Merriam, S.B., Caffarella, R.S. & Baumgartner, L.M.

(2007) state that the use of MI theory has been much more limited in applications to situations of adult life (p.376). This is tragic since Gardners theory of multiple intelligences strays from asking how smart someone is, a question that is answered with limitations through a standardized IQ test, to how someone is smart. This alternative way of looking at intelligence can serve as a sense of empowerment for a student. Its not just a number that shows where a student may lie on a bell curve. Its a gentler way for someone to understand who he/she is, and for that person to realize that he/she has all eight of the intelligences, but he/she may prefer or be stronger in certain intelligences. Furthermore, this theory been shown to work in adult related programs, such as adult literacy (Viens & Kallenbach, 2004). As an educator, its clear that this theory could serve as a framework when designing curriculum but it could also be a starting point towards looking at the three types of minds an educator should try to inculcate in students. This focus on the types of minds to develop has an important component for the future. In his book, The Five Minds of the Future, Gardner (2006) states, the world of the future-with its ubiquitous search engines, robots, and other computational devices-will demand capacities that have until now been mere options (p.2). With these minds, a student should be prepared for what is ahead, without these minds, a person will be at the mercy of forces that he or she cannot understand, let alone control (Gardner, H. 2006 p.2). From a cognitive perspective three of these five minds are: the disciplined mind, the

synthesizing mind and the creative mind. These three minds work interactively and can be cultivated in the classroom. According to Gardner (2006), the disciplined mind, masters at least one way of thinking-a distinctive mode of cognition that characterizes a specific scholarly discipline, craft, or profession (p.2). This goes beyond mere subjectknowledge. Subject-knowledge is knowledge that can only be applied to a certain context, i.e. a standardized test. Its the type of instruction that is prevalent in schools across the country. Where I teach in South Korea, the students are routinely tested in a number of subjects through multiple choice exams or fill-in-the-blank essays. These exams take a whole week to complete and the students spend at least a month studying. The way they study is an example of studying for subject knowledge. Their drill method of rote memorization or writing out the facts that they want to memorize is a suitable technique for the type of assessment that they are studying for. However, when asked to apply the concepts and ideas into a new realm that has not been studied, something a disciplined mind would be skilled at, often these students cannot provide an answer. Having a disciplined mind is completely different from having a subjectknowledge mind. The disciplined mind is not only studying information but also connecting this information in a disciplined way according to the subject (Gardner, 2006). Its a mind that can use the logical, spatial, and possible interpersonal intelligences. For example, a disciplined mind in the sciences, observe the world; come up with tentative classifications; concepts and theories, design experiments in order to test these tentative theories; revise the

theories in light of the findings (Gardner, H. 2006 p. 27). Not only is this empirical method done repeatedly until a disciplined scientist comes up with a reasonable explanation for what he/she is observing, but I also see spatial intelligence being displayed through the observations made, logical intelligence through the creation of hypothesis as well as the design of the experiment. Moreover, through the report or presentation as well as the feedback that comes from the instructor regarding the students success or failure with the experiment, I also see a display of interpersonal intelligence. This form of educating is seen in other disciplines as well. Its the Socratic method one may see in a class at law school; its the case study analysis a business student does when asked to think abstractly; in my class it is the times when I constantly ask my students so what? This type of instruction is according to Gardner (2006), not an end in itself or as a stepping stone to more advanced types of information, but rather as a means to better-informed practice (p.30). Gardner (2006) believes that there are four steps for creating a more disciplined mind. These steps are useful tools for an educator that when combined with Gardners theory of multiple intelligences should provide a foundation that will help lead to the synthesis as well as the creative mind. The four steps are: 1. Identify important concepts within the discipline 2. Spend a significant amount of time on this topic 3. Approach the topic in a number of ways (this is an area where the use of MI theory should stand out)

4. Setup what Gardner (2006) calls performances of understanding (p.34) and give students enough opportunities to perform their understandings under a variety of conditions (p.34). This is similar to the projects that we have done so far under the AET program where our instructor has given us the option on how to present our ideas. Hopefully, by becoming disciplined, a student will create a desire to learn more as well as make the steady and progressive improvements that will lead to mastery of new skills and knowledge. Its important though to realize that having a disciplined mind is not just acquiring knowledge for its own sake (Gardner 2006). Rather, having a disciplined mind means obtaining knowledge because of the pleasure that results from a continued process of lifelong learning. Just having a disciplined mind, however, is not enough. Gardner (2006) states that, More and more knowledge now lies in the spaces in between, or the connections across, the several disciplines. In the future, individuals must learn how to synthesize knowledge and how to extend it in new and unfamiliar ways (p. 44). If one takes into account the fact that the information that we can obtain today is vast, comes from a multitude of sources and the amount of collected knowledge is doubling every two to three years, its evident that a synthesizing mind that uses multiple intelligences will be sought after in the 21st century (Gardner 2006). An effective approach towards developing a synthesis mind is to seek examples and find successful models of synthesis taking place. There are many examples of synthesis taking place across disciplines that also show different intelligences. For example, an educator can use narratives such as the Bible, or

taxonomies like a balance sheet or a scientific classification system to show how one can use their logical-mathematical and linguistic intelligences in order to make connections. There are also examples that teachers can use from complex concepts, rules, aphorisms, metaphors (something kids are great at but lessens as we get older), images and themes and other works of art (Gardner, H. 2006). The key idea is to show that synthesis has taken place throughout history and these examples could provide a springboard into discussing how to successfully synthesize. Just as there are four components towards a disciplined mind, Gardner (2006) also believes that there are four ways that leads towards a synthesis mind. These components are having a goal, creating a starting point, having a strategy and finally creating a draft and seeking feedback (Gardner, H. 2006). An educator can start a student off on their way towards synthesis by first asking what it is they want to achieve, i.e. what is their goal? Then, when the students goal is set, the next step would be to figure out where he will get the information (starting point), or whos previous work will the student take a look at. From this retrieval of information, the student can then decide what strategy he will use in order to create their synthesis. The student should decide which of the types of synthesis he would like to use, narrative, metaphors, images, etc. Finally, this information should be delivered as a first draft that welcomes feedback. This type of instruction seems to parallel the idea of creating a learning contract where the student details what will be learned, how and when the learning will occur and what criteria will be used to evaluate the learning (Galbraith, M.W. 2004 p. 290). Thus, it would be an advantageous method to use

for an adult educator since it takes a more student-centered approach with learning. Synthesis is possible, but difficult. Furthermore, it becomes problematic when the connections made are superficial or if the synthesis doesnt cross disciplines to become interdisciplinary (Gardner, H. 2006). Gardner (2006) states, In their English class, young persons may learn how to write effective prose, but if they fail transport at least part of those lessons across the hallway to history class or to biology lab assignments, then they have missed an opportunity to link compositional strategies (p.64). A way to address these issues is to find examples of what Gardner (2006) calls synthesizing nourishment (p.67). Synthesizing nourishment can be found in many areas. It can be found in mass media that has an integrating flavor. In my debate class, I often reference a popular You Tube channel called V-Sauce. This is a program that takes odd questions such as, Is your red the same as my red? and from there takes the viewer into discussions on how our brain perceives colors, to talking about the visible light spectrum, to other topics relating to how our brain sees things. A teacher can and should encourage a wide reading of books and celebrate when students through one of the synthesizing strategies make connections. Of course, an educator could always teach forms of synthesis as well as lead discussions on what strategies are used when synthesizing as well as what makes a good synthesis. Ultimately though, it should be clear to a student that some forms of synthesis will be easy, some will be hard, but the best forms of synthesis will have some form of creativity in them (Gardner 2006).

When I think of a creative mind, I like to remember when I was taking banjo lessons during college. After about a year of taking banjo lessons once a week for three hours, I was at the point where my instructor and I would trade solos on a song. I would kick off a song while he accompanied me and vice versa. The thing that I noticed was that my solos were very regimented and almost the same every time while my instructor would always play something completely different. He had this creative flare that I desired but that could only come from more knowledge of the instrument combined with taking risks. There has recently been an understanding that creativity does not just come from a lone individual, or a group, but comes from the interaction of three areas (Csikszentmihalyi, M. 1996, Gardner, H. 2006). These elements include: the individual who has mastered a skill and is still contributing to that practice, the cultural domain in which the individual is working, as well as those individuals and groups that provide access to education and opportunities (Csikszentmihalyi, M. 1996). This last element is vital since it is recognition from this group that deems the contributions provided by an individual or group as creative. Gardner (2006) uses Einstein as an example of the third element and how it changed Einsteins life. Gardner states, Working in relative isolation, an unknown patent officer named Albert Einstein, wrote a number of innovative papers. Until the merit of these papers had been recognized by editors and other knowledgeable colleagues, however, it was not possible to tell whether Einsteins work was simply atypical or truly important (p.81). Its clear that a creator needs a number of intelligences, skills and discipline (Gardner, H. 2006). J.J. Abrams, creator of the hit show LOST is not

only skilled in writing and directing, but he is also skilled in understanding the human condition. Part of the appeal of his shows is the fact that he knows that since we are naturally curious creatures, that we will always want to know whats going to happen next and we also want something, even if it may frustrate us to have to wait another week for a new episode, to question. This example of a creative mind at works shows someone who is willing to take their skills/disciplines that took years of cultivation into new directions with little fear of failure. To educate for the creative mind, it should start with first creating a disciplined mind since it does take time to effectively master disciplines, but also keep options open to students (Gardner, H. 2006). Its keeping the mind of a child alive while simultaneously having discipline. The way to do this is to continuously show the many different ways to come to the same solution. An example of this could be an exercise in an architecture class where the students are given the objective of creating a 3-meter structure that will support a stapler using paper, scissors, tape, glue and paper clips. Another thing an instructor could do is to use people who have modeled your ideas and showed creative ways of doing it as well as embrace abstract responses. Furthermore, assigning projects where there is a reasonable chance of success that includes constructive feedback help foster creativity (Gardner, H. 2006). The good news about creativity is that since mastery does take a long time, creativity can be enjoyed throughout our lives! Gardner gave us a new way of looking at intelligence that I feel truly shows how varied and how adaptable our brains are to different environments.

It helps answer the question of who you are cognitively, but the time is needed to address the question of how one can prepare their mind for the future. Gardner (2006) believes that these minds are likely to be crucial in a world marked by the hegemony of science and technology, global transmission of huge amounts of information, handling of routine tasks by computers and robots, and ever increasing contacts of all sorts from diverse populations (p.163). Cultivating these types of mind in the classroom is an enormous undertaking that an educator could take. However, one must always consider the types of benefits both inside and outside of the classroom these types of minds can create.

References:
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1996). Creativity: Flow and the psychology of discovery and invention. New York: HarperCollins Galbraith, M.W. (Ed.) (2004). Adult Learning Methods: A Guide for Effective Instruction (3rd Ed.).Robert E. Krieger Publishing Co.

Gardner, H. (2006). Five minds for the future. Harvard Business School Press. Merriam, S.B., Caffarella, R.S. & Baumgartner, L.M. (2007). Learning in adulthood (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.