Intellegence as an instructor is not a measure of how well a student can do on an exam but how that student can use the information they obtained - how can they put the new information into use in the real world and are they open to new avenues related to that new knowledge
Robert,
Yes, that makes a lot of sense. Thank you for sharing your insights. Good post.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
Ann,
I have never really thought about it from the vet tech perspective, before. As I reflect on your example, I find this applies to many professions. Thank you for sharing. Good post.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
In Graphic Design, it is multi-faceted. You have to understand spatial relationships of Type and images - the two components of Design. You have to have organizational skills to lead the viewer through the design in the way that you want them to. You also have to have interpersonal intelligence to understand how a society or culture thinks to ensure that you are getting your point across in your design of an advertisement, brochure or even a package design.
I teach veterinary technician students, and this field demands a variety of intelligences- emotional intelligence because we work with clients who are often upset/frightened/confused about thier pets, physical/kinetic intelligence that allows for good hand skills (taking blood, making slides, etc), academic knowledge of disease processes, anatomy & physiology, pharmacology, etc and creative knowledge (how do I get this big dog up? How can I get this angry cat out of the carrier w/o being eaten?). So an 'intelligent' vet tech must posess multiple intelligences.
Linda,
Yes, this something many instructors see.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
I definetly find this to be true. There are some students who can read a book and memorize information for an exam but fall short of the ability to translate their book knowledge to hands-on skills while working in the laboratory setting.
Mazen,
Yes, avoiding groupthink by making sure to include as many intelligences as possible toward complex decisions is a good rule of thumb. Also, making decisions by "committee" can make the process much more interested. ;-]
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
In business, practitioners will talk about the virtues of satisficing versus optimizing when decision making. It seems that in group decision making, for example, more diversity of viewpoints fosters much better decisions. And it may be that the very best input/ideas came from those with those other six intelligences, rather than simply the math and verbal intelligences, which also may be the best way to avoid groupthink.
Donna,
Well stated. It is critical to apply the learning to the 'impact zone.'
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
I teach medical assistants in a career college. I find many of the students can talk about what they have read or practice hands on, but can not apply the knowledge to a "real" setting or situation.
Intelligence is not a number like 4.0 average, but the use of "common sense", learn from others, reason yourself through a situation, and as my students hate to hear "your answer is good", but take it a step further".
Ellen,
I never thought of it that way, but since you mention it, it sounds a little like the librarian plays the role of a "search engine" in the library like Google, Yahoo or Bing on the Web. This is an excellent description. Thanks.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
I always think of a librarian as having similar intelligence and skills to an investigator. A "CSI investigator" of information.... One aspect of librarianship involves finding information. However,successfully locating the information involves constantly thinking and formulating different search strategies and finding different solutions to locate and access information or meet research needs. Abstract thought, developing meaningful relationships between terms and ideas, evaluating the information and then assisting the student with creating a project or research that develops their critical thinking skills all define a librarian.
William,
Producing the contingencies you identified is often difficult for the inexperienced. This is an excellent exercise and requires thorough and specific feedback to eliminate incorrect assumptions student part. Again, this is a terrific approach.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
In the business/management career field, it is the abiity to criticaly look at all aspects of a situation (environmental scanning) and to develop appropriate alternatives and to select the best one--Plan A; although Plan B needs to be ready as well.
William,
The multiple intelligences of Howard Gardner in the eighties agree with you. Good post.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
Having the ability to analyze,understand, assess, and evaluate effectively problems, life situations, and decisions.
Leslie ,
These are excellent points of information. Many positions within the healthcare field require both high-level technical skills and good interpersonal skills. The combination of these two intelligences is not found in everyone.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
In the medical field, sometimes students are very "book smart" but fail miserably in the clinical setting. It seems all of the "book smarts" in the world do not matter if you do not have common sense. They also need to be strong on the emotional intelligence when dealing with patients and peers in a collaborative team environment.
Leslie Morgan
Michael,
It seems you are confirming the "multiple intelligences" approach. I am not very knowledgeable about the massage field but I do understand that tactile knowledge about kinesiology is different than a cognitive knowledge. Very good point. Thank you for your contribution.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
