Invetory Results and Reflections

Today I took two test that helped me gain a better perspective on my personality. Both test measured various aspects of what makes me, me. The first test was a Multiple Intelligence Test which was developed by Howard Gardner under the influence that everyone is good at something. This test presents your results as a number laid out over eight categories. Those eight categories are linguistic, mathematics, visual/spatial, body/inesthetic, naturalistic, music, interpersonal, and entrapersonal. I scored highest in interpersonal, followed by two way tie for second with body/kinesthetic and naturalistic. Third place was visual/spatial and fourth was mathematics, both followed by intrapersonal, linguistic, and music. The Multiple Intelligence Test confirmed my perfectionist personality with a hint of outgoingness. I would not consider my self to be a naturalist-meaning I like outdoors-but according to the test I apparently do. Interesting.

The second test was a Paragon Learning Styles Inventory and basically is an elaboration of the Mutiple Intelligence Test but in a more of a situation responsive way. On this test I answered a serious of question with either a letter A or B and then tallied the total number of each to obtain a four letter learning style type. After adding the letters up, I am considered an E.S.T.E (extrovert, sensate, thinker, and judger). This test was interesting and pretty much reiterated what the Mutiple Intelligence Test confirmed about my personality.

Taking both of these test or invetories help me understand myself better so that when it comes to teaching I can understand how my students will interact with myself. I believe that the way I learn is the way I will tend to teach and the better I understand my self and learning type, the better I will be able to teach students.

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Comment by Dave Eveland on January 25, 2009 at 2:50pm: Hit the nail right on the head.

I never would have imagined that when I was learning as a grade school student that I learned differently than others did in the classroom. Now did I know that the rest of my classmates didn't look precisely like me? Sure I did, but it never entered into my mind - until late middle school that how I learned was a factor in deciding my learning success or failure.

I remember relaying to my mom that I simply could not focus on homework, when doing it in my bed room - I didn't go to my bed room to do homework - my bedroom was where I'd always gone to either play or sleep. I had on the other hand seen my Dad do work at the dining room table from time to time, and it was there that I too attempted to do my work - only to be told countless times by my mom that, "the dining room table was no place for homework, and I made a mess of the table as it was (I have to be able to spread my work out). So I was relegated back to my bedroom.

How we're intelligent (not, "Are we?") is the question that begs asking, and as teachers it's the question we should ask ourselves of each student who we have opportunity to teach. It's the same question I wonder about each of you. Once I've got that 'figured out', all I have to do is design and plan learning experiences that address each and every one of your learning styles simultaneously. I'm sure that will be easy.