EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY Chapter 4: Individual Differences Robert J. Sternberg Wendy M. Williams Learning Goals 1. Discuss what intelligence is, how it is measured, theories of multiple intelligences, and some controversies and issues about its use by educators. 2. Describe learning and thinking styles. 3. Describe different approaches to understand creativity and wisdom. Individual differences in the classroom • Teachers need to be aware of individual differences in students’ cognitive, or thinking, styles and their learning styles. Individual students also display different levels of creativity. • A teacher’s challenge is to acknowledge the differences among children. What is Intelligence? Intelligence - capacity for goal –directed and adaptive behavior - Involves certain abilities : profit from experience, solve problems, and reason effectively. Psychometric Approaches to Intelligence ( the search for factors underlying intelligence) • Intelligence tests • General intelligence factor (g) • Primary mental abilities Binet Intelligence Tests A new type of test, developed by Alfred Binet in 1904 to screen French school children for potential academic problems. Mental Age: The average age of the children who achieve a certain level of performance Intelligence Quotient (IQ): A score designed to measure intelligence. Mental Age IQ=( Chronological Age ) x 100 Spearman and General Intelligence • Charles Spearman observed that people who are good at one type of thinking or cognition tend to do well in other types as well. • He came to believe that intelligence is composed of a general ability, or g factor, which underlies all intellectual functions. • There are also some other abilities ( specific factors or s factor) that are involved in performance on single type of mental ability. Spearman’s Theory of Intelligence • Spearman theorized that individuals differ in general intelligence (g). • To explain why correlations among tests are not perfect, he theorized that each test score is also affected by the specific ability being tested (s). Thurstone’s Primary Mental Abilities • Louis L. Thurstone rejected Spearman’s notion of a general intellectual ability. • Thurstone identified seven primary mental abilities: verbal comprehension, verbal fluency, inductive reasoning, numerical ability, spatial relations, perceptual speed, and memory. Hierarchical Models • An attempt to use both Spearman’s general factor theory and Thurstone’s theory of seven primary mental abilities. – Cattel and Horn suggested we can view (g) as the top of hierarchy with two major group factors: – Fluid intelligence – the ability to solve problems, figure out what to do when one is not sure what to do, and acquire new skills – Crystallized intelligence – the use of acquired skills and knowledge such as reading and language skills Biological Approaches to Intelligence • Neural Efficiency and Intelligence: several studies have suggested that the speed of conduction of neural impulses may correlate with intelligence as measured by IQ tests. Biological Approaches to Intelligence (Cont.) • Is there relationship between brain size and intelligence? - The evidence turned up so far suggests that for humans, the statistical relationship between these two parameters is modest but significant. However, how efficiently the brain is used is probably more important than its size. Cotemporary Systems Approach to Intelligence (More than one type?) • Multiple Intelligences Theory • The Triarchic theory of Human Intelligence Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences • Howard Gardner denies the existence of a g factor. • He proposes eight independent forms of intelligence, or frames of mind. Gardner’s Eight Frames of Mind Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2006 Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence • Triarchic theory of intelligence: Sternberg’s theory that there are three types of intelligence – componential (analytical), experiential (creative), and contextual (practical). • Sternberg claims that traditional IQ tests measure only componential, or analytical, intelligence. Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence Analytical abilities Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2006 Creative abilities Practical abilities What each component holds? Components of Analytical Subtheory Meta components Performance components Knowledge Acquisition components Higher-order processes: control, monitor, evaluate, analyze Basic operations: any cognitive processes : holding information, making calculations, etc Gaining and storing new knowledge Components of Creative Subtheory Insights, synthesis and the ability to react to novel situations and Novelty stimuli; reflects how an individual connects internal world to Automation external reality Components of Practical Subtheory Adaptation "Street-smarts": to meet your goals: adapt to, change the, move Selection to a new environment Shaping Includes emotional intelligence 18 Critique of Contemporary Theories • Lack of Empirical Testing of Gardner’s Theory • Broad Nature of the Triarchic Theories Current Educational Controversies in Intelligence • The Source of Intelligence -Inherited Versus Learned • Can Intelligence be Modified? • How do Teachers Deal with Varying Levels of Intelligence? The Source of Intelligence -Inherited Versus Learned • Heritability: a measure of the degree to which a characteristic is estimated to be influenced by heredity. • Heritability coefficient :a number on a 0 to 1 scale. 0 indicates heredity has no influence on variations among people; 1 means only heredity. • Nature-nurture controversy: the debate over whether intelligence and other traits are primarily the result of heredity (nature) or the environment (nurture). Nature's Influence on IQ Scores • The greater the genetic similarity between two individuals, the more similar are their IQ scores. – This suggests a genetic component to intelligence. Nurture's Influence on IQ Scores • All other things being equal, two individuals raised together will have more similar IQ scores than those raised apart. – This is evidence that the environment shapes intelligence in important ways. Can Intelligence be Modified? Intelligence: Fixed or Changeable? • None of us inherits a specific IQ score, instead our genes probably set the boundaries of a fairly wide range of possible performance levels, called the reaction range. • Our environments determine where we end up within that range. • IQ scores have been increasing roughly 9 points per generation( every 30 years).(The Flynn effect) Teaching Children of Various Levels: Ability Grouping • Within-Class Ability Grouping: Within-class ability grouping involves placing students in two or three groups within a class according to their ability or achievement. • Multi- age grouping: Classes include children of various ages ( Joplin Plan) . Between-Class Ability Grouping and Tracking Advantages Disadvantages • Narrows class skill range • Stigmatizes students in lower track • Prevents “less able” students from holding • May have lessback more talented experienced teachers, students fewer resources, and lower expectations • Segregates students by SES and ethnicity Cognitive styles and learning styles • What is a cognitive style? - an individual's preferred way of mentally processing information. • Two cognitive style dimensions: - Reflectivity and Impulsivity - Field-dependence and Field-independence Cognitive styles and learning styles • What is a learning style? - Students’ individual preferences or needs for different learning conditions. • Deep vs. Surface Learning Styles Deep Learners • Actively construct knowledge • Give meaning to material • Focus on internal rewards • Are self-motivated Surface Learners • Are passive learners • Fail to tie information to a larger framework • Focus on external rewards Understanding Individual Differences in Creativity • Creativity: the ability to produce work that is novel, high in quality, and gives appropriate ideas/solutions to problems. • Creativity - The Mystical Approach - The Psychometric Approach - Social-Psychological Approaches - A Confluence Approach Wisdom • Wisdom: the power of judging rightly and following the soundest course of action based on knowledge, experience, and understanding. • Sternberg on wisdom: it is the application of intelligence, creativity, and knowledge by positive ethical values.
