Applied Multiple Intelligence

Case Studies & Writings on the Application of Multiple Intelligence Theory Around the World

Applied Multiple Intelligence: Case Studies & Writings of the Application of Multiple Intelligence Theory Around the Word. Copyrighted 2009

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the writer/s whose work it is.

First edition, July 2009 Printed in the United States of America

The theory of multiple intelligences and its educational consequences Anna Erika Ena

About the Author

ENA ANNA ERIKA graduated in Letters in 2002 discussing the theses: "Howard Gardner and the Modular Pedagogy". In 2003 she was awardeda Doctorate of Research in "Man and Environment" in the University of Foggia. Currently, she works at the University of Foggia and carries out furth er researches of her d octorate s thesis topic and other themes of pedagogical area. Email - e.ena@unifg.it

Introduction

Howard Gardner is Professor of Cognition and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He also holds positions as Associate Professor of Psychology at Harvard University and Associate Professor of Neurology at the Boston University School of Medicine. Gardner is best known in educational circles for his theory of multiple intelligences.

He describes himself as follows: I was born in Scranton, PA in 1943, son of a refugee of the Nazi Germany. I have been a studious child, who drew great pleasure in playing piano; music is always been important in my life. All my postsecondary formation has carried out at Harvard. I m specialized as psychologist of the evolutionary age and as neuropsychologist.

For many years I have followed two currents of search on cognitive and symbolic abilities: one about the normal and talented children, the other about adults who had endured lesions to the brain. My effort to synthesize these two currents is expressed in the theory of multiple intelligences that I have formulated and disclosed in my book of the 1983 Frames of the

Mind . From the half of years 80, I have been deeply involved in the attempts of reforming the school system of the United States .

The theory of multiple intelligences is perfectly in line with cognitive science: Intelligence is the ability to resolve cultural problems or to create products, in one or more cultural contexts .1 Therefore, as he similarly affirms in a recent interview: It has not sense define intelligent only persons who are good in the linguistic field or in logical-mathematician. There is no reason to consider an intelligence more important than another .2

In fact, Gardner has identified nine intelligences: linguistic, logical -mathematic, spatial, corporeal kinaesthetic interpersonal, naturalistic and existential. Gardner s task has been in characterizing arguments to support the existence of this theory, to examine the pedagogical implications and to supply indications to anthropologists and pedagogists, which allow the building of models that stimulate the development of intellectual competences, in various cultural atmospheres.

Implications in the educational context have involved the testing of the theory. The Spectrum project and the Key School constitute an example of this experimentation. The first one was born as collective engagement of learning s appraisal, with the objective to assess particular intelligences that children show in early age.

In a Spectrum class, children are surrounded every day of stimulating materials that spur the use of all range of intelligences. Materials symbolize the roles that the society appreciates or the "final states", which involve specific combinations of intelligences. Therefore, as an example, the angle of the naturalist, where several samples of biological interest are putting in order that the students will examine and confront them with other materials; the aim o f this area is: incite the sensory abilities and logical-analytic dowries of children. There is also the novelistic area that make use of linguistic, dramatic and creative capabilities and the
1 2

GARDNER H. (1987) Frames of mind. The theory of multiple intelligences, Basic Books, New York, 1993; www.idis.unina.it

constructionsarea that demands spatial, corporeal and personal intelligence. All year round, children have more opportunity to explore several learning areas; each one contains its specific materials and stimulates a specific set of abilities and intelligences.

At the end of the year, the gathered information on e very child is summarized by the equipe of investigators in a short essay, called Spectrum Relationship. It s a document that describes the personal profile of strength and weakness of the child and it offers detailed recommendations on what can be made in family, in school and in the wide belonging community in order to highlight the strength and to upgrade the areas of relative weakness.

The Spectrum project has revealed particularly effective in identifying the talents and the inclinations of the pupils , instead the traditional schools usually do not succeed to make. Furthermore the Key School, an unusual public elementary school in the centre of Indianapolis, in Indiana, has been set up as the privileged place for stimulating peculiar intelligences of every baby.

Here children live, regularly, experiences that are programmed for spurring various intelligences. Every day they take part to lessons that stimulate a particular intelligence. Moreover they participate to elective courses, called small branches , in which they visit a planning room , where they can concentrate themselves on activities that urge combinations of intelligences that they prefer.

The scholastic r sumforesees that, in several periods, various topics will be alternated, and students, individually or in small groups, create new projects. When the project is finished, they will produce the work to schoolfellows, causing a discussion, and the entire activity is recorded by camera. The sequence represents an excellent display window of interests and topics of children, and also the configuration of intelligences that they have chosen.

These projects have the strategic purpose to supply information, data and observations to realize formation strategies that will be used for the valuation of personal attitudes. Perfectly
5

online with the type of education foretold by H. Gardner: individualized and careful to the evolutionary and individual differences.

He says: It will be necessary 50 years in order to see if ideas that I have developed will have an impact on the school system. I concentrate my forces to assert that education must be focused on the individual. Till now everyone has learned same things that have been taught in the same way verified and estimated by same criteria. All th is has been always considered absolutely just and fair. My thesis, that contradicts whichever previous one, is that this method is unjust, because it privileges a single type of intelligence, which I call logical-linguistic. Who has an intelligence of this type gets good results at school, those who goes to discotheque and has another type of intelligence; instead don t succeed very well in obtaining good results. Through new information technologies, the education, focused on individual, will be simpler to implement.

Within 50 years, people will laugh of the school system in use today, in which the same thing must be taught in the same way. Already now, for whichever argument worthy to be learned, there are various ways for learning it, accessible to all through information technologies. Moreover, today, it is possible to record what the child has learned well, what has learned badly and how has learned well or bad. It is most simple to decide using these information.

References GARDNER H. Frames of mind. The theory of multiple intelligences, Basic Books, New York (1987) GARDNER H., The disciplined mind, Person Books (1999) GARDNER H., To Open Minds: Chinese clues to the dilemma of contemporary education. Basic Books. Basic Books Paperback with new introduction, New York (1989).

MI in Higher Education: Applications in Health Professionals Preparation for Today s Challenges Boss-Victoria & Deborah Wells

About the Authors

Dr. Boss-Victoria is currently Director of the Center for HIV Prevention, Evaluation, Policy and Research and faculty in the Public Health Program at Morgan State University. As a part of her role in the Public Health Program, she is responsible for academic DrPH practice management and coordination of field internships. After 30 years of higher education experience in advanced nursing and public health education, she currently conducts community-based research to improve access to education, counseling, testing and primary care services for persons infected and affected with HIV/AIDS.

Deborah Wells is a native Houstonian and a mastered prepared psychiatric-mental health registered nurse with over 40 years of experience working with adolescents and adults. For ten years she taught at Prairie View A&M University s College of Nursing Clinical division where she met the first author. Currently Deborah is the owner and CEO of Broken Moon Productions, a company providing research support and editing services to health education writers.

What's in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet; Romeo and Juliet Act 2, scene 2 William Shakespeare

Introduction

Many changes are occurring in the healthcare workplace today. To keep up with rapid technological advances, health practitioners are expected to possess the ability to be proactive problem solvers. What skills, which carry over from educational to occupational settings, are keys to helping future health professionals keep up with change in their jobs and careers, and in self-improvement and upgrading of skills?

When looking at practice issues in any professional health education program there are many avenues that the educator and the student may use to access the knowledge needed to become proficient in the chosen health profession.

Gardner has identified eight modes of learning: linguistic, mathematical, kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, musical, spatial, and naturalist (Checkley, 1997).

This paper describes our experiences with nursing and public health professional students through the lens of merging these eight modes of learning into clinical and field experiences.

We have found in our various practices that each student excels in some areas, does middling well in other areas and some areas require pushing, prodding and frequent encouragement. We have wondered why some students are able to adapt so well to web-enhanced courses while others seem lost until almost the end of the course then they have an epiphany! How often have we said and heard other instructors say she s great with t aking care of patients, yet really is having a hard time with those unit testsor he s so understanding of upset families but gosh, he just doesn t seem to have a clue about how to get along with classmates .

Although infrequently addressed as MI in he alth education circles, our role as health educators is to identify and provide the scaffolding framework for critical thinking, active learning and problem -based clinical practice through different modes of instruction. We believe fair assessment should address all the experiences of students not just the
8

one-dimensional memory of factoids.

About ten years ago while web surfing we happened upon an explanatory article on multiple intelligence. Then our aha started. Our plans began to include different ways of assessing knowledge, devising ways to utilize our newfound knowledge to teach, to communicate, to evaluate. These changes were not always easy or well understood. Why are you using games, drawings, singing, groups, and multimedia in your classes ? Why all the laughing and moving around in class?Remember we were in environments where the sage upon the stage was the norm, environments where students are to be decorous and soak up knowledge from their most venerable faculty. Even classes delivered by two-way videoconference

were talking head lectures, with rhetorical questioning and paper and pencil testing monitored by proctors posted at each site.

Life is a messy, complex affair, people do not just have diabetes, they have families, spouses with problems on the job, children getting into all sorts of trouble, elderly parents, and refusal by themselves to learn or adhere to the very perfect regimens dictated by physicians, dieticians and nurses.

So, how do you measure how well students are able to navigate these complexities? Assessing plans of care for clients and testing for basic knowledge are some of the ways to measure a student s progress. Yet these beg the question of how to determine the real learning that will support a dynamic career of caring, clarity and commitment.

As foreseen many years ago by Peter Drucker (1969) the most important thing is not specific skills, but a universal skill using knowledge.

We then are faced with evaluating clinical practical learning -- evaluating how well students are acquiring the skill of using knowledge to work within diverse groups for goal attainment, how each individual uses what they bring to the table in the academic setting and clinical arena to effect change. There are also relationships to nurture, analyze, and use as teaching
9

experiences.

How each student uses these experiences and benefits is highly individualized.

The process of care then becomes the teacher, the outcome not always clear-cut. Remember the patient with diabetes?

There are no guarantees that the stress or physiological issues that can precipitate high blood sugars are going to controlled or go away, or that the client will be willing to change 40 years of eating, exercising and personal habits to be compliant . Can we fault the student because the planned care did not succeed in completely changing the client? What we can measure is the learning and growth the student has attained from the situation.

Recognizing that cognitive intelligence is not the only way that learning can occur puts pressure on both the student and faculty to find ways to utilize and assess all of the student s attributes.

We can attempt to assess formatively the student s strong suits and weaknesses. Is that not the essence of teaching, learning, knowledge acquisition? Seeing patients as people with names rather than diagnoses or conditionsis a start. Recognition that the patient has a life, other interests and connections before, during and after our health encounters fosters setting the tone for interpersonal learning. We can examine how the student relates the client, family, and other team members. Encouraging self -assessment with impunity from grading consequences often taps into and assists development of intrapersonal intelligence.

The need to ascertain patterns of client behavior and plan for care based on this knowledge, or use of kinetic abilities in providing direct care, demonstrating procedures or reconfiguring equipment for a specific purpose are samples of what the student needs to learn. Fostering each of these needed abilities will require a different mode of learning and differing modes of assessment (Checkley, 1997).

So far, we have only really addressed health professionals dealing with individual patients/clients, but we deal with communities also. We face real problems today, our citizens
10

need new and more accessible avenues of knowledge to address health and educational needs.

Although health, a culturally sensitive and relevant issue, is personal, with direct social, political and intellectual components, an individual s quality of life as a member a community largely depends upon the ability of all community citizens to be discerning information consumers.

Therefore, health information must be practical, authentic and must be seen as a means to solve real-world problems and concerns. This is especially true among people of color, at-risk students, adults who are illiterate, people with English as a second language, and the economically disadvantaged. Di sparities in health can be curbed and stopped if access to health information technology is expanded and if competency in resource-based learning is promoted as a norm in educational opportunity for all health professions. How then do we go about the business of re-authoring health information and presenting it in a medium, so it is accessible, appealing and available to the community and health professionals?

Electronic networks designed to address health disparity problems, are excellent media to make knowledge available. However, this requires practitioners, educators and scientists to support upgrading the skills of the health system workforce. Information literacy skills, which carry over from educational to occupational settings, are the keys to helping future health professionals keep up with change in their jobs and careers, and in self-improvement and upgrading of skills.

Teachers, professors, teaching assistants, librarians, administrators, and community health educators must collaborate to develop ways to involve the professional student not only in using classroom materials but also in using resources from the broader community, mass media and especially computer-technology for increasing health information consumption and dissemination.

Professional health care education by definition is certainly a high-touch arena requiring

11

manipulative skills but professional health practitioners must also be able to assess, to plan, to strategize, to communicate, to teach, and to evaluate when providing comprehensive health care to the community client. To be successful, we must re-think the roles of the content, the learner and the teacher.

If it is to be effective and relevant, the role of content requires movement toward an active state. In a more traditional model, content is precisely organized -- each content area stands as a silo, completely separate and independent.

Knowledge divided and subdivided into small and supposedly manageable segments of information known as learning units, presents the learner with the expectation of gaining knowledge through memorization.

Nevertheless, there are many sides to the problems related to the health of a person or the community. As stated previously, life is messy; very few real world problems can be solved with one thought or perspective. Authentic situations related to health require multiple views and alternative thoughts to find the best solution. Small concepts are shared to create an environment that allows exploration of larger themes to expand the insight of the learner.

In this newer model, the learner is not a passive receiver of information, a memorizer, nor is it an expectation that the learner will work alone.

The process of stretching the mind places the learner in an active role. The learner learns how to learn through problem-solving techniques as well as how to handle and manage large amounts of information suitable to their content-specific needs.

Active learning is a method of educating that allows the responsibility for learning to remain with the learner. It takes the consumer of health knowledge and information beyond the role of passive listener and note taker. It allows one to take some directive and initiative in the activity for self-improvement, with resultant health improvement competence.
12

This kind of independent, active learning prepares practitioner students for real - life problem solving and they become competent with their use of information resource options. It

further supports awareness of their individual styles of learning and preferred ways of assimilating knowledge.

Becoming health information literate will involve a drastic change from the way many professional students are accustomed to learning and the way teaching has occurred in traditional higher educ ation centers.

Under the traditional model, the teacher is a disseminator of information. This position must change. The learner must be empowered to use the information in his or her own life situation effectively.

Teachers of all subjects must blend their traditional fact-based approach with an emphasis on learner and scientific based inquiry to facilitate resource-based learning. The latter,

resource-based learning involves having professional students assume more responsibility for locating the very materials from which to learn.

This approach develops lifelong learning skills because health professionals are learning from the same sources which they will come to use in their daily lives such as databases, the client, the environment, subject matter experts, government documents, newspapers, and of course books and refereed journals. As teachers, we become facilitators, resource providers or research librarians.

Information in the traditional approach is packaged and delivered. The desired state of information is dynamic, evolutionary and changing. Information is freely generated for

learning. Order is found in the information, not in the controlled design of the lecture (Boss-Victoria, 2000). Allowing professional students to develop health related questions, strategies to search for answers and to formulate conclusions means having fewer lectures replaced by applied strategies for health information literacy and significance to the learner s
13

real life situations.

This model stresses that information is available to everyone, the teacher becomes a learner as well, albeit a more advanced and experienced learner.

Learning is active and experienced-based. Replacing discrete curricular with problem-based learning will involve re-ordering of instructional roles and relationships as well as restructuring assessment strategies of effectiveness in teaching performance. It also requires addressing the many modes of learning available to the learner.

Conclusion

The outcomes for learning are toward achievement of synthesis and competence, characterized by appropriateness and developing each learner s knowledge acquisition skills through the multiple avenues of intelligence available.

Failure to understand the health market trends, the healt h business climate, and health policies can affect a huge number of decisions that represent the challenges of today. Information literacy skills, which carry over from educational to occupational settings, are the keys to helping future health profession als keep up with change in their jobs and careers, and in self-improvement and upgrading of skills.

We definitely need something different to hang our hats on, something to expand our course planning and teaching methods and definitely an expansion and acceptance of different modes of assessment.

We see the need for the process of knowledge acquisition being variegated and outcomes being future oriented, learner-centered, and focusing on life skills and contexts, placing high expectations of and for all learners.

14

References

Boss-Victoria, R.G. (2002). Preparation and scope of practice for future advanced public health practitioners in doctoral programs. In Chunn, J.C. (Ed.), The Health Behavior Imperative: Theory, Education And Practice In Diverse Populations, (pp. 113-126). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers

Checkley, K. (1997). The First Seven... And the Eight. Educational Leadership 55 (1).

Drucker, P.F. (1969). The Age of Discontinuity: Guidelines to Our Changing Society. Harper and Row. New York.

15

Implementing Multiple Intelligences Theory in Taiwan Wei-Kuo Wang

About the Author Dr. Wang Wei-Kuo is the Associate Professor at the Center for Teacher Education, Chaoyang University of Technology. His research areas include Multiple Intelligences Education, Curriculum Development, Early Childhood Development & Instruction & Learning Introduction

In the past, Taiwan s education focused on language and mathematics, but ignored music, arts, physical education, and interpersonal relations. Language and mathematics were important examination subjects and those of paper tests were easy to practice and the others were not tested in entrance examination and difficult to test. This resulted on students heavy study pressure, drilled repeatedly examination subjects and neglected to nurture the whole person.

In order to prepare for whole-person education and adaptive teaching, Taiwanese government began educational reform. Since 2001, all schools regularly implemented the Grade 1-9 Curriculum, which has been used on probation in some schools in 2000. It focused on alliance curriculum from the first grade to the ninth grade, students should learn real abilities rather than be loaded heavily, and teachers should respect students diversity in development.

Howard Gardner, a professor of education at Harvard University, pointed out the Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory that human beings had eight different types of intelligences (Gardner, 1983; 1999). These eight intelligences were: language, logical-mathematical, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial, intrapersonal, interpersonal and naturalist intelligence.

He defined intelligence as the biopsychology 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 (Gardner 1999,pp.33-34).

16

His MI theory allowed the success of all students in different intelligences and didn t restrict within language and mathematics which we highlighted in entrance examination and IQ test. By implementing Multiple Intelligences theory, educators can review and improve Taiwan s education and schools can tailor teaching to students individual characteristics.

Implementing of MI education in Taiwan Background In Taiwan, educators have accepted MI theory for a few years. The Ministry of Education pushed a Remedying Teaching Project at some elementary and junior high schools in 1998, which was the earliest MI teaching experiment project in Taiwan.

The project was led by the Education of Ministry and MI theory was introduced to those schools. Funding, teacher development, and advisor assistance was supported by the Education of Ministry. The project continued for three years, so it promoted many people to pay attention to MI. During that period, Education of Ministry also undertook the Small Class Instruction Project in all elementary and junior high schools. Schools undertook experimental teaching according to the ideas of diversification, individualization and ad aptability.

The essence of MI was similar to ideas of the Small Class Instruction Project, so MI was adopted by many teachers and some teachers designed innovative instruction activities which were enlightened by MI.

Since 2000, the Education of Ministry has been engaging in the Grade 1 -9 Curriculum and announced its guidelines. There was a close relationship between MI theory and seven major learning areas of the Grade 1 -9 Curriculum which were Language Arts, Health and Physical Education, Social Studies, Arts and Humanities, Mathematics, Science and Technology, and Integrative Activities. The Grade 1-9 Curriculum argued for school -based curriculum development, curriculum integration, instructional innovation, and empowered the teacher

17

with autonomy of curriculum design. Teachers could use MI theory to practice in this context. What was inspired by MI theory in Taiwanese education? Recently, Taiwanese educators learned many ideas from MI theory. What was inspired by MI theory in Taiwan s education? This paper will talk about it as follows.

Each student has equal study rights; he should gain an adaptive education which provided the learning environments to respond students differences. In the past, Taiwan s education focused on uniform methods and ignored individual differences.

MI theory told educators that each student had a different intelligence portfolio and students had many kinds of interesting and learning style. Teachers had to respect each person s differences, accommodate to the individual student s needs, and include a variety of teaching methods.

In MI teaching, teachers used a variety of teaching methods, including multiple entry points.

Awareness of these entry points can help a teacher extend practice by introducing new material in ways that can be easily grasped by a range of students; then, as students explore other entry points, they have the chance to develop the kind of multiple perspectives that are the best antidote to stereotypical thinking (Gardner, 1999, p.245)

By means of entry points to knowledge, students could increasingly understand content and have more chance to gain learning methods which match their intelligences. Therefore, students could study better and more confidently than before. For instance, the research of Fisher (1997) and Rosenthal (1998).

18

Taiwan s new curriculum reform, Grade 1 -9 Curriculum, asked teachers to embed the idea of integrated curriculum in courses. Integrated curriculum could integrate different disciplines and enable students to learn more effectively.

Gardner (2004) argued the importance of interdisciplinary work. He hoped that student could learn knowledge from interdisciplinary study. Gardner s idea of interdisciplinary study was similar to the idea of integrated curriculum. By MI, Teachers could review whether their curriculum planning included many fields and could gain a wider view of point about curriculum content.

There were a variety of methods of implementing MI education in Taiwan. This article will illustrate the features on curriculum and instruction, assessment, and environment. Curriculum and instruction Interdisciplinary curriculum integration of MI

Connecting students experience with their learning could be more meaningful by curriculum integration. It could replace the phenomenon of fragmentary learning. Interdisciplinary integrated curriculum development of MI began to form choosing a topic and then constructing some activities about that topic.

Meanwhile, the curriculum was organized by the frame of MI. For example, I am unique , the unit of Tainan City Cheng-Gong Elementary School second grade (Zheng, 2000). The unit included seven instructional activities which were integrated by eight intelligences. Each instruction activity matched at least one MI goal.

Those steps were as follows. a. Choosing a topic: A good topic could cover many subjects and intelligences. A topic could be chosen by a school, teachers or students.

19

b. Analyzing concepts of a topic: In order to enable students to understand entirely about a topic, the teacher ought to analyze key concepts of a topic and establish educational goals. c. Constructing instruction activities: Teachers could use an area-intelligence matrix to construct teaching activities, they could use nine-square-grids to develop MI curriculum, too. They wrote the topic in a central grid first and then brainstormed to connect activities of each intelligence area with the topic. d. Screening activities: Teachers should screen appropriate instruction activities by thinking about the appropriateness and practicability of these activities, and balancing each learning and intelligence area. e. Arranging a sequence of activities: Teachers should arrange the order of activities and write it in an instruction design table. f. Practic ing activities: The teaching is based on instructional design. g. Evaluating the curriculum: the activities and curriculum are evaluated after instructional activities. Suggestions are given for implementation next time.

From the above, we learn the characteristics of the interdisciplinary curriculum integration of MI as follows.

a. Breaking the disciplinary boundaries and integrating them according to intelligences: the teaching activities break the boundaries of subjects or areas. Activities don t belong to one discipline alone. b. Instructional goals could match MI and MI is a path for reaching instructional goals: Teachers use a MI frame to check whether the goals are complete. It could reach the ideal of education for the whole people.

One discipline involved in curricular integration of MI

Sometimes teachers had difficulties in designing the interdisciplinary curriculum integration of MI. The difficulties were shortage of resources, insufficient time, lack of in ability, teacher s failure to coordinate with colleagues, and parental questions. It was easier to focus
20

on one discipline involved in curricular integration of MI.

The processes of design were as follows (Kagan & Kagan, 1998): a. Choosing a discipline b. Defining curricular goals of MI c. Designing activities of MI d. Arranging a sequence of MI activities e. Implementing MI curriculum f. Evaluating MI curriculum

There was a unit of third grade elementary school language course. Its topic was a beautiful bridge . It used instructional activities for seven types of intelligences. In linguistics, the goals were that the student could express a text s concepts by oral language and actions, as follows: a).

Understanding concrete and abstract concepts of the bridge. b). Reading books. In spatial intelligence, a goal was that students could draw the bridge which they liked and an action is that students draw:I am a bridge .

In intrapersonal intelligence, a goal was that the students could get feedback after action. In interpersonal int elligence, a goal was that students could cooperate with others to accomplish designated actions. The actions were as follows. a). Building a bridge. b). London Bridge is falling down. In bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, a goal was that students can perform a variety of bridge-related activities, as follows. a). Building a bridge. b). London Bridge is falling down. In musical intelligence, a goal was that the student could sing a bridge song and the actions are as follows. a). London Bridge is falling down. b). Boating song. In naturalistic intelligence, a goal was observing a variety of bridges and actions, as follows. a). Observing bridges on the way. b). Observing a variety of bridges in each group (Wang, 2002).

21

Assessment Teachers used instruction diaries, checklists, and behavior observation lists to record students learning processes (Wang, 2000). Otherwise, a teacher could use portfolios to collect the students productions and understand student developmental trail.

However, Chuang (2002) used Spectrum assessment actions in a kindergarten which was developed by Harvard University Project Zero. The assessments actions included seven different knowledge areas: language, mathematics, music, art, social understanding, science, and sport.

In each knowl edge area, there were some actions, for examples, assembling activities in science, a story board in language, and a bus game in mathematics. Those actions could evaluate children s performance when they were playing and working. Children didn t need to write or be limited by traditional evaluating tools in those actions, so they each develop their intelligence strengths. After understanding children s strengths, teachers could design an individual education program for children.

Chuang (2002) used School-based Multiple Intelligences Learning Evaluation System (SMILES) to obverse children s performance. The SMILES system, integrating MI, assessment, information technology, and education, was developed by Professor Chang at Macao University.

According to the goals and context of the school, the teacher constructed items on the multiple intelligences scale first, then scored each student s performance by the three point Likert Scale in each item. Finally, the teacher uses a computer program to create the student s MI profile and added words of description about student. She could thereby understand student s strength and weakness intelligences.

22

Environment The construction of the school environment could depend on MI. The Affiliated Kindergarten Rixin Elementary School in Taipei City implemented MI in its education environment (Huang, 2001). The learning environment could be divided into learning areas and a learning corner.

The learning areas included the language area, wisdom area, block area, work area, sports center, and science area. The sports center and plant area are located outside of the classroom, but the others are located inside the classrooms. Each class decorated one area. In the learning area time, they broke up class boundaries and grouped depending on the children s choice and interests.

On the other hand, the learning corner was normally arranged in each classroom, such as language corner, work corner, and toy corner. The following are characteristics of the MI environment. a. Does the design of learning areas consider the children s whole development from the point of view of MI theory? In order to nurture children s MI development, the design of learning areas could consider eight intelligences and avoid only focusing on one or two intelligence areas. A learning area could simultaneously nurture several intelligences, for example, a block area could nurture children s spatial, logic-mathematic, and interpersonal intelligence.

b. The learning environment should include indoor and outdoor p laces. The design of learning areas should include the indoor and outdoor environment. The learning activities should not be limit to indoor places. They were good places for teaching in the natural outdoor environment. Thus, a sport area could not only train children s body and improve muscle development, but also children could get sun, fresh air, and natural wind.

c. The arrangement of learning areas should match the topic of the units. Learning areas should match the implementation of the topic a nd should add or delete teaching

23

materials regularly. It could make children gain deeper and wider experience of the topic.

Conclusion

This paper talks about the implementation of MI projects in Taiwan. We discussed the topic of curriculum, instruction, assessment, and environment. As a result of the spread of MI theory, Taiwan s education will progress to become excellent, teachersinstruction will have more variety, and student s ability to understand what are being taught will be improved. We hope that more and more educators can understand the idea of MI and embed it in curriculum and instruction.

References Chuang, W.X. (2001). Multiple intelligences educational research: an analysis of the Project Spectrum progress in the classroom. Taipei Teacher s College Master s thesis.

Fisher, E.M. (1997). A cross case survey of research based on Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of South Carolina (AAC 9815503).

Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of Mind: The theory of multiple Intelligences . Basic Books. New York.

Gardner, H. (1999). Intelligence reframed: Multiple intelligences for the 21st century. Basic Books. New York.

Gardner,

H.

(2004).

How

education

changes:

Considerations

of

history.

In

M.M.Suar ez-Orozco & D.B, Qin-Hillard (Eds.), Globalization: culture and education in the new millennium (pp.235-258). CA: University of California Press.

Huang,

M.

I.

(2001).Meaning

and

application

of

Multiple
24

intelligences .http://www.zhps.tp.edu.tw/kindergarten/newspaper89-3.htm09/28/2001

Kagan, S., & Kagan, M. (1998). Multiple intelligences: The complete MI book .CA: Kagan Cooperative learning.

Rosenthal, M.L. (1998). The impact of teaching to Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences on student self -esteem. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Saint Louis University (AAT9911985).

Wang, C.C. (2000). A study of kindergarten teachersuse of Multiple Intelligence theory. National Hsinchu Teachers College Master thesis.

Wang, W. 2002 . The curriculum design for teaching with multiple intelligences, Curriculum & Instruction Quarterly, 51,1-20. Zheng, B.C.2000. Multiple intelligences integrate curriculum and instruction. Kaoxiong: Kaoxiong Fu-Wen.

25

Analysis of Factors Influencing the Development of Multiple Intelligence Based on Self-Assessment Meng Wanjin & Guan Qun

About the Authors

MENG Wanjin: PhD and Professor in Educational Psychology, China National Institute for Educational Research, P.R.China,100088, currently a visiting professor at Educational College of Florida State University. E-mail: wanjinmeng@yahoo.com;

Guan Qun: A doctorate student in the Department of Educational Psychology, Educational College, Florida State University. E-mail: qg04@garnet.acns.fsu.edu

1 Introduction Theory of Multiple Intelligences, a great harvest of American Zero Plan, was originally raised by Professor Howard Gardner at Harvard University in 1983. It is thought that intelligence is a physical -mental potential for processing information, and under some background of culture it can be solicited to solve problems or create production highlighted by its culture (Howard Gardner, 1999).

Everyone has eight kinds of intelligences (Thomas Armstrong, 1997), as Howard Gardner holds, including linguistic intelligence, logical-mathematical intelligence, spatial intelligence, bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, musical intelligence, interpersonal intelligence, intrapersonal intelligence and naturalist intelligence. However, they vary with different individuals. If all the differences existed within different individuals can be recognized fully other than denying or ignoring them, education will become more efficient. _________________________________________________
* We thank Dr. Howard Gardner s appreciative reading of this article. Especially, we extend our deep gratitude to Dr Agnes Au, who is working at James Cook University, Australia, for her careful proof reading and good suggestions for revision.

26

The theory of Multiple Intelligences sweeps many countries and areas over the world beyond the U.S.A with a great deal of books and articles published. The development of many experimental schools like Project Spectrum, the Key School, Practical Intelligence for School and Arts Propel in U.S.A (Linda Campbell, Bruce Campbell & Dee Dickinson, 1999) have influenced the area of education in mainland China.

Nevertheless, research regarding Multiple Intelligence at present mainly focuses on the introduction of its theory and some revelation to quality education, such as art education, language education, infant education, teaching course, teaching activities, extra class research plan, and so on. Only a f ew experimental studies on status and features as well as laws of children s multiple intelligences development have been found up to date. To meet this urgent need, this research focuses on the analysis of factors influencing children s multiple intelligence development based on self-assessment.

2 Method 2.1 Subject Use the pupils in Shenzhen Siji Huacheng Experimental School, Guangdong Province, China, as subjects. 200 questionnaires were distributed and 197 available ones were collected. The subjectsages ranged from 5 to 15. Male: 119, covering 60.4%, and female: 78, covering 39.6% of the sample.

2.2 Materials and evaluation Revise the Checklist for Assessing Students Multiple Intelligences listed in Multiple Intelligences in The Classroom 2nd Edition (Armstrong) according t o Chinese Mandarin custom and the level at which children can understand. The assessment questionnaire had 80 items, with 10 of which covered each aspect of intelligence. Each subject was asked to choose one of the five scales: A1 (very tally with self), A2 (tally with self), A3 (unclear), A4 (untallied with self), A5 (very untallied with self), with each scale endowed 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 point

27

from A1 to A5 respectively. Each aspect of intelligence= A15 A24 A33 A42 A51 2.3 Procedure 2.3.1 Pre-test

40 pupils from Grade Three and Grade Five respectively at the Primary School attached to Beijing University of Aero. & Astro., China, w as chosen to take part in the pre-test to find out if there were any understanding problems, so as to revise the words. The same subjects repeated the former the revised version test two months later, through the two tests we found that the reliability is high (r=0.96).

Through interview with teachers and some parents about the children s features in the eight aspects of intelligences, we found our results quite tally with their observation and children s actual situation. Moreover we found our results differentiate between group/subjects and within group/subjects significantly (P<.05).

2.3.2 Test Subjects were asked to take the paper-based test in group. Subjects from Grade One and Two could complete the test with the help of their parents if they met difficulties in understanding words meanings. Before the test, the examiner explained the direction, ensured the subjects and parents knew how to choose the answers ordinarily, and to eliminate their worries.

2.4 Data analysis Use SPSS 9.0 for Windows to analyse the selected available data. 3 Results and discussion 3.1 Sex features in children s multiple intelligences Boys and girls have some common features in overall intelligences. Although the former have a little advantage over the later, no significant difference is found (P>.05). In detail, boys have a little advantage over girls in logical -mathematical intelligence, bodily-kinesthetic

28

intelligence, interpersonal intelligence, intrapersonal intelligence and naturalist intelligence; while girls have a little advantage over boys in linguistic intelligence, spatial intelligence and musical intelligence. These tallies with the mental traits in sex differences (Zhu Zhixian, 1989). See Chart 1.

Chart1 Comparison between boys and girls in each type of intelligence

To find if any significant differences exist between boys and girls in each of the eight dimensions, we conducted T-test. Boys have much advantage over girls in

logical-mathematical intelligence and bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, while girls have much advantage over boys in musical intelligence. T he differences are significant (P<.05). See Table 1.

29

Table 1 Result of T-test between boysand girls multiple intelligences Sex/Intelligence boy/logical -mathematical girl/ logical-mathematical boy/ bodily-kinesthetic girl/ bodily-kinesthetic boy/ musical girl/ musical M 39.04 36.69 35.63 32.88 34.16 37.47 SD 5.68 5.97 6.39 7.60 7.51 7.00 0.002 0.008 0.008 P

Since boys and girls are raised similarly and have similar education background, these factors are less likely to yield significant sex difference in their multiple intelligences. However,

boys have in-born physical advantage over girls, so their bodily-kinesthetic intelligence advantage is quite understandable. Influenced by the Chinese man-outdoor-centered and woman-indoor-centered tradition, boys are better at logical-mathematical intelligence, while girls are stronger in sensation and intuition thus leading to more artistic thinking and musical intelligence.

3.2 School-year features in children s multiple intelligences The children s absolute value of average score of multiple intelligences , in general, declines with increasing school-year from age 5 to age 15, despite a slight peak at the age of nine and twelve respectively. See Chart 2.

30

Chart 2 Curve of multiple intelligence from age 5 to 15

42 41.2813 40

38.6050 38 37.7639 37.0568 36.6833 score 36 36.1667 37.7679 37.1833 36.6250

34 32.9375 32

30 5 6 7 8 9 age 10 11 12 13 14 15

From Chart 2, we can see the downward trend of children s overall multiple intelligences or self-evaluation on their multiple intelligences with increasing age. One reason is that our education depresses rather than promotes children s multiple intelligences.

The upper the grade they progress to, the more attention they are asked to pay to knowledge grasp, and the fewer other activities they have time to take part in. This phenomenon exists in every school world wide (David Lazear, 2003). A nother reason may be that, the assessment focuses on the fluid intelligence dominated by inheritance rather than the crystallized intelligence built mainly by learning in life according to Raymond B. Cattell.

If a test examines fluid intelligence mainly, the result must be a product from increasing age (Zhang Chunxing, 1998). The exact explanation needs further probe. 3.3 Parents education features in children s multiple intelligence development Children s overall multiple intelligences seems to increas e with parentseducation levels, with a slight decline at the postgraduate level . However, there is no overall significant difference (P>.05). See Chart 3.

31

Chart 3 Parents education features in children s multiple intelligence development

Parents of higher education know more how to explore their children s potentials and direct their development than parents of lower education. Thus, children living in a family of higher education have more advantage than those living in a family of lower education with respect to the development of multiple intelligence. Maybe parents with postgraduate qualification care more often their own development than ordinary university graduates, thus, children in the former family are slightly disadvantaged contrasting to the ones in the latter.

Further analysis found that fathers education has no significant difference in influencing their children s multiple intelligences development, while motherseducation, in particular that between middle school education and higher education, significant ly affects their children s multiple intelligences development (P<.05) (See Table 2). Mother s higher education is a key to children s multiple intelligences development.

32

Table 2 Contrast of children s multiple intelligence between mothers different educations M Middle School 35.5714
0.8658

SE
0.003

Higher Education

38.1996

Mothers rather than fathers having more influence on their children can be explained b y the traditional Chinese value of having man-outdoor-centered and woman-indoor-centered. Mothers have more time to take care of and live with their children than fathers. Mothers of higher education generally can create good family environment for raising their children.

3.4 Family income features in children s multiple intelligence development We list eight levels of family income according to Yuan(RM) per family member: level 1=500yuan 1%, level 2=1000yuan6% , level 3=1500yuan4% , level 4=2000yuan 11%, level 5=2500yuan 11%, level 6=3000yuan 19%, level 7=3500yuan17%, level 8=4000yuan and above31%.

For easier contrast, we divide them into three groups: lower income 1-2 levels , middle-income3-5 levels and higher income6-8 levels . See Table 3.

33

Table 3 Mean score of multiple intelligence at different family income levels intel income F language 37.70 logical 39.05 spatial 38.10 bodily 36.33 musical 37.67 interper39.52 intraper38.80 natura40.35 multi- intel 38.76 2.64 1.11 0.83 1.63 2.22 2.54 1.73 1.67 2.56 P 32.00 0.018* 46.00 0.124 36.00 0.109 36.00 0.018* 23.00 0.038* 40.00 0.134 41.00 0.564 34.00 0.361 36.00 0.016* 37.12 35.55 32.90 33.53 37.49 38.38 36.29 39.40 33.50 36.08 37.19 38.86 35.62 35.20 34.33 35.46 35.91 37.67 37.93 36.20 36.00 33.69 38.04 39.19 35.21 31.60 30.00 34.71 36.63 37.70 36.86 31.00 35.29 34.57 35.91 34.97 37.93 35.60 34.00 34.21 39.13 38.25 37.86 41.40 35.43 34.46 39.27 38.37 35.00 34.00 32.14 32.50 37.36 37.73 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

From Table 3, it can be found that both children from lower -income and higher-income families have more advantage over those from middle-income families and the difference is significant P<.05 .

34

Higher-income families provide good conditions to promote their children s multiple intelligences development, while lower -income parents put more hope on their children because they almost lack confidence of themselves.

Middle-income parents, on the other hand, may often care more of their own development and thus ignore their children. Contrasting to lower-income parents, they put less hope on their children while contrasting to higher-income parents, they are unable to provide very good nurturing conditions. That s why their children s multiple intelligences stay at the valley.

Two unique phenomena are worth noticed. One is that children from higher-income families have most advantage than other children in musical intelligence and the difference is significant P<.05 .

This may be related to their family conditions that can afford to send them to better training and buy them better instruments. The other is that children from lower-income families have most advantage than other children in bodily-kinesthetic intelligence and the difference is significant P<.05 .

This may be attributed to the frequent labor required to support the family. As far as language is concerned, it may be because of the courtesy or language use style in upper class family.

4 Conclusion

4.1 No significant difference exists in overall multiple intelligences between boys and girls, but in some aspects, such as logical-mathematical intelligence and bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, boys have more advantage over girls. On the contrary, girls have more advantage over boys in musical intelligence. Both differences reach significance level.

35

4.2 The children s absolute value of average score of multiple intelligences declines with increasing school-year, even though slight peaks at the age of nine and twelve, respectively, are evident.

4.3 Children s overall multiple intelligences are positively related to parents education levels. Fathers education has no significant impact on children s multiple intelligences development, while motherseducation particularly that between middle school education and higher education, and significantly affects their children s multiple intelligences development.

4.4 Both children from lower-income and higher-income families have significantly more advantage over those from middle-income families. Children from higher-income families have most advantage than others in musical intelligence and the difference is significant. Children from lower-income families have most advantage than others in bodily-kinesthetic intelligence and the difference is significant. References

David Lazear, The Intelligent Curriculum: Using Multiple Intelligences to Develop Your Students Full Potential., translated by Muyi Education Science Press 2003.1. PP6 7.

Howard Gardner, Multiple Intelligences, translated by Shen Zhilong, Beijing: Xinhua Press, 1999.

Linda Campbell, Bruce Campbell & Dee Dickinson. Teaching & Learning Through Multiple Intelligences. Copyright 1999, 1996 by Allyn & Bacon, A Viacom Company.

Lynne Beachner & Anola Pickett. Multiple Intelligences and Positive Life habits: 174 Activities for Applying Them in Your Classroom. Copyright 2001 by Corwin Press, Inc.

36

Thomas Armstrong Mind Management , translated by Li Pin Yuanliu Publishing Limited, 1997.

Zhang Chunxing, Psychology of Education, Zhejiang Education Press, 1998.

Zhu Zhixian (Ed.)Dictionary of PsychologyBeijing Normal University Press, 1989, P794.

37

Teaching Entrepreneurship using Multiple Intelligence-Problem-Based Learning (MI -PBL) Framework An Action -Research Case Study in China Alvin Chan

About the Author

Dr. Alvin Chan, DBA is the Academic Director of Raffles-Changchun University International College. In addition , he is the honorary Advisor for Tumbletots (Asia-Pacific) and has advised them in the development of MI-based programs in Asia. Email: alvinchan88@gmail.com

Introduction

Since the opening of China in the late 1970s, there have been constant exchanges an d sharing of information/ expertise to develop the educational standards of the country. Through the years, there have been many improvements in the education standards and teaching methodology regarding elementary and secondary education, especially in Southern China.

However, in terms of their level of education innovation at the tertiary level, it is still backward compared to most universities in America, Europe and Singapore. This is even more explicit in local Chinese universities who are delivering undergraduate courses in Business, Management and Entrepreneurship.

This problem is even more prominent within Northeastern China as the region s education development is a few steps behind those in the southern parts of China.

In most universities teaching courses in Business, Management and Entrepreneurship, their teaching methods are usually one of rote-learning and textbook-based. In addition, most of these business undergraduates are assessed by mid-term and final written exams alone.
38

In the author s opinion, such teaching and assessment methods defeat the purpose of nurturing the spirit of Entrepreneurialism in the students.

However, there are some progressive colleges who are slowly improving their teaching methodology in delivering worthwhile entrepreneurial education in a more interesting and beneficial manner within Northeast China.

And this has led to the writing of this action research-based paper.

The purpose of this action research-based paper is to showcase the steps taken by a Business Administration tutor (who is the author of this paper) in using a Multiple Intelligence-Problem-Based Learning (MI-PBL) framework in teaching a course on Entrepreneurship to students in a progressive international college in Northeast China.

In addition, it would also report on the perspectives of the student learners to such a new teaching pedagogy, as part of the study.

A Brief Introduction to Multiple Intelligence (MI)

Before one can begin on the paper proper, it is advisable to understand the basic precepts of Multiple Intelligence (MI) theory and Problem -Based Learning (PBL) teaching pedagogy as MI-PBL is a fusion of both MI and PBL.

The theory of multiple intelligences was developed in 1983 by Dr. Howard Gardner, a Hobbes Professor of education at Harvard University.

The MI theory suggests that the traditional notion of intelligence, based on I.Q. testing of linguistic and logical (mathematics) intelligence are too narrow.

To widen the scope to assess intelligence, Dr. Gardner developed eight different intelligences:
39

Linguistic (Word Smart) Logic (Mathematics Smart) Visual - Spatial (Picture Smart) Musical (Music Smart) Interpersonal (Relationship Smart) Intrapersonal (Self Smart) Kinesthetic (Body Smart)

(For

more

information

on

Multiple

Intelligence

theory,

please

refer

to

http://www.howardgardner.com/ )

The Benefits of a MI -based Classroom

The theory of MI has been applied to teaching in the classroom. The benefits of having a MI-based classroom are:

A teacher can create a more holistic setting to enhance the success of each student by varying the learning environment, types of lessons/activities and assignments based on the varied intelligences of the students.

Using a MI-based framework within a classroom, it injects variety and interests in the studentslearning process.

A Brief Introduction to Problem-Based Learning (PBL)

In the early 1970s, the modern history of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) begins at the medical school of McMaster University in Canada. PBL is often seen as the pedagogical approach based on the ideal of learning by doing .

It is a pedagogical approach that focuses on knowledge integration, facilitating long-term retention and easy association of knowledge components with applications.
40

In the classroom (or beyond the classroom), students learn to integrate knowledge through struggling with problems (usually in small teams) and benefiting through exploring different avenues to acquire pertinent knowledge/ experience (through researching in the library/ internet or recounting prior knowledge/ experience) to solve problems given by the teacher in class.

Such basic skills set of problem solving process skills and teamwork (which has been developed through the daily practice of small-group collaboration during self-directed PBL sessions) tend to nurture students to be better problem-solvers at the workplace of a knowledge-based economy.

(Note:

For

more

information

on

Problem-Based

Learning,

please

visit

http://www.myrp.sg/ced/ns/research_paper.asp of Republic Polytechnic.

The author is a former Academic Associate at the Centre of Innovation and Enterprise at the Republic Polytechnic of Singapore, a reputable inst itute in the application of PBL)

The Benefits of a PBL-based Classroom

There are an increasing number of institutes using PBL as their core teaching pedagogy. Many education institutes realize that there are many benefits to be gained for their learners. Some of the benefits of a PBL-based classroom include:

PBL addresses the question, Why do we need to learn this? . Students are made aware of both the context and relevance of what and how they learn. This has also help in motivating students to be better learners as they know the impact of their inquiry.

In PBL lessons, students practice higher-order thinking as they are required to explore and develop their own answers (either individually or in group work). And in most PBL lessons, there is no one right answer/ solutionto a problem or case study.
41

Students learn to be better independent thinkers/problem-solvers and effective team-workers as they are required to develop problem -solving strategies such as information gathering, data analysis, drawing conclusions and evaluating the quality of their solutions to problems on a regular basis.

An Action-Research Case Study: A MI -PBL Entrepreneurship Program in Action

Case Study: An Entrepreneurship Class in an International College in Changchun City, Jilin Province, China.

The class comprised of 28 students who is taking a Diploma course on Entrepreneurship. The tutor has made this course a total Project-based Assessment without the need for any written exam. This is due to the nature of the course whic h is more action-based rather than one of theoretical frameworks.

During the first two weeks of the course, the class has been discussing in class about:

1. 2. 3.

Definition of Entrepreneurship What are the Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs? Intra-preneurship & The Entrepreneurial Perspective

During the second week, the students were asked to group themselves into teams of 4 members. Each team has to develop a business plan for a new venture. Each team is given several tasks to be handed up by the 10-w eek of their course.

For added difficulty, each team is given an imaginary 10 000 RMB (about US$ 1500) as their working capital to start their new venture. More importantly, they have to keep account for each dollar used as part of their assignment.

Below are the tasks to be completed by students and its related core intelligence applied as
42

outlined in the framework of Multiple Intelligence (MI):

l l

Group project Interpersonal Intelligence Developing accounting and financial report using Excel Spreadsheet

Logical-Mathematic Intelligence l l Develop a website for their businessVisual & Verbal -Linguistic Intelligence Promotional poster for their new venture s product and/or service Visual & Verbal-Linguistic Intelligence l 30-second Television Advertisement for their business- Visual, Musical &

Verbal-Linguistic Intelligence (Note: It is quite unlikely that they will need a TV commercial at the early stage of their business. However, with the advent of social media sites like Youtube.com, an entrepreneur can actually have their own TV ad on the Internet.) l 15-minutes PowerPoint Presentation - Visual & Verbal -Linguistic Intelligence

Students Initial Response to Assignments

It has to be noted that the Assignment was given out on the second week of the course. Inevitably, many students started grumbling and complaining that they have just attended the first lesson and did not really understand the nature of the course.

In addition, most of the students have not build websites and film their own 30 seconds TV advertisement before. They were worried about these new challenges as most of them were not IT-savvy yet.

As for developing accounting and financial accounts using Microsoft Excel, most of the students have learnt to use Excel spreadsheet during their previous Statistic and Accounting course. Thus, they were able to apply this knowledge for their project work with more ease.

As in most PBL -based lessons, the students were encouraged or forced to understandthat
43

they are supposed to overcome these challenges by researching for their solutions in the library or the Internet. In addition, they were also told by the tutor that they can use website building and video editing software that are available free on the Internet for their assignment.

More importantly, the tutor encouraged them to work effectively as a team as they would need to be cohesive during the whole learning process and when presenting their business venture idea to their potential investor(the tutor) during the final PowerPoint oral presentation.

The tutor told them that the best way to learn is by Learning by Doing, the teaching philosophy of the international college.

The Class in Action

From the third week onwards, the tutor blended a 2 -hour lecture coupled with another 11/2 hour for students to do their team s project tasks in the classroom and/or the Computer Laboratories within the college. This would also allow every team to have access to the tutor for consultation during the classroom period each week.

For the 2-hour lecture for the ensuing weeks, the students were taught:

Entrepreneurial Perspective : Creativity in Business

The students were taught creativity tools such as mind-mapping, brainstorming, attribute-listing method, what-ifs, and random association thinking system to generate entrepreneurial ideas and how to solve problems in the business context..

The tutor also encouraged the students how they can use such tools to brainstorm for better business ideas for their assignment. The tutor also showed the students videos on how creativity can be used for entrepreneurial development and on Mind-mapping.

44

Developing an Entrepreneurial Plan: Environmental Assessment & Marketing Research

The students were taught how to develop SWOT (Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats) Analysis and PEST (Political-Economic -Social-Technological) Analysis to help develop a business firm s strategy.. The tutor also taught students how to use the 4Ps (Product-Price-Place-Promotion) Marketing Strategy to market their products/ services.

In addition, the tutor showed the students videos on what makes good TV commercials and had a discussion about the need for proper branding strategy.

The tutor encouraged the students to ponder whether they can apply what they have learnt during the lecture for their project which includes developing their 30-second TV commercial and promotion posters for their company. l Financial Preparation & Developing an Effective Business Plan

The students were taught how to do simple accounting and financial reports when developing a business plan. Since the students have learnt accounting before, it was rather simple for them. The students were taught how the report and the numbers can be used to influence potential investors to fund their business plan.

The tutor then showed students how they can use the Excel spreadsheet software to develop a simple profit & loss and balance sheet for their team s business plan report. l New Ventures Success Factors and Business Legal Structures

The tutor gave a topic for discussion in the classroom. The students were led to discuss the varied reasons why small businesses fail and how one can avoid the pitfalls when developing an entrepreneurial project.

In addition, the tutor taught the students the various types of legal structures for new business

45

ventures which include sole proprietorship, Limited Liability Corporation, general partnership and etc. They were also taught the benefits and disadvantages of each of the legal structures for new businesses.

The tutor also asked the students to ponder what kind of legal structures would be more suitable for their fictional company if they were to develop it in Changchun where the school is situated. l Legal Issues and Sources of Capital for New Ventures

The students were taught l egal issues such as patent, trademark, and copyright problem when starting a new business venture. More importantly, the need for experienced counsel while developing a business.

However, the topic that warranted the highest level of interest from the students was the intricacies involved in getting funding for their business proposal.

The tutor taught them the various funding methods available and told them from his own experience how his business project was funded. The students were very interested as they said they do see potential in their business plan that they were developing at present. l Case Studies on Entrepreneurship

The tutor showed videos on entrepreneurs such as Ray Kroc (of McDonald s), Sears Roebuck & Company and Ma Yun (the founder of Alibaba.com, a popular B2B e-commerce firm in China). The students were led into a discussion on the entrepreneurs featured and read case studies on them.

With every lectures given, the students were encouraged to apply what they have learnt to their business plan. However, the tutor did not enforce rules such that the students must apply what was taught during the lectures for their team s assignment.

46

At the end of the day, the tutor wanted the students to explore, assess and make their own decisions regard ing what they should and should not do for their team s new venture. The whole idea is not to spoon-feed the students and set pre-conceived frames of mind of what is right or wrong. That will be the anti-thesis of a PBL-based course. As each week passed, the tutor was able to witness the development process of the teams business plan. Though the students started out not knowing what to do, they have been able to develop independently their solutions for the given tasks.

For the purpose of assessment, the tutor has developed a holistic method which goes further than merely evaluating the final end project of the students. The students would also be assessed for good teamwork and ability to answer questions about their work processes during the 10 weeks of attending the Entrepreneurship course.

The tutor assessed this quality by having weekly small groups discussion to see whether the team members knew what each should be doing to finish all of the tasks given, culminating to the final PowerPoint Presentatio n. The atmosphere was more akin to a Head Consultant motivating and assessing at the same time, his team of junior consultants.

The Projects Outcome

During the 10-week of the course, the students had to do a Final Oral 15-minute group presentation with PowerPoint. After the presentation, the tutor would ask and probe deeper about their team s business plan and how they would develop this in reality.

After the whole presentation and Q&A session, the tutor would ask about the learning process of each team as they go about finishing their assignments. This part would be covered in the later part of the paper.

The tutor received a varying level of standards of business plans from the 7 teams. The author would select some of the better team projects for better illustration.
47

As with most Chinese students, majority of them did apply what was taught in the lectures for their project.

A few teams took what they have seen in the TV commercials shown to them in the previous lessons and apply similar concepts in their own TV commercials. Overall, the TV commercials were satisfactory,

Now, the author will highlight 3 business ideas that were developed by the teams.

Changchun Travel Website in English

One of the teams has decided to develop an English-language travel website for Changchun City. Due to the increasing number of foreign tourists, there is a market for such a website as there isn t any English-language website for the users at the moment. Their revenue model is to collect fees by acting as brokers for travel agencies, hotels and restaurants.

Laundry Within the Dormitory

One team came up with a simple idea of buying 1 -2 washing machines for laundry purpose within the college s dormitory. Though the idea is not revolutionary, it was very feasible. And best of all, this team actually made this business project into a reality and is now serving the students in the dormitory while earning extra income for the team.

Web-based Random Events Planner

This team developed this business idea using Random Assoc iation Thinking Systems, a system of brainstorming using random words/picture to generate ideas through linking the words given.

48

During their creativity lesson in class, the team was given 3 words Random, Time and Fun to brainstorm for a business idea. And they came up with this idea a web-based random daily planner for people who do not know what they want to do for fun in Changchun City. The website would generate several options for the user and even pair them up with other users within Changchun City.

The website s revenue model is to collect fees by acting as brokers for places that they recommend to the users such as cinemas, restaurants, bowling alley, spas and more within the city.

For example, the random daily planner could suggest (with a click) that the user could visit a particular cinema to watch a movie with a blind date of the opposite sex (also selected through the website) and have dinner at a certain restaurant wearing a red rose to get a discount from the outlet.

Students Learning Outcome

From the tutor s perspective, the business ideas and the assigned tasks that were handed up by the students went beyond his expectation. It was more gratifying as the class was new to this method of course delivery. The tutor felt that it was overall a successful course and would use similar delivery for other courses.

In order to find out how the students felt about their new learning/teaching process, the tutor asked these following questions:

How do you feel about the assignments given for this Entrepreneurship course?

Most students responded that initially, they were overwhelmed by the assignments given. Firstly, they were not used to doing projects and seldom work in teams during high school. They were also unsure what kind of software to use for developing the website and TV
49

commercial. They were shocked to know that the tutor would not be hand-holding them throughout the course for the project.

However, during the development process of their assignments, they realized that the tasks can be done. Most of them started to feel more relaxed when they discussed their initial worries with fellow sophomore students who have taken similar courses in the college.

How did your team cope when you are not sure of what to do in the development process?

The students told the tutor that it was only after talking with the sophomore students that helped reduced their fears in the beginning. Whenever they have some doubts, they thankfully had some senior students to ask for advice.

Many students also cited the use of the Internet as the main knowledge base to help learn how to develop websites and to film a TV commercial.

The students felt that the tutor should help them more in the beginning as it was a big psychological hurdle for them to cross over without any real guidelines. They were toying with different ways of solving some tasks like filming the TV commercial using a hand-phone video camera which yielded poor results.

Most of the students said that they did many trials and error before being satisfied with their final project. It was a real test of independence for them in their learning process.

In addition, the students mentioned that with each week s lecture, they could learn and apply what they have learnt for developing their team s business plans. A few students mentioned that the lectures took on a greater significance as they were listening attentively to the tutor for possible solutions to complete their tasks at hand.

50

Thus, the exploration and search for possible solutions were not just focused on one way but was multi-pronged from asking for advice from senior students, Internet, tutor s lectures/handouts, prior experience and experimentations.

At the end of the course, how do you find the teaching/learning process? Would you want more courses to be developed in a similar manner?

Most students found the course very nerve-wrecking in the beginning due to the initial culture shock. After the 5th week, they slowly adapted and saw the benefits of it.

Several students felt that in the beginning, the tutor was lazy and irresponsible because he was teaching only half the time for the classes. They mentioned that in high school, teachers have to stand all day to teach with the students just listening a one-way communication. They have never been in a class whereby the teachers just walk around and act as facilitator, while students are busy doing projects within the classroom time.

Many said it was unthinkable and when they shared with their peers in other local universities, they were also amused and shocked to hear about this teaching methodology.

At the end of the day, most of the students felt that they have gained a lot from the course and saw themselves as real entrepreneurs going through the paces of an entrepreneurial process.

The students also realized that such a course delivery method will enable them to be independent learners and best of all; they would be able to apply what was taught/ learnt for their future endeavors.

Thus, most of them were keen to have more courses taught in similar fashion in future.

51

Conclusion

During the course of writing this paper, one realized that most students were apprehensive of the tutor s MI-PBL teaching methodology in the beginning. However, most of them could acclimatize and learn to enjoy the independence of such a teaching/ learning process after the initial jitters.

One has to also note that it was not a bed of roses for the tutor during the proceeding of teaching this Entrepreneurship course.

A few students did complain to the college s counselor that they did not understand why they have to do project work and be taught in such a manner. This was especially prevalent in the 2nd to the 4th week of the course.

Thus, during the initial weeks, the tutor had to give several motivation talks to explain the benefits of such a teaching methodology. The situation was also helped out by senior students who were asked to talk to the junior students to reduce their fear and stress. Most Chinese students are just used to having written exams to assess their learning ability whether in high school or in most local universities.

The author hopes that this action-research paper would encourage other teachers and educators to use Multiple Intelligence-Problem -Based Learning (MI-PBL) framework in their teaching, whether in China or anywhere else in the world.

References

Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind. New York: Basic Books.

Armstrong, T. (1994). Multiple intelligences: Seven ways to approach curriculum. Expanded Academic ASAP [on-line database]. Original Publication: Educational Leadership, 52 (3).
52

Campbell, L. (1997). How teachers interpret MI theory. Expanded Academic ASAP [on-line database]. Original Publication: Educational Leadership, 55 (1).

O'Grady, G. & Choy, L.F.J. (2006, Dec) "Do We Get Better Learners Using PBL?" Paper presented at International Conference on Teaching & Learning in Higher Education, held at NUS, Singapore (Dec 6 to 8, 2006)

Ang, J. (2006, Nov) "Enhancing Learning Through Problem-Based Learning." Paper presented at the EDU-COM Conference, Thailand.

53