GT Course

INTELLIGENCE Lesson Four

This lesson is about "Intelligence":

Answer yourself the following questions:

What is Intelligence?
How is is measured?

What is “The Theory of Multiple Intelligences”? (Howard Gardner)
What kinds of "intelligences" do schools teach to? What about the rest?

What does "intelligence " have to do with "giftedness"?
How reliable is it as a measure for giftedness?
With what kinds of intelligence tests are you familiar?
Have you ever had an intelligence test administered to yourself? Were you satisfied with the results? Haw did it make you feel?

There are on-line intelligence tests a person can take.

MSAD 48 does not rely on Intelligence alone as a measure of “Giftedness. The reasons for that include
1. Intelligence test results vary plus or minus 10 points each time they are taken. Where do you cut off a score and label the child “Gifted” or “not Gifted”?
2. Intelligence tests don’t measure attitude and drive to succeed and other behavioral factors fundamental to “Giftedness”.
3. intelligence drives the bus, but Motivation is the gas and Creativity tells the driver where to go.

The district prefers to use a triad, using three criteria:
Intelligence
Creativity
Motivation

(Future lessons will deal with Creativity and Motivation.)

In measuring aptitude for success in any GT Program, the use of an intelligence test can verify a child’s capability to function at a level beyond that of his or her peers. Normally the child in a gifted program is two developmental years ahead of peers.

The state requires us to have at least three ways to screen all students for “giftedness”:
A nationally normed test of intelligence, aptitude or achievement and at least two other forms, such as Teacher recommendations based on the characteristics of gifted learners, peer nominations, parent and teacher recommendations, self-nomination, etc.

Have you checked out the district website on Gifted and Talented lately? Read “Screening and Identification” on the web site.

When we need an IQ test score we use an easy to administer and score test called the “K-Bit”, a short form of intelligence test which tests knowledge of language and problem-solving skills based on complex design interpretation. It generally scores lower than other IQ tests, but since we have administered it to so many other students, we can reliably measure a student in terms of his peers who have taken the test. If you would like to take this test yourself, I would be glad to give it to you. It takes about 20 minutes, and anyone can be taught to administer and score it, as opposed to other IQ tests which require long training.
Your assignment:

Select at least one of the following activities to research and write about:

1. Refresh your knowledge of “Intelligence” by reading up on IQ tests or asking one of the school psychological testers to explain the differences in the kinds of tests for IQ.
2. Look at the district website re Screening and Identification to become more familiar with the screening criteria.
3. Take an online IQ test or ask me to give you the K Bit test and report how knowing the results made you feel. (Is your IQ higher or lower than you thought it was? Is that good or bad? should a student know his IQ score?
4. Howard Gardner has written extensively on Multiple Intelligences. You must have read some of his articles or books. If not, let me know and I can get you a handout.
5. Take the accompanying Multiple Intelligences Questionnaire, called “My Self Portrait”, which we give to students screened into the program. It is a tool we use to get to know more about their learning styles and interests. You can fill it out and score yourself to see where your greater interests are.

MY SELF-PORTRAIT

Name___________________________Date____________________

Indicate the degree to which each statement below describes you using the following scale:

O or N/A= never/does not apply to me
1=only once in a great while
2=sometimes
3= often
4=all the time

____I read lots of books for pleasure.
____I write poetry and prose in my spare time.
____I amaze my family and friends by recalling names, dates and places.
____I entertain others with my stories.
____I love listening to others talk and read.
____I can persuade others to consider my point of view.
____I figure out how I feel about things by talking about it.
_________
Verbal-Linguistic Total (of 28)


____I easily do math problems in my head.
____I like solving brain teasers.
____I reason things out logically.
____I can make my allowance last the week.
____I love reading about science and math concepts.
____I love playing chess, checkers, and other board games.
____I like using the computer at school and at home.
_________
Logical-Mathematical Total (of 28)


____I follow maps and don’t get lost.
____I draw pictures of people and scenes accurately.
____I can find our car in a crowded lot.
____I see pictures in my mind in great detail.
____I like studying art in lots of forms.
____I understand machines and how they work.
____I am acutely sensitive to color and texture.
_________
Visual-Spatial Total (of 28)

____I love to dance and learn new dances.
____I play sports.
____I look forward to exercising every day.
____I use gestures and movement when I speak.
____I prefer “messy” activities like cooking, yard work, and bike repair.
____I have good coordination.
____I sometimes sense an answer to a problem without knowing just how I got the answer.
_________
Body-Kinesthetic Total (of 28)


____I love to sing.
____I play musical instruments.
____I tap out rhythms, even when I’m not listening to music.
____I hum or whistle while I work.
____I remember the lyrics to songs.
____I need to listen to music every day.
____I am sensitive to any sort of background noise.
_________
Musical-Rhythmic Total (of 28)


____I am often asked to lead the group.
____I have a great time at parties and other social events.
____I enjoy giving advice to others.
____I am good at solving other peoples’ problems.
____I pick up on other peoples’ moods.
____I have lots of friends.
____I treasure close connections with family and friends.
_________
Interpersonal Total (of 28)

____I spend lots of time on my own interests.
____I often think about starting a business of my own some day.
____I need to find time to go off alone to think and reflect.
____I have a sense of my life very clearly.
____I examine my own feelings and motives.
____I crave “down time”.
____I listen to my own heart and mind.
_________
Intrapersonal Total (of 28)





____I spend lots of time outdoors.
____I often think about what I can do to improve the world.
____I feel most comfortable when hiking or biking through the woods.
____I have a sense of the inner life of animals.
____I like to see things grow and change with the seasons.
____I am truly alive in science class.
____I seek balance in the world.
_________
Naturalist Total (of 28)



____I often think about what my life will be like in the future.
____I enjoy planning for something I desire.
____I need to know that things will come out all right in the end.
____I can wait my turn in line without fidgeting.
____I can put aside my work when my teacher tells me it is time to go on.
____I save my money to buy the things I want.
____I use my strong sense of what’s right to help me make wise decisions.
_________
Futurist Total (of 28)


____I spend at least an hour each day playing video games
____I use a word processor to do my homework
____I collect DVD’s
____I have chat friends on line
____I do most of my school research on the net
____I utilize computer sound and graphics programs easily
____I read high tech magazines for more information on technology

________
Technology Total (of 28)

SCORES:

24-28= High Preference Levels 15-23= Moderate Preference Levels
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__________________________ _______________Revised 2-13-04