To define intelligence we must first consider the theories and the research done by the individuals who proposed the theories. We have already examined three prominent ones. In addition, the word itself should be analyzed. The root of the word intelligence is intellegere, Latin for “to understand.” Intelligence implies a general mental capacity that varies from person to person and fluctuates over a lifespan. Different individuals have particular propensities or deficits in the areas of reasoning, planning, problem solving, comprehending abstract ideas, and learning from experience. Innate abilities or disabilities in these areas, however, should never be seen as permanent or unmodifiable. All learners can improve their ability to recognize connections as well as develop the capacity to think strategically, thereby laying the groundwork for new knowledge.
Clearly, individuals vary in their ability to understand complex ideas, to adapt effectively to their environments, to engage in different kinds of reasoning, and to overcome obstacles by creative thought. In addition, a given individual’s intellectual performance will vary greatly on any given day and when judged by different criteria. Here is one simple definition that incorporates many of the qualities mentioned:
Intelligence is the ability to recognize and make connections.
This simple definition is extremely relevant to us as we explore learning how to learn in a classroom setting. It may even represent a benchmark for you and your students. How well do you recognize and make connections? Can you teach this skill to your students to enhance their intellectual competency?
Intellectual Potential?
If you ever took an IQ test, you were placed in a category that perhaps “boxed you in” for life. You may have believed that your intellectual potential was measured, when actually your score was merely a predictor of how well you would do in school. The inventors of IQ tests reportedly never believed they were measuring fixed intelligence, yet in practice many educators have translated the scores into biological realities that can never change. Binet, the author of one of the first intelligence tests, is reported to have said, “If it were not possible to change intelligence, why measure it in the first place?” (cited in Campioni, 1989, p. 155).
For example, one look at a child with Down’s syndrome assures many that any attempt to improve on this child’s intellectual functioning would be futile. Yet how many enlightened teachers would declare, “Chromosomes do not have the last word” (Feuerstein, 2006). Many children who have Down’s syndrome today are achieving far more than anyone believed they could fifty years ago. Perhaps the most important quality of intelligence that Feuerstein’s mosaic theory presents is modifiability—that is, the belief that intelligence is not constant or static, but wonderfully open to constructive change for all learners throughout a lifetime.
Mediated Learning
As we enter the arena of intellectual dynamic unpredictability, or the realization that learning is not a lockstep, highly predictable process, we learn to expect change in our students. Embracing the “mosaic model” means that the teacher should believe in the reversibility of poor academic performance, not doubt it. Intellectual skills can be developed by both teachers and students. However, such change does not happen by chance or without understanding the mediator’s role in the process.
The good news for teachers is that all minds can be stretched, inherent abilities unmasked, and thought processes developed—even our own! The secret lies in unwrapping the amazing concept of mediated learning. Mediated learning, in brief, relies on the guidance of an adult, whose role is to help interpret the complex world of input from the environment so that the child can focus, frame, and consider relationships. An extra bonus is that in the process of teaching a child to learn, the teacher too becomes better able to learn and think and make those all important connections. We will discuss mediated learning in more detail in the next chapter.
Clearly, individuals vary in their ability to understand complex ideas, to adapt effectively to their environments, to engage in different kinds of reasoning, and to overcome obstacles by creative thought. In addition, a given individual’s intellectual performance will vary greatly on any given day and when judged by different criteria. Here is one simple definition that incorporates many of the qualities mentioned:
Intelligence is the ability to recognize and make connections.
This simple definition is extremely relevant to us as we explore learning how to learn in a classroom setting. It may even represent a benchmark for you and your students. How well do you recognize and make connections? Can you teach this skill to your students to enhance their intellectual competency?
Intellectual Potential?
If you ever took an IQ test, you were placed in a category that perhaps “boxed you in” for life. You may have believed that your intellectual potential was measured, when actually your score was merely a predictor of how well you would do in school. The inventors of IQ tests reportedly never believed they were measuring fixed intelligence, yet in practice many educators have translated the scores into biological realities that can never change. Binet, the author of one of the first intelligence tests, is reported to have said, “If it were not possible to change intelligence, why measure it in the first place?” (cited in Campioni, 1989, p. 155).
For example, one look at a child with Down’s syndrome assures many that any attempt to improve on this child’s intellectual functioning would be futile. Yet how many enlightened teachers would declare, “Chromosomes do not have the last word” (Feuerstein, 2006). Many children who have Down’s syndrome today are achieving far more than anyone believed they could fifty years ago. Perhaps the most important quality of intelligence that Feuerstein’s mosaic theory presents is modifiability—that is, the belief that intelligence is not constant or static, but wonderfully open to constructive change for all learners throughout a lifetime.
Mediated Learning
As we enter the arena of intellectual dynamic unpredictability, or the realization that learning is not a lockstep, highly predictable process, we learn to expect change in our students. Embracing the “mosaic model” means that the teacher should believe in the reversibility of poor academic performance, not doubt it. Intellectual skills can be developed by both teachers and students. However, such change does not happen by chance or without understanding the mediator’s role in the process.
The good news for teachers is that all minds can be stretched, inherent abilities unmasked, and thought processes developed—even our own! The secret lies in unwrapping the amazing concept of mediated learning. Mediated learning, in brief, relies on the guidance of an adult, whose role is to help interpret the complex world of input from the environment so that the child can focus, frame, and consider relationships. An extra bonus is that in the process of teaching a child to learn, the teacher too becomes better able to learn and think and make those all important connections. We will discuss mediated learning in more detail in the next chapter.
