Yong Lee Min and Suriani
Othman
West View Primary School
Singapore
Paper presented
at the ERAS Conference 2011
Singapore
(3498 words)
ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT
This paper documents the journey which West View Primary
School (WVPS) went through in the teaching of Mathematics using Multiple
Intelligences (MI). The ideation and evaluation processes led to an innovative
prototype which not only met the learning needs of pupils but also served as a
tool for the capacity-building of teachers. The prototype was trialled on
Primary 4 pupils in 2008, and implemented to Primary 1 to Primary 6 by 2010. As
part of our school’s TLLM Ignite1 project
in 2008, we have carried out an action research on a study that investigates
how the incorporation of teacher-developed activities based on the theory of MI
impacts pupils’ engagement, motivation, attitude and achievement in the
learning of Mathematics.
A total of 140 low and average-ability Primary 4 pupils
and three teachers were involved in this project. Post-intervention data
indicated improved attitude and an increase in pupil’s motivation and
engagement. Pupils taught through MI also produced higher achievement scores in
their post-intervention tests. Teachers have also gained professionally from
this project. The success of the project led to a refinement of the prototype
and an emergent model for MI-based lessons in the teaching of Mathematics in
WVPS.
TEACHING MATHEMATICS THROUGH
MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES
INTRODUCTION
Mathematics has always been an unpopular subject amongst
the majority of pupils in the school. Pupils tend to dislike Mathematics as
they are not able to achieve their desired academic scores. Some pupils even
develop fear and anxiety in the subject. Through
the TLLM Ignite1 project, the school
hopes to develop in pupils a love for Mathematics. We believe that pupils have
different dominant intelligences, and they can be better engaged if we use
multiple bridges to reach out to them in the teaching of Mathematics.
According to the Singapore
Mathematics Syllabus for primary schools (MOE, 2007), “the primary aim of the
Mathematics curriculum is to enable students to develop their ability in
mathematical problem solving. The attainment of problem solving ability is
dependent on five interrelated components – Concepts, Skills, Processes, Attitudes
and Metacognition. Students’ attitudes towards Mathematics are shaped by their
learning experiences. Making the learning of Mathematics fun, meaningful and
relevant goes a long way in inculcating positive attitudes towards the
subject.” Hence, by addressing the attitudinal aspect in the learning of
Mathematics, through the teacher-developed activities based on the theory of
MI, pupils will be fully engaged in their learning, understand concepts better
and most importantly, enjoy the learning of Mathematics.
The traditional approach for learning in Mathematics
creates passive learners. In
order for pupils to take an active role in Mathematics, it is important to engage
the learners (Bednar, Coughlin, Evans, & Sievers, 2002). Engaged learning
is an active involvement in the learning process (Soh & Tan, 2008).
According to Fredricks, Blumenfeld and Paris (2004), “pupil engagement is a
multi-faceted construct that includes affective, behavioural and cognitive
dimensions”. All the three dimensions are interrelated and are equally
important in engaged learning. Teaching through MI is a great example of
strategies for engaged learning.
Howard Gardner (1991) believed in different learning
styles and identified eight intelligences. According to Gardner, all
individuals have a blend of the eight following intelligences:
- verbal-linguistic – the intelligence of words,
- logical-mathematical – the intelligence of numbers and reasoning,
- visual-spatial – the intelligence of pictures and images,
- musical-rhythmical – the intelligence of tone, rhythm and timbre,
- bodily-kinesthetic – the intelligence of the whole body and the hands,
- interpersonal – the intelligence of social interactions,
- intrapersonal –the intelligence of self-knowledge and
- naturalistic – the intelligence of the world and nature around us.
Chapman (1993) stated that each person is born with all
eight intelligences, but because of cultural differences some intelligences
develop more than others do.
Gardner (1993) stated that an instructional technique
that is heavily reliant on one of the intelligences minimizes opportunities for
pupils who may not possess a propensity to learn in this way. These
students, who may not achieve in the traditional way, may become lost to both
the school and the community at large. Creating opportunities for all pupils,
by enriching the classroom through MI, develops pupils and brings out their
strengths.
Gardner (1999) suggested there are many ways to motivate
children, depending on how they learn. More meaningful material can spark
pupils’ natural curiosity about the world around them. In order to arouse
curiosity, Robinson, Silver and Strong (1995) suggested that two things need to
be accomplished: make learning a mystery to be solved by the pupils, and have
content related to their lives. Pupils become bored if a teacher becomes
apathetic with the subject matter, when pupils receive work that is not
meaningful to them, or if curriculum lacks variety. The intention to use MI is
to use more ways rather than one traditional method to reach out to pupils. The
logical-mathematical intelligence is not a strength in many pupils. Teaching
Mathematics to the other intelligences will strengthen their
logical-mathematical intelligence (Bednar et al., 2002).
Hoerr (2002) stated that the effectiveness of MI is
supported by the findings of a study conducted by Harvard’s Project Zero. In
interviewing the principals of 41 schools using MI, 78% of them said that their
schools had realized gains on standardized achievement scores and 63%
attributed the growth to practices inspired by MI theory. Not surprisingly, the
use of MI paid other benefits in these schools as well: 78% of the schools
reported improved performances by students having learning difficulties, 80%
reported improvement in parent participation, and 81% reported improved student
discipline. Teaching to the MI improved assignment completion, class
participation and engagement of learners (Cluck & Hess, 2003).
Given the numerous benefits in using MI, we have used MI
in the planning and implementation of our Mathematics lessons on “Fractions”
and “Decimals” in 2008. The primary purpose of the research was to find out if
the use of MI in the teaching of Mathematics will result in pupils’ increase in
motivation and engagement and will have a positive impact on their attitude and
achievement in the subject. The
following are our research questions:
- Is there an increase in the level of engagement among primary four pupils who are taught Mathematics using the MI strategies?
- Do primary four pupils who are taught Mathematics using MI achieve a higher review test scores than pupils who are not taught using MI?
- Does a longer exposure to MI strategies have a positive impact on primary four pupils’ engagement, motivation, attitude and achievement in their learning of Mathematics?
Method
The study involved four Primary Four classes. Table 1 shows the
distribution of the pupils.
Ability Group
|
Low-Ability Group
|
Average-Ability Group
|
||
Class
|
Project
|
Comparison
|
Project
|
Comparison
|
No. of pupils
|
30
|
32
|
38
|
40
|
No. of girls
|
16
|
18
|
17
|
18
|
No. of boys
|
14
|
14
|
21
|
22
|
Table 1: Distribution of
pupils by class
Table 2 shows the mean score of their 2007 Mathematics overall
marks. The project groups and comparison groups are comparable in Mathematics
achievement.
Ability Group
|
Low-Ability Group
|
Average-Ability Group
|
||
Class
|
Project
(N=30)
|
Comparison
(N=32)
|
Project
(N=38)
|
Comparison
(N=40)
|
Mean (SD)
|
33.3 (12.1)
|
30.8 (12.9)
|
63.5 (9.7)
|
64.6 (10.7)
|
Difference
|
2.5
|
1.1
|
||
Effect Size
|
0.19
|
0.10
|
Table 2: Mean score of 2007
Mathematics overall marks
Measures
MIDAS Questionnaire
To measure the MI profile of all the pupils and teachers involved,
the school engaged Multiple Intelligences Research and Consulting, Inc. to
administer the MI psychometric instrument
“Multiple Intelligences Developmental Assessment Scales” (MIDAS) which had
well-established reliability scores.
PETALSTM Questionnaire
To measure pupils’ engagement, motivation and attitude towards the
learning of Mathematics, pupils took part in a survey using the PETALSTM
Engagement Indicator Questionnaire. The questionnaire had six components,
namely Pedagogy, Experience of Learning, Tone of Environment, Assessment for
Learning, Learning Content and Engagement.
More Primary school and preschool maths provider on creative maths and Heuristics Maths, click here.
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