Good Teachers

Over 30 years have passed since Howard Gardner first proposed his “Multiple Intelligences” theory. Rather than viewing intelligence as lying on a one-dimensional spectrum, Gardner asserted that intelligence is not one unified characteristic. Instead, there are eight or so (some are still being debated to this day) types of intelligence. Any given person can be strong in one intelligence area while being weak in another. The uniqueness of each learner stems in part from the individual’s balance and combination of intelligences.

The battle to incorporate this ideology into mainstream education is very much ongoing. Some teachers & schools still refer to their students as “strong/weak” or “smart/slow,” while others maintain that those categories are inaccurate and outdated. Between high-stakes testing, curriculum standards, and differing pedagogical philosophies, schools vary greatly in how they address this theory in their approach to students.

These debates about understanding students are interesting, but what about teachers? Considering the fact that Gardner’s theory applies to adults as much as children, how often do we hear or speak about teachers’ intelligences? Do our schools carry a balance of teachers who are strong in the different intelligences? Do we build jobs that lend themselves to different types of educators? Do we vary our training, professional development, and evaluation systems as a response to this new reality?

And then, maybe the toughest question of all:
What does it mean to be a good teacher?