MI Chapters: 7, 9, 13, & 14

In chapter 13 of Multiple Intelligences, authorThomas Armstrong introduces other applications of MI theory in the classroom, he breaks them down into three parts: computer technology, cultural diversity, and career counseling. Technology has become a great tool to help foster learning as well as bring a level of entertainment to the process; its ability to work within the MI theory is no exception. Armstrong notes the stance of computers as “intelligence neutral zones”, removing the stereotypical assessment of their use purely for the logical/mathematically inclined. Rather the possibilities of computer technology emerge through the use of software programs. Armstrong suggests using MI theory to help with the selection process of what programs to promote and use in your classroom. Through selection of various features and programs teachers have the opportunity to interface with select intelligences or incorporate all into one learning experience, such as with the use of multi-media projects. Second, the topic of cultural diversity and the use of MI theory, this can show itself in the classroom through the purposeful inclusion of an intelligence due to its significance to a student’s heritage and culture. Lastly the use of MI to help steer career counseling is discussed. This one of the more obvious uses of MI theory but yet an important one. By connecting a student’s skills to real life scenarios you empower them and show meaning in their abilities.

Chapter 14 of MI introduces the possible 9th intelligence, existentialism, and its applications in the classroom. Gardner describes this intelligence as “having a concern with ultimate life issues.” Students who posses this intelligence have the ability to think large scale and dive deep into their thinking process. In the humanities the role religion plays is a significant one, to discuss the part it has played in wars can not just stop at a name, I must push my students to understand how opposing sides beliefs and ideals are so fundamentally different they are grounds for warfare, only then can they truly explore the topic.

FIAE: Chapters: 11, 12, 13, & 14

Chapter 11 touches on a topic that I have been very interested in hearing a case for, the grade book zero. I must admit that I was quite surprised to read the justification of why this practice should be avoided; I had already prepared my debate, which hit on the topic of student accountability and proper grade representation. Surprisingly I found math at the center of the argument, an argument that worked well with my planned points, to convince me that zeros have no place in the grade book. Emma L. Davis, a Virginia Beach school board member who is quoted on page 138, compares the situation to that of recording an average temperature over a period of days. This metaphor does well to capture the flaw of recording zeros in the absence of work. Of the methods described, I think I am most likely to implement in my classroom the one that suggests entering “I” for incomplete into my grade book and then calculating more of a median or mode in grade trends apposed to the mean. I found the topic of weighting grades an interesting one to return to from my youth, this was a highly debated topic at my high and due to the fact that I was student body president and enrolled in many of the AP classes that were at the heart of the discussion, so I found myself too. Having looked at this topic as a student it is interesting to now come at it from a teacher’s point of view. I now have a better understanding of why the administration and staff were so unmotivated on the matter while the student body (those enrolled in higher tiered classes at least) was really the voice behind the matter. In conclusion to the argument, GPAs and their significance are really minute matters and I love how the chapter makes a point to express this while discussing this topic. My high school GPA does little to reflect me as a student or a person; the added efforts of weighting would only further manipulate this expression.

The topic of what grades mean has been adequately discussed in this book, Chapter 12 was a nice review on how we can better express these meanings. By the end of this chapter I was convinced of the benefits of using a 5.0 scale in my grading. I prefer this system opposed to the more common 4.0 scale as it deviates from the even more common A, B, C, D scale. The 5.0 scale in addition offers teachers an opportunity of being less objective thanks to the pairing and implementation of rubrics with graded work. Additionally I noted the comments on the use of “+” and “−” and while I had previously thought they could be great tools and of benefit to express students mastery I agree with the comments made on page 156 that note their lack to motivate and their at time destructive nature. In sync with topic of grades is how we enter them into the grade book and what does this system look like. I have to admit this is a topic that was completely off my radar, not once have I thought about what system I might use or even what my options are. I think Chapter 13 did well to enlighten me on the topic. I felt of the options gone over in the chapter I would be most likely to use the one depicted in image 13.3 on page 166, grouping by weight or category. I appreciate the ability to differentiate with how I multiply the categories, and I think it also allows for the benefit of tracking assignments by date. I will say that I still have many questions about this topic and wonder if most schools even allow teacher choice or if a particular program is purchased by the schools and enforced for teacher use? This same question I found myself asking while reading Chapter 14 in reference to report cards. I found this chapter intriguing as well but doubt whether my opinion on the matter will be of much weight. I do find the discussion on student comparison in reference to paternal concerns a concerning one. I feel the most important discussion between a parent and teacher should be what the grades mean and how the report card expresses it.

UbD Chapters: 6,7 & MI Chapters: 5,6

Chapter 5 of Multiple Intelligences, MI Theory and Curriculum Development, encourages teachers to expand their repertoire of techniques and teaching strategies, and in doing use the MI philosophy to guide curriculum. A true MI teacher uses many modes to communicate their knowledge of the content, possibly utilizing pictures, music, group activities, writing, nature walks, and self reflection all within one lesson. As showcased, the key to MI theory success is to constantly shift your focus and teaching strategy, allowing for rich thought based instruction all around. Chapter 6 of MI, MI Theory and Teaching Strategies does well to express this point and outlines numerous teaching strategies that are at ones disposal. It should be noted that teachers need to be daring and creative with their approach and allow for time to reflect upon what methods they have the most success with and which ones they do not. Likewise, a key to incorporating MI theory successfully in your classroom is planning. Establishing a curriculum and lesson plans that clearly outlines the incorporation of each intelligence is crucial to assuring that all students needs are met, and allows for successful implementation of the creative ideas you have invested time to produce.

Chapter 6 of Understanding by Design, Responsive Teaching with UbD in Academically Diverse Classrooms, deals with the transition from curriculum to instruction.  The authors, Carol Ann Tomlinson and Jay McTighe do well in their use of metaphor, comparing a differentiated instructor to that of a jazz musician. Much like with music, many of the skills needed to master the art of teaching come only through submersion. Through that experience alone can our senses mature allowing us to become completely perceptive to the cues of the classroom. There is however some opportunity for preparation as Chapter 6 does well to point out. Tomlinson and McTighe suggest that responsive teachers “think about categories of student need and instructional strategies for addressing them,” in doing this it makes planning in response to learner need more manageable. In essences I know I will have students in my class that will require reading assistance, rather than waiting for the moment when a student is struggling to fabricate a solution I will pre-prepare tools and assignments for such a scenario, thus allowing me to quickly differentiate instruction.

In Chapter 7, Teaching for Understanding in Academically Diverse Classrooms, you are introduced to the WHERETO framework. It is through this approach in the planning of your curriculum that teachers establish lessons that center around the understanding of outlined essential questions. Having recently started to use the framework myself I admit that there is much strength in its organizational ability while still allowing for the use of ones creative license. Often while reading I become overwhelmed with the task the chapter is assigned to analyze, there always seem to be insurmountable barriers and answerless questions. Having the WHERETO model appear at the end of this chapter gave me a sense of relief, I know the success to be had with its implementation and have confidence in myself to effectively utilize it in my classroom.

FIAE Chapters: 7,8,9, &10

I have been waiting for the topic of grades to arise for a while now, as author Rick Wormeli points out in Fair Isn’t Always Equal, it is the “elephant in the room,” and today I finally get the chance to talk about it. The definition of a grade is almost completely indefinable, Chapter 7: The Relative Nature of Grades and Their Definitions itself never reaching its own conclusion. Both how the grade is reached and what it exemplifies changes from moment to moment. A teacher’s assessment of class papers can produce a range of samples carrying the marking of “A”, contributing to this are factors such as a student’s background, location of paper in the stack, and teacher’s mood. Overall definitions of grades range too, a specific area of frustration I find within the education community is the disparity in what grade marks complete mastery. While for most teachers an “A” represents meeting outlined goals, for others it is reserved for those who excel. This practice runs into the flaw that students who do reach the level of full mastery can be marked with a “B”; much is lost in translation. As teachers we must accept the fact that grades by nature are subjective and therefore will never be completely accurate in their assessment. Unless we have the opportunity to work at such institutions that have done away with grades, we must be conscious of this fact and work to effectively communicate with our colleagues to establish clear and universal guidelines to base our grading practices off of.

Chapter 8, Why Do We Grade, and What About Effort, Attendance, and Behavior? Poses two very important questions that need be asked in reference to grading, what is the purpose of the grade? And, what are the components that factor into the grades worth? In regards to the first question posed, to most simply state it: the purpose of grades is to help inform of progress and give feedback to both student and teacher. In all its worth this should be the goal of grades. It is important to also point out the alternative purpose of grades, as awareness alone can negate use. One in which teachers should be especially conscious of is the use of grades as motivation, a common practice in schools these days with a rise in “grade hungry” students. Wormeli sums up the destructive nature of this habit on page 103, stating with its use “we dilute the grades accuracy, we dilute its usefulness, and we use grading to manipulate students.”

The second question centers around the role numerous factors play in computing grades, such as behavior, participation, effort, and attendance. Allowing grades to be summative of the classroom experience can create gray areas, we has teachers need to be conscious of the weight of each component of a student’s grade and be able to accurately express each outside of the narrow confines of a letter. Furthermore teachers need to communicate to their students what their answers to these questions are. Teachers should not stop there though, for them to expect success they must go beyond just explaining the standards, and as well supply the tools to attain them.

“One of the signs of a great intellect is the inclination to extend mercy to others, and all successful teachers are intellectual.” This quote from page 132 does well to sum up the purpose of chapters 9 & 10. It is hear Wormeli expresses the important role flexibility and understanding play in the grading process. Chapter 10, Conditions for Redoing Work for Full Credit, does well to explain the surrounding factors of allowing students to resubmit work, as well as offers tips on ensuring a healthy use of it for both student and teacher. I must say that at the beginning of my education studies I would have sworn to never implement such a practice, seeing it as counterproductive to molding healthy habits. However as my college journey has unfolded I have become more aware and appreciative of professors who take into account individual learning processes. Both of these chapters have really made me question what “type” of teacher I am going to be. While my personal philosophy is far from being cemented these readings have really introduced me to practices I could implement to better reach my goals when I finally do outline them. 

Chapter 10: MI Theory and Assessment

Written testing in all its forms has been the go-to tool for assessment in our education system for quite a period. Not till quite recently have we become aware of how our nations reliance on test taking has limited the ability generations of students have had to express their knowledge of content. While students grasp the ideas, their test scores reflect otherwise. This creates frustration and confusion for students whose continued interactions with tests is a reflection of incompetence.

Chapter 10 of Multiple Intelligences acts as the answer to this debacle. The core of MI theory and assessment is that it allows students to communicate their knowledge of a topic without the hindrance of factors which might interfere with them doing so. For instance a student who has limited writing skills might fully understand the effects the Enlightenment Era had on the start of the French Revolution; however if I ask them to write me an essay on the topic, their lack of writing ability could influence me to conclude that they don’t understand the connection between the two. They would in fact know the content but their grade would reflect otherwise – Fail. Rather I should allow the student use whatever intelligence they are most capable of using to express themselves, in this instance if that intelligence is verbal I shall allow for a verbal recitation of the information. In essence the end goal is to show evidence of mastery no matter the platform.

MI theory is a two-fold process, half instruction, and half assessment. When MI theory is done right the two work in harmony. By incorporating each of the eight intelligences into your curriculum, you in-turn incorporate assignments that allow for reflection of learning in that style. In addition this process requires the assigning of a handful of projects, giving the teacher numerous opportunities to assess learning and better evaluate. As noted in the chapter, it is equally as important for there to be variation in the mediums we asses for evidence of learning. In a classroom where MI theory is successfully implemented evidence of learning should be expressed through the use of pictures, videos, audio, and written notations to name some of the more accessible options; each gives a broader view of a particular ability within an intelligence.

Lastly, the topic of portfolios arises and again I am reassured of their importance in the classroom. I especially enjoyed the inclusion of The Five C’s of Portfolio Development (celebration, cognition, communication, cooperation, and competency); their guidelines help to clearly define purpose, which allows for a better-directed and complete portfolio.

Chapter 6: Creating Good Test Questions

“Test.” The word has come to personify what is wrong with our education system, its link to short term memorization, student anxiety, and an often invalid reflection of learning, has left a bad taste in many mouths. The fact that testing has become synonymous with No Child Left Behind has not helped its cause. I must admit that prior to reading this chapter I had been fully convinced by the propaganda against tests. The unit that I have developed is completely void of any form of test; this is especially significant considering as a student I prefer test taking to any other mode of assessment, give me those short answer/multiple choice/true or false questions all day long. In my pursuit to make sure that my classroom is inclusive to all types of learners, not just those similar to me, I have overcompensated and limited the opportunities for those students like myself.

Chapter Six of Fair Isn’t Always Equal reads as a great How-To on test creation, refocusing the view on tests while incorporating clever tricks of the trade.  One of my favorite recommendations being to include student’s names and hypothetical situations that include their interests or real life facts. I think this is a clever idea to add much need humor and interest. While reading this chapter however I was not thinking about how I might use these skills and hints so much as how I am now more likely to never write my own test and rather follow in the steps of my in-field mentor. My first week in the placement I had a conversation with my mentor in which he detailed his process for incorporating tests into his unit, one which involves having the students create the questions. After writing numerous tests himself he was astonished at the time it took and amount of content review it entailed. Noting the rich process, he turned the test production over to the students. He noted that the students thought he was insane at first but the end product offered a much better opportunity to assess knowledge opposed to that of just an exam.

There is a bigger picture to be found in this chapter, much more than just cleaver tricks for formatting true or false questions, rather this chapter brings light to the fact that we as teachers need to adjust our intentions when creating a test. Historically the aim has been to trick or confuse the student, the thought being the more confusing the question the higher level of thinking it requires. In reality the more confusing the question the less accurate it is at reflecting knowledge of its answer. As teachers we need to be creating tests that work to help the students succeed, such tests are: short, formatted for efficient grading, tiered, and state questions that are simply worded while still being authentic to instruction. Much like with rubrics, test creating is an art, some are better than others but there is no perfect test, you should however be constantly refining yours to get it to that point.

Chapter 5: Tiering Assessments

 Tiering, the act of supplying tasks that meet a common goal but in a range of complexity, addresses the reality of variation in student ability within a class. The broad reaching’s of tiering allow for a teacher to implement its practice to meet the needs of both struggling learners as well as those deemed gifted and talented. Due to this, tiering in the classroom allows for a teacher to fully challenge all students to the point of successful growth, limiting the possibilities for stagnation, frustration, or boredom to occur. In Chapter 5 of Fair Isn’t Always Equal, author Rick Wormeli is insistent to point out that the base level of tiering should always be to express proficiency with the standard, stating that otherwise “we tend to distort our expectations for the on-grade-level performance, losing site of the learning outcomes or benchmarks.” How tiering takes place and to what amount is at full disclosure to the teacher. A great example of its implementation in the classroom, and one that I am sure to incorporate into my lessons plans involves the use of RAFT. Tiering can easily be managed using RAFT formatted assignments, each category allowing you to easily increase complexity by altering a single variable. Additionally the multiple pairing of options within the RAFT format allows for subtle increases in difficulty creating multiple tiers within one assignment.


While reading this chapter I reflected on the classes I work with during my in-field experience, as I look back on the assignments for each of these classes I can recall no examples of tiering or variation of any sort with each assignment. I found this rather curious knowing the youth of my mentor and his constant new-age approach to teaching. I stepped back to look at the big picture and in doing so found the glitch. Tracking. Tiering and tracking serve to meet the same goals, the scale in which they do varying. At Mt. B, where I teach, the school’s courses are heavily tracked; U.S. History is offered in 4+ class variations. My mentor does not need to implement tiering because his classes are already highly segregated by ability. As a future teacher I wonder if the school I work at will rely on tracking or if one day I might need to incorporate these methods into my lesson plans.