Smartboards in the Classroom

Keynote Speaker

Sir Ken Robinson, Ph.D

Sir Ken Robinson, Ph.D is an internationally recognized leader in the development of creativity, innovation and human resources and a New York Times Best-selling author. He works with governments in Europe, Asia and the USA, with international agencies, Fortune 500 companies, and some of the world’s leading cultural organizations. In 1998, he led a national commission on creativity, education and the economy for the UK Government.   All Our Futures: Creativity, Culture and Education? (The Robinson Report) was published to wide acclaim in 1999.   He was been honored with the Athena Award of the Rhode Island School of Design for services to the arts and education; the Peabody Medal for contributions to the arts and culture in the United States, and the Benjamin Franklin Medal of the Royal Society of Arts for outstanding contributions to cultural relations between the United Kingdom and the United States. In 2005 he was named as one of Time/Fortune/CNN’s Principal Voices. In 2003, he received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II for his services to the arts and education. He speaks to audiences throughout the world on the creative challenges facing business and education in the new global economies.

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If you read those two sentences carefully, you'll notice that Sir Ken Robinson has created a very interesting dichotomy between these two simple sentences in his book, The Element.  The first sentence, HOW are you intelligent?,  assumes that there is a measurable way you can determine your intelligence on a scale -- say from 1 to 10.  Most people tend to put themselves somewhere on the bell curve with the majority in the middle, says Sir Ken.

The second sentence, How ARE you intelligent?, is the really interesting one to me, because it assumes you are already intelligent, just in a very special way. "In what way are you intelligent?" not "How much did you score on an intelligence test?"    We've research Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences, explored Wiggins & McTighe's "Understanding by Design" and studied Carol Ann Tomlinson's thoughts on Differentiated Instruction.  Here's another theorist to consider as we educators, read, think and reflect on ways to reach our diverse learners.

Sir Ken Robinson discusses Robert Sternberg, Professor of Psychology at Tufts University and past president of the American Psychological Association - Three Types of Intelligence:

Analytic Intelligence: the ability to solve problems using academic skills and to complete conventional IQ tests;

Creative Intelligence: the ability to  deal with novel situations and to come up with original solutions;

Practical Intelligence: the ability to deal with problems and challenges in everyday life.

How many of us have know truly incredibly analytical people who simply can't function in the ordinary day-to-day aspects of life?   Or that most amazing lady down the street who manages an entire household of diverse people of all ages, keeping everyone functioning and focused with the ease of a juggler keeping 12 balls in the air at the same time? 

As educators, we need to appreciate and nuture the diversity, creativity and intelligence of our students.  The Element is another wonderful source upon which to reflect.

Make the time to think and reflect of this wonderful book.  And, of course, add your comments below. 

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