Not to start a big to-do, but does Gardner make a distinction between "intelligence" (in the case of kinesthetic, say) and what we might normally just consider skill/ability?
Guess I'm wondering if he's redefining ideas he thinks we've misunderstood, or if these intelligences measure something entirely different. I studied this some time ago, but I've since forgotten.
Well, isn't it really all skills and abilities? When a child takes a WISC, a FSIQ is generated, which is a way of saying that the child may have strengths and/or weaknesses regarding different cognitive abilities. The developers of the WISC call the integration of 5 separate cognitive skills/abilities (Verbal comprehension, working memory, fluid reasoning, visual spatial, and processing speed) "intelligence." In a report, an evaluator may simply say, "Child X exhibits strengths in specific domains of cognitive ability, such as processing speed and working memory." It really all comes down to an individuals cognitive skills/abilities.
Gardner's main point was to challenge the traditional notion of intelligence, based on I.Q. He thought that there were other forms of learning and that children learn in multiple ways and that schools should cater to different learning styles.
I am not too sure if I answered your question. I don't think any IQ test makes a distinction between "intelligence" vs. "skills/ability." If you have strong processing speed, working memory, verbal comprehension, visual spatial, and fluid reasoning skills/abilities, then you will most likely have a high IQ. Its not like someone will say, "That person has a high IQ, which is separate from their skills or abilities." If you have high cognitive skills and abilities regarding X, you have a high IQ. They aren't "separate." So, I guess the question is: Is Gardner proposing that the combination of all 8 abilities makes up a person's IQ? Or, are they just separate, distinct abilities?
Further, we would also need to determine is if these 8 domains of "intelligence" could be improved upon. Take the WISC and its 5 cognitive indexes. These indexes are quite stable over time and do not show much variation--we know that a person's IQ is pretty much stable over time. Regarding Gardner's Theory, can some of these abilities be drastically improved upon? Could the Interpersonal Domain be drastically improved upon, i.e., can someone learn how to have great interpersonal skills? I suspect that answering this question would help determine if Gardner's theory was more intelligence based or ability based?
From a website:
The term IQ, or Intelligence Quotient, generally describes a score on a test that rates your cognitive ability as compared to the general population. IQ tests are designed to measure your general ability to solve problems and understand concepts