Howard Gardner, the Hobbs Research Professor of Cognition and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, is best known for developing the theory of multiple human intelligences. But despite decades of research, writing, and hands-on work, he credits serendipity for his career success, telling The Progressive that a chance encounter changed the course of his life, in turn planting a seed for what could potentially counter the current standard for teaching and learning in K-12 schools.
Following an informal talk by behavioral theorist Norman Geschwind in 1969, he writes in The Essential Howard Gardner on Education, a book released earlier this year, “I turned from empirical research in developmental psychology to the study of education broadly construed.”
Indeed, since that lecture, Gardner’s research has explored a range of diverse topics, from the role of experiential learning and the need for individualized education, to the ways apps and technology are altering classrooms from kindergarten through college. His theory of “multiple intelligences”—the recognition that humans learn in different ways and have affinities and strengths that cluster in eight categories (bodily-kinetic, intrapersonal, interpersonal, linguistic, logical, musical, naturalist, or spatial)—has led him to oppose pedagogical efforts that “make education uniform” and that apply the same one-size-fits-all metrics to every student. As he writes in On Education, this tendency is both “inappropriate on scientific grounds and distasteful on ethical grounds.”
Gardner’s many books, innovative research, and advocacy have earned him multiple awards, including a MacArthur Prize, the Grawemeyer Prize in Education, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He spoke to The Progressive in late October about his work, educational practices across the world, and the state of education in the United States.
Jay Gardner
Howard Gardner sitting at his desk.
Q: In the Introduction to On Education, you write that while you generally support progressive education, some of your ideas are traditional, even conservative. Which ones?
Howard Gardner: I believe in the disciplines—history, science, the humanities. Some people think this is old-fashioned, that students can just jump in and make sense of the world without any tools. But I believe that you have to study science; you have to study history.
The notion that kids can learn from interactions with one another can be true, but kids also develop misconceptions and misunderstandings that have to be undone. They need to learn to think systematically. Take the issue of democracy. Words get bandied about, but students in our country need to learn what democracy is and isn’t. They need to go back to the texts, to the Constitution and the Amendments, and wrestle with them. The same is true of the study of fascism. For me, the purpose of education is to train children to use their minds so they can contribute to the world. That takes study and discipline.
Q: You credit your work at the Boston Veterans Hospital with influencing the development of the theory of multiple intelligences. How did the theory evolve?
Gardner: In 1967, I was a founding member of Project Zero (PZ) at Harvard. At the time, I was interested in studying what it means to become an artist. As part of PZ’s work, we invited neurologist Norman Geschwind to deliver a talk. I was struck by what he said about the cognitive and brain processes involved in different art forms, so I applied for a postdoctoral fellowship. Geschwind and I worked together to study stroke victims whose brain function had been impacted by their illness. This opened up a whole new universe to me, and I spent twenty years, 1971 to 1991, working with brain-damaged patients to see what they could and couldn’t do. This gave me insight into the different forms intelligence can take.
Q: Let’s return to classroom education. Book bans and restrictions on what can be taught in public school classes, from pre-K through college, have passed numerous state legislatures. Do you see this as a pendulum swing or as something more insidious?
Gardner: It’s more serious. When I was growing up, Walter Cronkite ended his TV news broadcast with the words, “That’s the way it is.” His coverage was considered balanced and authoritative. Now, nothing is authoritative. If you watch FOX or CNN you see two vastly different accounts of what’s happening.
In our current work in preschools, we focus on the emergence of an “I/We/They” consciousness. Differences can be grasped by kids as early as age three. But most people today are far less concerned with We. A sense of fear seems to pervade everything alien or unfamiliar. People are less tolerant of each other and tend to group themselves together by physical characteristics, geographic proximity, and/or ideology, with little cross-over.
I agree with John Dewey that issues of democracy get worked out in school. That’s important, but neither the left nor the right are currently prioritizing the broad education of our children. Even more worrisome for me is the general public’s antipathy toward higher education.
Q: Can teachers contest these trends?
Gardner: I believe in accountability. In some ways, today can be a golden age for education. Because of the Internet and the web, a lot of things that used to be done in the classroom can now be done online. Individuals have the option of studying the same subjects in different ways.
The challenge is getting teachers and parents up to speed on the technologies. Social media and the Internet have made it far easier to individualize education. This has the potential to get kids excited about learning. But of course, the new media can be misused.
We can also learn from other countries. In May 2024, Kate Abramowitz, Wendy Fischman, and I edited a special issue of Daedalus, “Higher Education in the 21st Century.” It includes essays from every continent except Africa. The message: American educators need to stop looking in the mirror and learn from Denmark, Finland, Germany, Singapore, and other countries, since, for the most part, they’re doing education more effectively than we are.
Among other things, U.S. teachers are not treated as professionals. Other countries treat educators well, pay them well, and make sure that they’re respected.
In addition, I’ve been involved in The Good Project at Harvard. Our research has revealed that people who do “good,” socially-engaged work care deeply about what they do, perform at a high level, and try to resolve difficult issues collaboratively. Many also have a connection to some form of spiritual practice. In combination, these factors make work sustaining and satisfying.
Q: Your research has taken you to schools in China and Italy. These models of education are very different from one another, aren’t they?
Gardner: The infant-toddler centers in Reggio Emilia in northern Italy are progressive in the best sense of the word. The schools take the kids’ social and emotional development seriously. The support services the schools offered are seamless.
China was different. The schools I visited were terrific at getting the children to be disciplined, but I noticed little creativity. In fact, I was routinely asked by Chinese educators for four steps to ensure creativity in students. I had to explain that you need discipline but also open-ended exploration for creativity to flourish.
Q: As a student at Wyoming Seminary, you write that you were influenced by the school’s motto: verum, pulchrum bonum, or “truth, beauty, goodness.” Should these virtues be a pedagogical goal? Aren’t they subjective?
Gardner: When it comes to truth, the disciplines have methods to determine which claims have validity and which don’t. Beauty, of course, is in the eye of the beholder, but I define true beauty as an experience you value and want to repeat. An opera, a play, or a poem can touch us and while we can draw our own conclusions about it, if we want more, then its beauty has enriched us.
Goodness is about whether there is a meritorious course of action with respect to a challenging issue. I make a distinction between neighborly morality—the Ten Commandments or the Golden Rule—and the “ethics of roles,” which refers to being a good colleague in a community. In law, medicine, education, journalism, or any profession, difficult situations arise, and “good” professionals think about them and confer with others. Doing good work is about defining, debating, and deconstructing an issue toward a resolution. Admittedly, it can be tough.
Q: The decline of student and faculty mental health has gotten a great deal of attention. Folks are stressed out about climate change, the threat of school violence, curricular restrictions, and economic issues. This impacts the ability to teach and learn. Do you have any mitigation strategies?
Gardner: In The Real World of College, a book I co-authored with Wendy Fischman, we discuss declining mental health. We did our research between 2012 and 2018 and saw this clearly. Many of my colleagues abroad see similar things, although it’s less acute than in the United States. One issue is that so many American students don’t know why they’re in a liberal arts college. The Good Project has found that when people feel like they’re performing well in school or at their jobs, they are much less likely to have mental health struggles. Unfortunately, social media can undermine people, making it harder and harder to stay mentally healthy these days.
Q: How depressing! How do you stay motivated and focused?
Gardner: The world has gone through bad times before. As Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
She was right. I hold onto the idea that by working together we can turn the tide and once again promote ethical and progressive values.