germain, then through St Michel, but walking by the side of the river is a very different experience.

In 2015 workers gave the tower an environmentally friendly makeover by installing two wind turbines on the second level of the structure. These devices convert wind into electricity for the tower's shops and restaurants. A system was also set up to collect and funnel rainwater into the tower's toilets. The tower has two small laboratories on the third level where astronomers and meteorologists could work.

If you are interested in knowing more about the Eiffel Tower then I will advice you to see this YouTube video: https://youtu.be/RmnRF_lNDbA