Differentiating for Multiple Intelligences A Study of ...74 Differentiating for Multiple Intelligences Issues in Teacher Education tic techniques and media (Cuero et al., 2008; Cuero

Courtney L. Crim, Kimberly D. Kennedy, & Jenifer S. Thornton 69

Volume 22, Number 2, Fall 2013

Differentiating for Multiple IntelligencesA Study of Students’ Understandings

through the Use of Aesthetic Representations

Courtney L. CrimTrinity University

Kimberley D. KennedyCity of San Antonio, Pre-K 4 SA

& Jenifer S. ThorntonIndependent Educational Consultant

Issues in Teacher Education, Fall 2013

Introduction

Traditionalmethodsofeducationrarelytakeintoaccountthevalueofteachingconceptsin“multipleways”throughavarietyofmeanssuchas“music,art,mathematics,drama,andlanguage”(Short,Kauffman,&Kahn,2000,p.160).Moreoftenthannot,studentsareexpectedtodem-onstratetheirknowledgeofacademicconceptswithintheparameterssetbytheteacher,usuallythroughpaper-and-pencilassessments(Eisner,1997).Wecanlikenthesedemonstrationsoflearningtoasnapshottakenfromonlyoneangle.Multiplesnapshotstakenfromdifferentanglesandperspectivesprovideamoreholisticpictureoflearners’understandings.Gardner’s(1983)conceptofmultipleintelligencessupportsthenotionthatindividualsbestinterprettheirworldusingavarietyoflenses.Toevaluatewhatlearnersunderstand,teachersmustdevelopassessmentsthathonorthemultipleanglesandperspectivesthatstudentsbringtothelearningenvironment. As teacher educators at a large public university, we have our

Courtney L. Crim is an assistant professor in the Department of Educa-tion at Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas. Kimberley D. Kennedy is a professional development coach for the City of San Antonio’s Pre-K 4 SA program. Jenifer S. Thornton is an independent educational consultant in San Antonio, Texas. Their e-mail addresses are [email protected], [email protected], and [email protected]

Differentiating for Multiple Intelligences70

Issues in Teacher Education

preserviceteacherscreate“aestheticrepresentations”(Cuero,Bonner,Smith,Schwartz,Touchstone,&Vela,2008;Cuero&Crim,2008),usingmultipleformsofrepresentation(Eisner,1997),particularlyinthefinearts,e.g.,dance,musicalperformance,painting,sculpting,todemonstratetheirpersonalconnectionstospecificacademiccontent.Inthisstudy,weinvestigatedtheextenttowhichstudents’aestheticrepresentationsreflecttheirindividualmultipleintelligencestrength(s)andexploredhow the use of aesthetic representations supports the philosophy ofdifferentiationinauniversitysetting. Webeginwithareviewoftherelevantliteratureinregardtodif-ferentiation,multipleintelligences,andaestheticrepresentations.Next,wepresentthemethodology,reportourfindings,anddiscussthemesrelated to our research questions. Finally, we conclude that tappingintostudents’multipleintelligencestrength(s)isanexcellentwayforstudentstodemonstratetheirunderstandingofcontent.

Literature Review

Astherearemultiplewaysofknowing,therearealsomultiplewaysforstudentstodemonstratelearning(Tomlinson,1999).Alltoooften,thetwotraditionalmeasuresofintelligence—linguisticandmathemati-cal—arethepervasiveandrigidfociinschoolsettings(Eisner,1997).AsnotedbyDiaz-Lefabvre(2004),this“rigidity”limitsstudentsattheelementary,middle,andhighschoollevelsaswellasadultlearnersattheuniversitylevel.Learnerswhohavemusicalstrengths,forexample,maynotbeabletoeffectivelydemonstratewhattheyhavelearnedthroughlinguisticormathematicalmeans.Iftheyaregiventheopportunitytodemonstratelearninginawayorwaysthatshowcasetheirpersonalstrengths,studentsmaybemorelikelytoengagewithcoursecontentand be successful in academic contexts (Gardner, 1999). Tomlinson(2003)explainsthat,toproducetrulyknowledgeableandwell-informedstudents,teachersmustnotonlyteachconceptsinmultiplewaysbutalsoallowforstudentstodemonstratelearninginavarietyofways.Thisstudy,whichpressedourpreserviceteacherstodemonstratetheirlearningthroughart,drawsfromthreebodiesofliterature:differentia-tionasawaytomeettheneedsofalllearners,Gardner’s(1983)theoryofmultipleintelligences,andaestheticrepresentationstointegratetheartsandcomplexthinkingacrossthecurriculum.

Differentiation Teachers who acknowledge and actively engage various ways ofknowingtendtodifferentiatetheirteachingandtheirclassroomenvi-



ronments.Tomlinson(1999)referstodifferentiationasamindset,orateachingphilosophy,andidentifiesthreeareasinwhichteachersmaydifferentiate instruction: in the content that they teach, through theprocessesinwhichthematerialispresented,andbytheproductsthatstudentsproducethatarerepresentativeofwhattheyhavelearned.Intheclassroom,differentiationmayallowstudentschoiceintheareasofcontent(i.e.,specificinformationandrelatedtopics),process(i.e.,meansbywhichstudentsexplorecoursecontent),and/orproduct(i.e.,thefinishedproductsthatstudentspresentthatdemonstratetheirunderstandingsofcoursetopics).Differentiationalsomayoccurasteachersmakedecisionsaboutcontent,processes,and/orproductsbasedonstudents’interestareas,learningprofiles,and/orlevelsofreadiness(Tomlinson,1999;Tomlinson&Imbeau,2010),asopposedtomakingdecisionsbasedsolelyonatimeframeand/orcurriculumdictatedbyschooldistrictsorduetoaneedtoengageinparticularactivitiesdevelopedduringgrade-levelplanningsessions.Othercomponentsofadifferentiatedclassroomincludeacademicrigorbasedinrespectfulandchallengingtasksandopportunitiesforstudentstoexpressthemselvesandtheirunderstandingofacademicconceptsinwaysthatmakesensetothem(Tomlinson,2003). Tomlinson(2003)identifiesthefollowingthreecogsofdifferentiationthatshould“remaincarefullycalibratedtoworkinconcert”:

•Humanneedswherestudentsseekchallenge,affirmation,contribu-tion,power,andpurpose;

•Acompassfordecisionmakingwhereteachersrespondwithinvitation,investment,persistence,opportunity,andreflection;and

•Effectiveteachingwherecurriculum and instructionservetomakelearn-ingdemanding,scaffolded,important,focused,andengaging.(p.12)

When differentiation is fostered, teachers recognize, accept, andvalue various ways in which students acquire and understand newinformation.Throughtheuseofdifferentiatedassignments,activities,andassessments,thecurriculumhasthecapacitytomovebeyondlinearandquantifiablethinking.Itisatthispointthatstudentscanformper-sonal,unique,andacademicconnectionstonewcontent(Eisner,1997).Further,teacherscangaininsight,inapersonalizedcontext,intotheindividual connections of each student. Incorporating student choicealsoisahallmarkofadifferentiatedclassroom.

Multiple Intelligences Gardner’s(1983)theoryofmultipleintelligencessuggestsanontra-ditionalapproachtotheconstructofintelligenceandassertsthatthere



aremultiplewaysinwhichpeopleprocesstheworldanddemonstratestrengths.Inotherwords,therearedifferentwaystobesmart.Tradi-tionalmeasuresofintelligencearenarrowlyfocusedandoftenequatedwithasingle,quantifiablenumberorscore.Thissingularwayofdefin-ingintelligence(s)haspermeatedourschoolsandhascausededucatorstoviewstudentpotentialthrougharestrictivelens,laudingthosewhodemonstratehighverbalandquantitativethinkingskills(asdefinedby assessments that target these traditional areas of achievement).Gardnerintroducedanewwayofthinkingaboutintelligenceandwasoneofthefirsttorefertothisconstructintheplural.Inadditiontothetwotraditionalmeasuresofintelligence(verbal/linguisticandlogi-cal/mathematical),Gardneroriginallyproposedfiveotherintelligences:visual-spatial,musical,body-kinesthetic,interpersonal,andintraper-sonal.Later,headdedtwootherareasofintelligence:naturalisticandexistential(Gardner,1999). Thefieldof educationhas readilyaccepted three learningstyles(i.e.,visual,auditory,andtactile/kinesthetic)asthemodalitiesinwhichlearnersacquireandprocessnewinformation.Thetheoryofmultipleintelligencesidentifiesareasthroughwhichindividualsseetheworldandexpressthemselves.Sowhileamusicianmaybeavisuallearner,preferringtoreadinformationandseeinformationexpressedingraphicorganizers,shemaybestrememberwhatshereadbyputtingtheinfor-mationtoabeat.Shealsomaybestexpressherselfthroughtheflowandrhythmofmusicandsong,drawingfromhermusicalmultipleintelligenceareaofstrength.Thissameindividualmaystrugglewithinatraditionalactivitythataskshertolabelthepartsofthebrainonaworksheetbutdemonstrateexceptionalunderstandingofthebrainwhenlinkingtheparts,theirplacement,andfunctionthroughanoriginalsong. Thetheoryofmultipleintelligencesofferssupportforinstructionalapproachesthat incorporateavarietyofconnections for teachingandlearningthatvalidatetheuniqueexperiences,interests,andculturesofallstudents.Giventhatindividualsgravitatetotheareasinwhichtheyhavestrengthsandcanincorporatetheseareasintotheirlearning,theconceptofmultipleintelligencesisuniquelysuitedtosupportandenhanceadifferentiatedclassroom.Inthisregard,Eisner(2004)stated:

Thereissomethingintuitivelyrightaboutrecognizingthatpeopledifferinthewaysinwhichtheyfunctionbest.Thereissomethingsociallyrightabouttheideasthatchildrenandadolescentsshouldbegivenanopportunitytoshineinclassroomsinwhichtheirparticularstrengthscanbenurturedandmadepublic.(p.33)

Tomlinson’s(1999)modelofdifferentiationunderscorestheneedto



identifyandcreatespaceformultipleintelligencestofosterindividualinterest(s)andstudentlearningprofilesintheclassroom.Forthepurposeofthisstudy,ouranalysiscentersontheareaoflearningpreferencesasoperationalizedinmuchoftheliteratureonmultipleintelligences(Gardner,1983,1999;Tomlinson,1999)andhowtheselearningprefer-encesalignwithstudents’products(e.g.,aestheticrepresentations).

Aesthetic Representations TherevisedBloom’sTaxonomyidentifiestheactof“creating”asthemostcomplexlevelofthinking(Anderson&Krathwohl,2001).Aestheticrepresentations, by their very nature, foster learners’ creating.Whendiscussingaestheticproductions,KempleandJohnson(2002)explain:

Theproductivecomponentcorrespondstocreativeexpressionortheactofputtingthings(ideas,materials,sounds,etc.)togetherinanovelwaythathaspersonalmeaningandpersonalpurpose....Theresponsivecomponentencompassesappreciationofnaturalbeauty,appreciationofthearts,andformingjudgmentsandpreferencesconcerningaestheticproductions.(p.211)

It is from thisnotion thatwedefine the individualprocess thatresultsinacompletedaestheticrepresentationproject.ThismethodofexpressionalsoembracesEisner’s(1997)positionthatintegratingthearts intoacademicsettingsaddstotheacademicandcognitiverigorthatwedesireforourstudents. Researchersacrossacademicdisciplineshavedocumentedtheeffectsof utilizing nontraditional projects and assignments, into universitycoursework,thatintegrateaestheticelements.Forexample,preserviceteachersinoneeducationalpsychologycourserepresentedtheirunder-standingsofcoursecontentthroughtheuseofcomputersoftwarethatallowedthemtographicallyrepresentaspectsoflearningtheory(Cun-ningham&Stewart,2003).Inthefieldofmedicine,Shapiroetal.(2006)documented theuseof“creativeprojects” inagrossanatomycoursetoengagestudentsinareflectionontheirexperiencesinthecourse.Throughthisprocessofcreationandreflection,researchersfoundthatthecreativeprojectsassistedstudentsindevelopingself-awarenessandanunderstandingof“thedoctor-patientrelationship,empathy,deathanddying,andtheirownspirituality”(p.23).Suchpracticalexampleshighlighttheclassroomusesandcross-curricularconnectionssupportedbytheuseofartisticandcreativeendeavors. Studies situated in teacher education found that participatingpreserviceteacherswereabletodemonstratetheirunderstandingsofcoursecontent(i.e.,elementsofliteracylearning)throughvariousartis-



tictechniquesandmedia(Cueroetal.,2008;Cuero&Crim,2008).Thestudyoutcomesindicatedthatpreserviceteachersengagedincontinuous,personalevaluations,as“theyhadtocontemplate,analyze,andjustifytheirconnectionsandthoseoftheirpeers”(p.138).Asdemonstratedincross-curricularcontexts,theuseoftheaestheticscansupportacademicrigorandchoiceinaclassroomwhilealsohonoringstudents’individualstrengthsandexperiences.Itisourthoughtthatsuchindividualconnec-tionswillreflectstudents’areasofmultipleintelligencestrengthswhilealsosupportingthephilosophyofdifferentiationintheclassroom.

Methodology

Inourliteraturereview,wediscussedthreeareasofstudy(i.e.,dif-ferentiation,multipleintelligences,andaestheticrepresentations)thathavenotbeenpreviously linked in research.This studyattempts toaddressthisgapintheliterature.Asteachereducators,wefoundthatusingaestheticrepresentationsasacomponentofuniversitycourseworkisawaytoaddacademicandcognitiverigortocoursecontentwhiledifferentiating toaccommodatestudents’ strongestareasofmultipleintelligences. Representing accumulated knowledge aesthetically, asopposed to only inpaper-and-pencil-typeassessmentsandactivities,allowsstudentstoexpressinformationinawaythatismostmeaningfulandsignificantforthem(Cueroetal.,2008;Cuero&Crim,2008).Thisprocessofcreationpushesstudentstoworkthroughthecomplexityofthinkingthatislinkedwiththeexperienceof“creating.”Additionally,sharingaestheticrepresentationswithclassmatesallowseachpersonto see elements of the course content from the perspective of otherlearnersinthecourse,thusbroadeninganddeepeninghisorherownunderstandings. Thestudywasguidedbytworesearchquestions:

1.Howdo studentsperceive thealignmentbetween theiraestheticrepresentationsandtheirself-identifiedstrongestarea(s)ofmultipleintelligences?

2.Howdoaesthetic representationsallow fordifferentiation in theuniversityclassroom?

Ourresearchwasconductedinalargepublicuniversity’steachercertificationprogramthatservesapproximately3,000undergraduatestudents. Our undergraduate courses serve preservice elementaryteachers,whorepresentabroadrangeofagesandcomefromavarietyofbackgrounds,includingmanyfirst-generationuniversityattendees. The participants for this study consisted of 122 undergraduate



studentswhowereseekingelementarycertificationandwereenrolledinatotaloffivesectionsofarequiredcourse,Principles and Practices of Differentiated Education.Thestudyspannedvarioussemesters:onesectionoftheclassinspring2008,onesectioninsummer2008,andthreesectionsinfall2008.Inthedevelopmentofthecourse,thefirstandthirdauthor/researchers(professorsofthiscourse)wereconcernedwithnotonlyteachingtheacademiccontentofthecoursebutalsowithmodelingdifferentiatedinstructionalpracticesforpreserviceteachers.Inadditiontoprojectmenus,flexiblegrouping,variedtext,andotherdifferentiatedpractices,thetwoprofessor-researchersincludedaestheticrepresentationsinthesecoursesectionsbecausetheyexemplifybestpracticesandhonortheuniqueexperiences,interests,andculturesofourdiversestudentpopulation. Attheendofthesemester,weaskedstudentswhethertheywouldbewillingtoparticipateinastudythatentailedtheirsubmittingvariousworkproductsfromthecourseforanalysis.BasedonIRBrequirements,studentswerenottoldaboutthestudyatthebeginningofthesemestersothattheirunderstandingofthestudywouldnotinfluencetheirwork.Additionally,wedidnotwantstudentstofeelasthoughtheirgradewouldbeaffectediftheychosenottoparticipateinthestudy.Whenaskedtoparticipateandtoprovideinformedconsent,all122studentswhowereenrolledinthecoursesvoluntarilyagreedtocontributetheirworkforthisstudy. Aspartofpreviewingthesemesterexpectations,onthefirstdayofclasses,instructorsexplainedtostudentsthat,towardtheendofthesemester,theywouldbeexpectedtodemonstratetheirunderstandingofanelementofdifferentiation through the creationofanaestheticrepresentation.Midwaythroughthesemester,theaestheticrepresen-tationassignmentwasdiscussedagain,ingreaterdetail.Thesecondauthor/researcherprovidedthetwoprofessor-researcherswithmateri-alstosupportstudents’conceptualizationofaestheticrepresentations,suchasaPowerPointpresentationwithover50photographsofpastaestheticrepresentationsinliteracy,whichusedawiderangeofartisticmedia,aswellasajigsawactivitythatincludedfivereflectiveessaysofformerstudents,whorecountedtheirexperiencesofcreatingaestheticrepresentations.Throughajigsawformat,studentsdiscussedwiththeirclassmatestheaestheticrepresentationexamples,whatmediumswereused,andhowvariousconnectionstocoursecontentwereestablished.Studentswereencouragedtobeginthinkingabouttheirownstrengthsandhowtheymightrepresent,aesthetically,theirpersonalunderstand-ingsaboutdifferentiation.Therealsowereopportunitiesduringclassforstudentstoshareideasfortheirownaestheticrepresentations. Inthetwoweeksfollowingthedetaileddescriptionoftheassign-



ment,studentswereaskedtoarticulatetheirideasabouthowtheymightpresenttheirunderstanding(s)ofdifferentiation.Forstudentswhofoundthemselves“stuck”oronlyscratchingthesurfaceofapowerfulideaorthought,professorsandpeersbecamesoundingboards.Althoughtheprofessor-researchersservedasfacilitatorsforsomestudents,theywerecarefulnottoleadthestudents.Rather,thegoalsoftheseconversationswerefortheprofessor-researcherstoaskquestionsinanefforttohelpstudentsthinkabouttheaestheticrepresentationinadeeperwayandtoprovidesupportforstudents’ideas. Three-quartersofthewaythroughthesemester,studentswereaskedtoprovideatentativetitle,identifytheirartisticmedium,andwriteathree-tofour-sentencedescriptionoftheirinitial(metaphoricalorsym-bolic)connections.Thisinformationservedasaguideforthestudentsastheycontinuedtheprocessofdevelopingtheiraestheticrepresentationandasatoolforprofessorstogaininsightintostudents’thinkingatthattime.Allpresentationsofaestheticrepresentationstookplaceinthelastthreetofourweeksofthesemester.Forthefewstudents(threeof122studentstotal)whodidnotidentifyclearconnections,private,follow-upconferenceswereheldinwhichstudentsweretoldthattheyhadanotheropportunitytoadddepthtotheirrepresentation.

Data Sources and Analysis Asurveyapproachwasusedtogatheramajorityofdata.Theprimarydatasourcesincludedresultsfromaself-reportedmultipleintelligencequestionnaire,students’writtenreflectionsattheendofthesemester,andtheaestheticrepresentationsthemselves(alongwithphotographsandresearcherobservation/reflection logs).Themultiple intelligencequestionnaireutilizedwasadaptedbyMcKenzie(1999)andbasedonGardner’s(1999)nineareasofmultipleintelligence.Studentsindepen-dentlycompletedthequestionnaireatthebeginningofthesemesterinthecontextofincreasingtheirawarenessandunderstandingofthetheoryofmultipleintelligencesandtoself-identifytheirarea(s)ofstrength.Thequestionnairedatawereself-reported,andthiswasnotaformalassessment;however,itindicatedtowhichareasofmultipleintelligencestudentsgravitated. Attheconclusionofthesemester,afterstudentshadpresentedtheiraestheticrepresentations,theywereaskedtorespondtothequestion,“Didyouraestheticrepresentationaligntoyourownpersonalareasofmultipleintelligencestrengths?Explain.”Itisfromthesedatathatthequotespresentedweredrawn. Thefirstandthirdauthorsindependentlyreadthroughthestudents’responsestothisquestionandreviewedstudents’multipleintelligence



questionnaireoutcomes.Althoughweinitiallysoughttocreateaforceddichotomyofwhetherthestudents’aestheticrepresentationsalignedwiththeirstrongestareasofmultipleintelligence(codedas“alignment”)ornot(codedas“non-alignment”),athirdcategory(codedas“non-response”)becamenecessaryforcertaincasesinwhichtheend-of-semesteralignmentquestionwasnotansweredoraddressedadifferenttopicaltogether. Insomecases,studentsreportedthattheiraestheticrepresenta-tiondidnotalignwiththeirstrongestarea(s)ofmultipleintelligence.However,basedonouranalysisof thechosenmediumandelementsrepresentedwithin theiraesthetic representation,we felt that thereactuallywasalignment.Despitethisdiscrepancy,basedonthecontextofaself-reportsurvey,wehonoredallstudents’responsesandcodedthemas“non-alignment.”Allstudentswhonotedagreementprovidedreasoning,andresearchersdidnotdisagreewithanyoftheseresponses.Toensureinter-raterreliability,thefirstandthirdauthorscompletedthiscodingprocessindependently.Uponcompletionofthisprocedure,theprofessor-researchers compared resultsanddetermined that thedatawerecodedwith100%agreement. Afrequencycountwasusedtorecordhowmanystudentsfellintoeachofthethreecategories.Whenconductingthequalitativeanalysisforbothresearchquestions,weusedanopen-codingmethod(Emerson,Fretz,&Shaw,1995).Allthreeresearchersdebriefedtheopen-endedresponses and developed preliminary themes. Through continuousdiscussion, thepreliminaryoverarching themeswere combinedwithnew,emergingthemes,orcollapsedwithotherthemes.Theprocessofcollapsingandcombiningthemescontinueduntilallthreeresearchersagreeduponthefinalthemes.Throughthisprocess,threeoverarchingfinal themes emerged—the importance of: (1) meaningful choice, (2)criticalthinking,and(3)personalaffirmation.

Results

Students’ Perceptions of the Alignment between their Aesthetic Representations and Strongest Area(s) of Multiple Intelligence The frequencyof the three categories (i.e., alignment,non-align-ment,andnon-response) indicatedthatamajority(85%)ofstudentsreportedthattheiraestheticrepresentations(processand/orproduct)alignedtotheirstrongestarea(s)ofmultipleintelligences,whileonly11%didnot.Theremaining4%eitherdidnotrespondtothequestionorissuedaresponsethatdidnotaddressthequestion(e.g.,“Myaestheticrepresentationwashardforme”)andwerecodedasanon-response.Theresultsclearlyindicatethat,whengiventheopportunity,students



tendtogravitatetowardartisticprocessesandproductsthatalignwiththeirstrongestarea(s)ofmultipleintelligences. Studentsinthealignmentgroupeasilyidentifiedthelinkbetweentheiraestheticrepresentationandtheirmultipleintelligencestrength(s).Forexample,onestudent,whobuiltatreesculpturethathousedthreeowletsatdifferentstagesofdevelopment,explainedhowthemotherowlneedstomeettherangeofneedsofherowletsandcommented,“IwasabletousemyinternalthoughtsandfeelingstopresentaprojectthatreflectedwhatIknewaboutmyself.IalsowasabletoincorporatenaturefrommynaturalistMIarea”(Student30,Spring2008).Anotherstudent,whocompletedapencilsketch,“WillYouNoticeMe?”reported:

TheaestheticrepresentationdidalignwithmystrongestareasofMI[KinestheticandIntrapersonal]inthatIlookeddeepwithinmyselftoreflecthowIpersonallyconnectedwiththecourseandhowIwouldcarrythatconnectionovertoinfluencemeandthetypeoffutureteacherIwillbecome.(Student57,Fall2008)

Asnoted,themajorityofstudentswereclearthatthecreationoftheaestheticrepresentationprovidedthemwiththeopportunitytoincludetheirstrongestareasofmultipleintelligence(s)intheirunderstandingsofcoursecontent. Fiveofthe122participantsstruggledtodeterminewhethertherewasalignmentandappearedtointerpretthequestionas“allornothing.”Severalofthesestudentsindicatedthattheiraestheticrepresentationalignedtosomeoftheirstrongestareasofmultipleintelligencesbutnotall.Forexample,onestudentreported,

Well,perhapsnot exactly.However, Iamalso logical/mathematical,soastructurehelpedmetoalignmythoughtstoalogicaldiscussion.And,ofcourse,Idon’tmindpublicspeaking,sothatwasgood.(Student62,Fall2008)

Ininstancesforwhichstudentsstruggledtodeterminewhethertherewasalignment,andtheymentionedspecificareasofmultipleintelligencestrengths,researcherswereabletocross-checktheirresponsesandcodetheirresponsesaseitheralignmentornon-alignment. Although11%reportedthattheiraestheticrepresentationsdidnotalignwiththeirstrongestareasofmultipleintelligences,wefoundthatsomeofthesestudents’non-alignmentwasaconsciousanddeliberateshiftawayfromtheirareasofstrengths.Onestudentstatedthatherrepresentationdidnotalign:

Notatall.I’mnotavisualorkinestheticperson,noramIverycreative,butIthought,totrulydescribemyunderstandingofdifferentiation,Ishouldtrysomethingoutsideofmycomfortzone.(Student82,Fall2008)



Anotherstudentresponded,

Actually,no.Myrepresentationwasusingbodilykinestheticintelligence,andthatismyweakness.However,Ipickedthat[process]becauseIknowIwantedtotrysomethingthatIknowscaresmealittle.(Student99,Fall2008)

Thesetworesponsesillustratenotonlyanawarenessoftheirstrongestareasofmultiple intelligencesbutalsoadeliberatedecisionto forcethemselvesoutsideoftheircomfortzone. Forthe11%ofresponsesthatidentifiednon-alignment,wereviewedindividualstudents’reportedstrongestareasofmultipleintelligences.Inacoupleofcases,students’self-reportednon-alignmentresponseswere,inouropinion,notaccurate.Forexample,onestudentwhocreatedavisualpiecewithwhole,cracked,andbrokenpiecesofmirrorsreportedthattherewasnoalignment,stating,

No.Theaestheticrepresentationwasaveryintrapersonalexperience.Itallowedmetoexpressmyinnermostthoughts.(Student16,Fall2008)

Interestingly,whenresearchersreferencedthisstudent’sstrongestareasofmultipleintelligences(basedontheself-reportquestionnaireearlierinthesemester),shereportedherstrongestareatobeintrapersonal.As this example demonstrates, there were occasional discrepanciesbetweenwhatthestudentsreportedandhowresearcherswouldhavecategorizedalignment.However,consideringthattwooftheprimarydatasourceswereself-reported(i.e.,multipleintelligencequestionnaireandtheopen-endedquestiononalignment),wehonoredthestudents’perceptionsandconclusions,forthepurposesofouranalysis,anddidnotchangeanycategoricalplacements.Clearly,thealignmenttomultipleintelligencestrengthswasevident. Somestudentsalsorealizedthattheiraestheticrepresentational-lowedthemtoshowtheirpersonallearningpreferencesthroughtheirconnectionswithcoursecontent.Asastudentwhowroteapoemstated,

MyaestheticrepresentationalsoalignedwithmyMultipleIntelligencessinceIchosetodoapoem!Iknewthatmycommandoflanguagewouldultimatelysaveme!!!(Student98,Fall2008)

Anotherstudent,whocreatedamixed-mediacollegeofevents/imagesthatrelatetodifferentlearningstyles,stated,“Itriedtoshowinmyrepresentationhoweachlearningstylerelatedtomylife”(Student13,Spring2008).Whilethisstudentfocusedontheconnectiontolearningstyles,anothernotedthelinktomultipleintelligencestrengths.“Myaestheticrepresentationusedboth[MultipleIntelligenceareas–VisualandMusical],withpicturesandmymusic,bothofwhichareoftheutmost



importancetome”(Student37,Summer2008).Anotherstudent,whodevelopedthreeversionsofstringarttoillustratetheroleoftheteacherindifferentclassroomcontexts,touchedonherlogical/mathematicalandvisual/spatialconnections(seeFigure1):

My art work was very logically done–21 nails–21 strings wrappedaround10nailseach....Itwasimportantthatall3artpiecescouldtellyouwhatIwasthinkingwithlittleexplanation.(Student49,Sum-mer2008)

Studentsnotedthattheirmultipleintelligencesandlearningstylesplayeda largepart in thecreationof theiraesthetic representation.Throughtheuseofaestheticrepresentations,learningpreferencesarehonoredonmultiplelevels.Further,studentsrecognizedandappreci-atedthattheirlearningstrengthswerebeingsupportedandhonored.

How Aesthetic Representations Allow for Differentiationin the University Classroom Theaestheticrepresentationsallowedstudentstogravitatetowardareasofstrength,whichisthecornerstoneofadifferentiatedclassroom.Asaresultoftheopen-endednatureoftheassignment,wesawawiderangeofprocessesandproductsutilizedbystudentstorepresentvariousunderstandings.Whilesomestudentschosetousesomewhattraditionalprocesses(e.g.,writing)astheydevelopedtheiraestheticrepresentation,theyneverthelessproducedinnovativeproducts,rangingfromacomicbook(seeFigure2)toapaintingoncanvas(seeFigure3).

Figure 1A student’s mathematics-inspired string art to demonstrate an understanding of dif-ferentiation.



Otheraestheticrepresentationschallengedtraditionalconstructs(verbal and/or mathematical bases) and pushed the boundaries toinclude unique products, e.g., three-dimensional mixed media thatcombinedtextandvisualpatternsintoalogicallybasedpuzzlecon-figuration (see Figure 4); sand art that used colors and geometric

Figure 3.A student’s use of writing combined with paint on canvas.

Figure 2A student’s use of writing and drawing in a comic book format to demonstrate under-standing of different types of instruction.



patternstorepresentstories(seeFigure5);windchimesmadefromfamilysilverware,whichsymbolizedlanguage,community,andoralculturaltraditions(seeFigure6);andmixedmediathatcombinedtext,visualimages,andpatternsintoacompletepuzzlethatlinkedareasofmultipleintelligences(seeFigure7). Additionally,theassignmentsupportedadifferentiatedclassroombymotivatingstudentsthroughtheprovisionofchoicewhileappealingtotheiruniqueinterests,readinesslevels,andlearningstyles.Studentsinthisstudyreportedthattheaestheticrepresentationassignmentembodiedmanyofthesepersonalaspects.Fromtheanalysisofstudents’responsestothisproject,threemajorthemesemergedthatfurthersupportthelink

Figure 5.A student’s various sand art designs used for her aesthetic representation.

Figure 4.A student’s aesthetic representation that combines 3-dimensional mixed media with text.



betweenaestheticrepresentationsanddifferentiation:theimportanceofmeaningful choice,critical thinking,andpersonal affirmation.

Meaningful choice.Choiceisanessentialelementinadifferentiatedclassroom,asitallowsstudentsthepowertogravitatetowardareasofstrengthandinterest.Often,theopportunitytopursueoptionsthatareofpersonalinteresttostudentscanserveasamotivator.Thestudentsinthisstudyacknowledgedtheprovisionofchoiceinthedevelopmentoftheiraestheticrepresentation.

Yes,Ireallyenjoyeddoingthis.IactuallyforfirsttimewasallowedtouseastrengththatIchosetodoaproject.Thatdoesn’thappenmuchincollege.(Student89,Fall2009)

Theopportunityforchoiceintheirlearningresultedinfeelingsofsuc-cessandachievement. Affirmationofpersonalsuccessandachievementemergedthroughout

Figure 6.A student’s use of specific elements related to family interactions to create compo-nents of a wind chime.



studentresponses.Onestudent,whoexpressedunderstandingthroughacomicbook(seeFigure8),reported,

I have always doodled and drawn things. I also have always lovedcartoons.Thankyouforthechancetosucceedatsomething.Ireallyappreciateit.Thisclasswasaconfidenceboosteraswellasinformativetome.(Student64,Fall2008)

Anotherstudent,whocreatedavideothatfocusedonmusicandtech-nology,reported,

Itwasnicetobeabletorelatethisclasstobandandsharewithevery-oneinatechnology-relatedway...IwasreallyproudofitandIfeltconfidentinwhatIdid.(Student102,Fall2008)

Anotherstudentnotedpositivefeelingsaboutherrepresentationwhenshestated,

Itdidfeelnicewhenpeopleweregivingpositivefeedback.Iguessitworkedoutreallywell.(Student117,Fall2008)

Theappreciationofpersonalsuccesswasanunexpectedandpowerful

Figure 7.A student’s use of mixed-media collage for her aesthetic representation.



benefit that theaddition of theaesthetic representationassignmentprovidedourstudents. Whilechoiceoftenisviewedaspositive,wefoundthatsomestudentsstruggledwiththeexpectationofchoice.Forinstance,onestudentstated,“IreallyhadahardtimetryingtofigureoutwhattodobecauseI’veneverbeengivensomuchfreedominmyassignments”(Student120,Fall2009).Theimplicationisthat,whenstudentshabituallyarenotgiventheopportunityforchoicethroughouttheireducationalcareers,theyareatalosswhenthisbecomesanexpectation.Manyofourstudentswerehesitant,evenfearful,toembracechoiceanddidnotknowhowtoapproachthetaskofmakingmeaningfulchoices.Thestudentsinourstudyindicatedthattheinvitationforchoiceinameaningfulcontextempoweredthem.

Critical thinking.Itiscrucialforeducatorstocreatelearningexperi-encesthathavestudentsengagedincriticalthinking.Anotherimportantthemewasthefeelingamongstudentsthatcompletingtheaestheticrepresentationchallengedthemtothinkcritically.Frequently,theartsarenotseenaschallengingasaresomeotherdisciplines;however,par-ticipantsinthisstudyhelddifferentviews.Onestudent,whosepiecewastitled“SeeThrough,”reported,

My aesthetic representation was actually hard for me. It was ex-tremelyhardformetocomeupwithanideafortheproject.(Student23,Spring2008)

Figure 8.A student’s use of writing within the context of a comic book to demonstrate her understanding of differentiation.



Another,withapiecetitled“Unthinkable,”reported,“Itwassohardforme”(Student24,Spring2008).Yetanotherstudentstated,

Eventhoughitwashardworkandtookmeabout20hourstotaltomake(notcountingtakingthepicturesandwritingthescript),IwasreallyproudofitandIfeltconfidentinwhatIdid.(Student102,Fall2008)

Thesecommentssupportthenotionthatstudentsviewedthisassign-mentaschallenginganddifficult.ThisfindingsupportsEisner’s(1997)notionthatintegratingtheartsintoanacademiccontextaddsacademicandcognitiverigortooureducationalsettings.Further,byexpressingtheirpersonalunderstandingof content through the creationof theiraestheticrepresentation,theyareabletoengagethehighest levelsofcomplexthinking,accordingtotherevisedBloom’sTaxonomy(i.e.,“cre-ate”isthehighestformoflearning;Anderson&Krathwohl,2001).

Personal affirmation.Oneofthemostsalientthemesthatemergedwasthatofpersonalaffirmation.Wehadexpectedthatthisassignmentwould give students an opportunity to connect to course content inwaysthatshowcasedtheirpersonalinterestsandstrengths.Weweresurprised,however,notonlybyhowreadilysomestudentsrecognizedthisbutalsobytheircommentsthatthisassignmentwasparticularlyaffirmingtothemonapersonallevel. Studentsreportedthattheaestheticrepresentationsallowedthemauniqueopportunityforself-expression.Inthisregard,studentsarticu-latedhowtheirfeelingsandthoughtswerebroughtforththroughtheiraestheticrepresentations.Asonestudentcommentedaboutherpianoarrangements,

Iammostlyauditory.PlayingthepianoallowsmetolistenandmakesenseofwhatIamplaying.Idon’tthinkIamverygoodwithwords,butIcanshowmyfeelingsthroughmusic.(Student7,Spring2008)

After performing an original song with guitar accompaniment thathonoredaspecial teacherwhorecognizedandnurturedhermusicaltalents,anotherstudentreported:

MyaestheticrepresentationcompletelyalignswithbothmystrongestareasofMI:linguisticandmusical.Songwritingcomes[more]easilyandnaturallyformethananyotherartisticformsofexpression.Ienjoyedtheproject,thoughnotnecessarilypresentingit,butitgavemeawaytoexpresswhatI’velearned.(Student95,Fall2008)

Anotherstudentexplained,“Iwasabletoconnectmyfeelingtothesub-jectareaandshowmythoughtsthroughavisualmedium”(Student13,Spring2008).Thestudentwhousedstringarttoillustratehowtheroleoftheteachershapedherowntraditionalclassroomexperience,herson’s



traumaticclassroomexperience,andtheprojectionofherdifferentiatedclassroomexperience(seeFigure9),stated,“Myaestheticrepresentationrevealedmyinnerthoughtsandfeelingsabouthowschoolaffectedmylife”(Student49,Summer2008). Forsomestudents,feelingsandemotionswerebroughttothesur-faceastheyengagedinthecompletionandsharingoftheiraestheticrepresentations,whichcreatedempowermentandownershipoftheir

Figure 9.

A student’s use of art to illustrate three types of experiences.

Student’s own experience

Student’s son’s experience

Student’s future classroom



experiences.Whenengagingintraditionalassignments,studentsmaynotdemonstratesuchpositiveself-expression. Personal affirmation was a theme that emerged in several con-texts.Studentsreportedthattheprocessesofcreatingandsharingtheaestheticrepresentationservedtoaffirmtheeffortsoftheirworkand,subsequently,causedthemtotakeprideinit.Theyalsoarticulatedthealignmentwithlearningstylesaswellasmultipleintelligencestrengths.Finally,studentsnotedthattheuseofaestheticrepresentationsallowedthemtoshareemotionsandfeelingsinawaythattheycouldnotinatraditionalassessment,whichaffirmedtheirpersonalconnectionstocoursecontent.Throughtheinclusionofchoice,anecessaryelementofcriticalthinking,andpersonalaffirmationofeffort,learning,andfeel-ings,thisassignmentallowedustomodeldifferentiationinarealisticandmeaningfulway.

Implications

Thisstudypullsfromseveralwell-establishedresearchareas(i.e.,multipleintelligences,differentiatedinstruction,andaestheticrepre-sentation)and,usinganewlens,createsapowerfulintersectionoftheseareas.Aestheticrepresentationsprovidedtheprofessorsinthisstudywiththeopportunitytosupportdifferentiation,maintainhighlevelsofcriticalthinking,andacknowledgethevariouswaysthatstudentsacquire and understand new information. The results of this studyclearlyindicatethattheuseofaestheticrepresentationsisaneffectivemeanstodifferentiateintheuniversityclassroom.ThereisalignmentwithTomlinson’s(2003)notionofthecogsofdifferentiationthatworkinconcert:choiceempowersstudents,criticalthinkingsupportsdesiredchallenge,andaffirmationisevident.Studentsdemonstratedpersonalconnectionstoacademiccontentthroughthecreationofanaestheticrepresentation,whichdrewupontheirstrongestareasofmultiplein-telligencesand/ortheirdesiretohoneothers.Thisfindingsupportstheliteraturethatprioritizesconnectionsbetweenaestheticsandacademiccontent(Cuero&Crim,2008;Eisner,1997).Notably,wefoundadistinctalignment of students’ aesthetic representationsand their strongestarea(s)ofmultipleintelligence.Whilethehighpercentageofperceivedalignmentwithmultipleintelligencesappearedtobeanexpectedfinding,itneverthelessaddstotheliteratureand,mostimportantly,includesthevoiceofthelearners.Thisalignmentstronglysupportsusingaestheticrepresentations as a way to touch a variety of multiple intelligencestrengthsasameanstocultivateadifferentiatedclassroom. Thepersonalaffirmationthatstudentsrepeatedlycitednotonly



supportdifferentiationbutalsocreatetheessenceofcommunity,whichis a non-negotiable aspect of a differentiated classroom (Tomlinson,1999).Studentsrepeatedlyvoicedhowcreatingaestheticrepresentationschallengedthemtosucceed,drewupontheirindividuallearningprefer-ences,andprovidedanopportunityforself-expression.Goingbeyondtheacademicandcognitiverealmsoflearning,theresultsindicatedthatstudents’affectalsowasnurturedfromtheinceptionoftheprojecttothesharingofthefinalproductwithpeers.Byhonoringarangeofaf-fectiveengagements,studentsbecamepartofacommunityoflearnerswithinouruniversityclassrooms. Thefindingsfromthisstudysuggestthattheuseofaestheticrepre-sentationsinauniversitysettingcanbeawaytohonorstudentchoiceandthemanydifferentwaysinwhichstudentscandemonstratetheirlearning.Mostofthepreserviceteachersinthisstudygravitatedtotheirownareasofmultipleintelligencestrengthsandarticulatedthebeliefthatengaginginthecreationofanaestheticrepresentationcandiffer-entiateboththeprocessandproductofcoursecontent(componentsonewouldexpecttofindinaclassroomthatsupportsdifferentiatedinstruc-tion).Thus,notonlydidpreserviceteachersdeepentheirunderstand-ingsofcoursecontentbyengagingintheprocessofcreatingaestheticrepresentations,but,aswell,manyofthemexperiencedfirsthandhowdifferentiation can authenticate individual learning styles, increasestudentsuccess,andhonormodesofself-expression.Theultimategoalofateacherpreparationprogramisforpreserviceteacherstotransfertheirlearningfromtheuniversitysettingintotheirownclassroomstofosterthelearnerandlearning.Itisourhopethat,bymodelingauthenticpracticesforandwithourpreserviceteachers,includingthepracticesofdifferentiation,wecanhaveanimpactontheinteractionsthattheyhavewiththeirfuturestudents.AsOreck(2006)suggested,theintegrationoftheartsintothecurriculumcanassist“studentstotrulyexploreandmakediscoveries,findandpursueproblems,arriveatuniquesolutions,andcommunicateinmultiplemodalities”(p.4). Increatinganaestheticrepresentation,studentstaketheirlearningbeyondatraditional,linearrecitationofinformation.Overwhelmingly,studentsinthisstudyfeltthattheiropen-endedaestheticrepresentationsalignedwiththeirstrongestareasofmultipleintelligences.Addition-ally,theopportunitytoengageinmeaningful choice,topromotecritical thinking,andtofosterpersonal affirmationsupportsthephilosophyofadifferentiatedclassroom.



Future Research

Byexploringtheintersectionofmultipleintelligences,differentiatedinstruction,andaestheticrepresentations,wehaveidentifiedadditionallinesforfutureresearch.Inparticular,weareinterestedinexploringtheroleofaestheticrepresentationsinthedevelopmentofcurriculumandassessmentaswellashowcultureandbackgroundaffecthowstu-dentsapproachtheiraestheticrepresentations.Inparticular,evaluatinghowwellaestheticrepresentationsallowstudentstorepresentspecificcontent learning isworthyof furtherstudy.Wealsobelievethattheinteractionsbetweenthecontentofthecourseandparticipants’experi-encesinteachereducationcourseworkwarrantfurtherinvestigation.

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Documents

Differentiating for Multiple Intelligences A Study of ...74 Differentiating for Multiple Intelligences Issues in Teacher Education tic techniques and media (Cuero et al., 2008; Cuero