The Science behind Educational Theories

At many schools, teaching to learning styles is purported on soapboxes as a key component to quality classroom instruction. But where is the evidence for that?

However, according to a recent opinion editorial in the New York Times citing a 2009 paper, the idea that instructors should teach to the learning styles of students isn't supported by the studies that performed a basic feature of science: taking the effort to conduct randomized trials.

I sadly think of all the hours of planning time centralized around the theory of Multiple Intelligence (and I regret calling MI a theory because it muddies the colloquial sense of theory with the scientific gold-standard of explanation that stands up to thousands of repeated observation and experimentation.) A critical analysis of Gardner's idea summarizes that, "in the end, Gardner’s theory is simply not all that helpful. For scientists, the theory of the mind is almost certainly incorrect."

Sometimes I feel that educational research throws around theories that are not founded in repeated experimentation. Teacher training programs should identify best-practices and test it repeatedly to deem its effectiveness, before an untested idea becomes a staple of professional development.

Much hinges on the ramifications, so let's apply some tough science to educational research.

#Education #Gardner #MultipleIntelligence