Can you recall a teacher that made learning feel fun and engaging?
How did they present information and how did you interact with the new material? Perhaps you’ve had an instructor that shared content through a visual graphic, 3-D model, audio recording, or asked students to act out a process. Or, perhaps your early education years reflected the majority of American public schools, heavily favoring individuals with strong reading and writing skills, while emphasizing linguistic intelligence. While the American education system and workforce cater to auditory and visual learners, the multiple intelligence framework suggests that individuals possess a variety of valuable cognitive strengths. When properly acknowledged and understood, individuals with a myriad of learning styles can contribute to high performing teams, and spur economic growth.
The Theory of Multiple Intelligences
As an apprenticeship intermediary, Apprenti promotes career advancement in tech and economic mobility through the pathway of registered apprenticeship. Apprenti’s foundation, built on the understanding that a four-year degree is not the best option for all and does not always produce the skilled talent our nation needs, established itself as a leader in non-traditional workforce development across the tech industry. In the same manner at which Apprenti challenges industry to ‘think outside the box,’ the organization also encourages managers and mentors to spur innovation when instructing their apprentices through multi-modal learning. This article outlines the framework for multiple intelligences and explores how managers can adapt communication styles and work plans to support their apprentice(s) and team(s). The piece will equip readers with practical methods to incorporate into the workplace.
The theory of multiple intelligences, proposed by Howard Gardner in his 1983 book Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, states that there is no one ‘best way’ to assess an individual’s knowledge. He believed that intelligence was not directly related to the amount of information an individual could retain over a finite period of time. Gardner argued that eight types of intelligence meant it would be impossible to design a single test to accurately measure one’s intelligence. The categories Gardner used to break down human intelligence include linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist.
Educators were quick to validate Gardner’s research as they had first hand experience instructing a large volume of children with an array of learning challenges and preferences. Teachers applied Gardner’s principles in the education setting and created a model called Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This framework acknowledges that students engage with content differently, and, as a result, educators need to provide instruction through multiple modalities. The UDL framework has three components:
- Engagement: This is the “why” of learning. Providing multiple options for engaging with content can help stimulate student interest and motivation.
- Representation: This is the “what” of learning. Providing multiple options for perceiving information.
- Action & Expression: This is the “how of learning”. Providing multiple options for students to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding.
Ultimately, implementing the principles of UDL into lesson plans helps students access more aspects of their neural pathways, and, in turn, empowering them as active learners.
While apprenticeship is not a traditional education model, fast paced learning is a core component. Apprenticeships create opportunities for individuals to learn a specific occupation through both technical training and experiential learning on the job. This hands-on style of learning can be beneficial for many people who are looking to shift careers. In this article we will explore the ways that managers and mentors can integrate different teaching styles to support apprentices on their team, including apprentices with disabilities.
Importance of Explicit Communication & Expectations
In addition to adapting instruction, it’s important for all managers and mentors to maintain strong lines of communication with their apprentices. Considering the apprentice is rapidly learning skills to support their new role in, what is likely, a new industry, managers should expect to take time to define terms and processes that may feel ‘second nature’ to them and other experienced members of the team. Remember, repetition is a key part of learning. It usually takes repeating information 5-7 times before a strong neural pathway is formed and the individual feels confident interacting with the material. Spaced learning is another learning technique that can increase long term memory and abstract thinking. By breaking up learning into multiple sessions spaced out over time, the apprentice is able to build on prior knowledge and review material.
In addition to relying on consistent communication, it can be beneficial for managers to be highly intentional and explicit with instructions. For example, if a manager says, “Take a look at this document and we will circle back. I want your thoughts” it leaves the apprentice with a vague understanding of what to focus on and what ‘done’ entails.
Based on these instructions, an apprentice may wonder, “What am I reading this document for? Fact checking? Am I providing my thoughts via email? Slack? Comments in the document? Sharing them in a meeting?”
While the manager perceived their instructions to be “simple” it may have the opposite effect and leave the apprentice confused about where to start. Appropriate language for the manager’s instructions above could be, “Please review the attached document for accuracy. The next step is for our marketing team to transform content into a flyer and we can’t make additional edits. Email any revisions by EOW.” Therefore, we encourage managers to be reflective about word selection and include the 7 Cs of communication when possible.
In efforts to help managers grasp the practical implications of multiple intelligences, we outlined how an ITSP apprentice could engage with their manager and content through the seven categories of intelligence.
