Prof Ed 15: Facilitating Learner-Centered Teaching

Individual Differences in Learning

Concepts of Individual Differences in Learning

Intended Learning Outcome (ILO):

Analyze concepts of individual differences in learning according to different theories of
intelligence: structural and process.

Individual Differences
- the variations and differences among individuals in regard to one characteristic or on a number of
characteristics; heredity and environment are the two main factors that explain individual differences
Intelligence
- a significant source of variation among individuals; individual differences in intelligence bear on
differences in other areas, like emotional intelligence, academic performance, learning styles and
the like. One’s level of academic performance can be explained by one’s level of intelligence. Thus,
in a class, students may have differences in academic performance because of difference in their
intelligence levels
Individual differences provide the rationale why we study behavior and why the study of
learning is challenging and interesting. As would-be teachers, this means that individual differences
in learning could be better understood by the study of intelligence.

Concepts About Intelligence

Understanding the nature of intelligence is a complex endeavor has been done by various
researchers and psychologists for a long time now. The earlier theories about the nature of
intelligence involved any or more of the following themes: (Woolfolk, 2013, p. 119):
a. The capacity to learn
b. The total knowledge a person has acquired
c. Ability to adapt to new situations and the environment in general
Intelligence is such a complex concept and there has been much argument and debate about
it. To this date, there is no single definition as to what makes for intelligence. Research findings
show that there are moderate to high correlations among different mental tests and because of this,
some psychologists believe that intelligence is a basic ability that affects performance in all
cognitively-oriented tasks (Woolfolk, 2013, p. 119). There is no clear agreement as to what
constitutes intelligence, nor a consensus on how to measure it. There are as many definitions as
there are theories that attempt to explain its nature.
Following are the components of what many experts and theorists understand intelligence to
be (Ormrod, 2015):
a. It is adaptive. It involves modifying and adjusting one’s behaviors to accomplish new tasks
carefully.
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b. It is related to learning ability. Intelligent people learn information more quickly and easily than
the less intelligent ones.
c. It involves use of prior knowledge to understand and analyze new situations effectively
d. It involves the complex interaction and coordination of many different mental processes
e. It may be seen in many different arenas – for example, on academic tasks or in social situations
f. It is “culture-specific”. What is intelligent behavior in one culture, may not necessarily be intelligent
behavior in another culture.

Sternberg (1986) contends that there are two general classifications of the definition of
intelligence - the operational and the “real” definition:
Operational - defines what intelligence is through the measure or the test that was used. There are
tools or tests that attempt to measure this characteristic.
Real intelligence - looks into the “true” nature of the characteristic being defined. Some define
characteristic as a general characteristic, while others define the term in specific and situational
terms. For example, one can be very good in mathematics, but cannot hit one musical note
accurately.
This is how different experts and authors try to define and concretize the concept of
intelligence (“Theories of Intelligence,” n. d.) and according to them, intelligence is the combination
of the ability to:
a. Learn. This includes all kinds of formal and informal ways of learning through experience,
training, and education. It is the acquisition, retention, and use of knowledge.
b. Recognize problems. This includes recognizing a problem situation and transforming it into
more defined problems that need to be addressed.
c. Solve problems. This includes the use of knowledge in solving problems, accomplishing tasks,
fashioning products, and doing complex projects.

Certain elements common to the different views put forward by researchers and experts in
the area of intelligence and learning.
First, intelligence has to do with ability to solve problems.
Second, one’s intelligence is also the product of experience and culture. Different individuals
exhibit their own unique ways of approaching solutions to problems – dependent on their intelligence
levels.
Recently, the most widely accepted view about intelligence is that it has many facets and is
a hierarchy of abilities, with general ability at the top and more specific abilities at the lower levels.
The theories on intelligence will further clarify what theorists and experts believe intelligence to be
as a characteristic.
The role of intelligence in learning cannot be more than emphasized. Intelligence has always
been related to learning either in the formal or informal settings. If for example, intelligence is the
result of culture or experience, then the implications on the kind of experiences the teacher provides
to students in the classroom, are many.

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Theories About Intelligence
Faculty Theory - the oldest theory regarding the nature of intelligence - espouses that the mind is
made up of different faculties like reasoning, memory, discrimination, imagination, and the likes.
These faculties are independent of each other, and can be developed by training. However, many
psychologists have maintained that independent faculties in the brain do not exist.
One-factor or Uni-factor Theory - asserts that all abilities are reduced to a single capacity of
general intelligence or “common sense”; assumes that the different abilities are correlated and that
they share many things in common - does not recognize differences among people; does not
recognize that an individual possesses different abilities of different levels.
Charles Spearman’s Two-factor Theory - asserts that intellectual abilities comprise two factors -
one general ability (g factor) and the specific abilities (s factor). The g factor is a universal inborn
ability, while the s factor is acquired from the environment.
Edward Thorndike’s Multi-Factor Theory - asserts that there is no such thing as general ability.
Each mental ability requires an aggregate of different sets of abilities. Following are the attributes of
intelligence:
a. Level – the level of difficulty of the task that can be solved
b. Range – refers to a number of tasks at any given degree or level of difficulty
c. Area – the total number of situations at each level to which the individual is able to respond
d. Speed – the rapidity at which the individual responds to the situation or stimulus
Louis L. Thurstone’s Primary Mental Abilities/Group Factor Theory
- asserts that intelligent activities are not an expression of many highly specific factors as espoused
by Thorndike nor is it the expression of a general factor that pervades all mental abilities as asserted
by Spearman
- claims that certain mental operations have in common a “primary factor” that gives them functional
unity and that differentiates them from other mental operations. A second group of mental operations
has its own unifying factor. There are other groups of mental operations each having its own unifying
primary factors.
The seven primary factors are:
1. Number Factor (N) – ability to do numerical calculations rapidly and accurately/ ability to solve
mathematical problems
2. Verbal Factor (V) – ability to do tasks involving verbal comprehension/ ability to define and
understand words
3. Space Factor (S) – ability to manipulate imaginary objects in space (spatial visualization)/ ability
to visualize relationships
4. Memory Factor (M) – ability to memorize material quickly and recall (associative memory)
5. Word Fluency Factor – ability to think of isolated words at a rapid rate/ to produce words correctly
6. Reasoning Factor (F) – ability to discover or find a rule or principle governing a series or group of
materials
7. Perception – ability to see differences and similarities among objects

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Joy Paul Guilford’s Model of the Structure of Intellect
- proposed a 3-dimensional structure of intellect; every intellectual task can be classified according
to a combination of any of the following:
a. Content – has five categories: visual, auditory, symbolic, semantic, and behavioral
b. Mental operations – has six categories: cognition, memory (retention and memory recording),
divergent production, convergent production, and evaluation
c. Products resulting from operations – six categories: units, classes, relations, systems,
transformations, and implications
Take an example of an intellectual task which is to add 4-digit numbers in mathematics. To
apply Guilford’s model of intellect, the content of the material is symbolic in nature; operations
needed to carry out the task is convergent production because the individual has to put together the
different data or information given and add these to be able to solve the problem; and product would
be units.
Philip E. Vernon’s Hierarchical Theory
- This theory tries to bridge the gap between Spearman’s and Thurstone’s theories which view
intelligence as occurring on the extremes. For example, Spearman asserts that there are just two
abilities, the general ability and the specific abilities; while Thurstone claims that mental operations
can be grouped and are bound by a common primary factor. On the other hand, Vernon contends
that intelligence can be described as comprising abilities at varying levels of generality, as follows:
a. The highest level: “g” (general intelligence) factor with the largest source of variance between
individuals (Spearman)
b. The next level: major group factors like verbal-numerical-educational ability
c. The next level: minor group factors are deduced from major group factors
d. The bottom level: “s” (specific) factor of Spearman
Cattell-Horn Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence Theory
- fluid aspect asserts that intelligence is a basic capacity due to inherited genes
- crystallized theory is the capacity resulting from experiences, learning and environment
Hunt (1995, in Theories of Intelligence, n. d.) contends that human intellectual competence is divided
into three dimensions:
a. Fluid Intelligence – the mental efficiency and reasoning ability associated with brain
development. It has neurophysiological underpinnings related to changes in volume of the brain.
Fluid intelligence increases until late adolescence and declines gradually with age.
b. Crystallized Intelligence – ability to bring previously acquired often culturally-defined problem
solving methods to bear on the current problem. It is the ability to apply problem-solving methods
appropriate in the cultural context. In there, the problem solver knows the method and recognizes
they are relevant to the current situation. Crystallized intelligence can increase throughout the life
span.
c. Visual-Spatial Reasoning – a somewhat specialized ability to use visual images and visual
relationships in problem-solving.
Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences Theory
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- Gardner identified eight components of intelligence (Chapman, 1996 & Lazier, 2000). He asserts
that we are all born with the potential to develop a multiplicity of intelligences. He argues that these
intelligences are distinct from each other, and that each person has some level of each of these
intelligences. He asserts that these intelligences are most often overlooked and not tested by
researchers and psychologists, like those skills and abilities valued in different cultures.
Intelligence Description of that Intelligence Examples of Occupations
Component Using that Intelligence
Bodily/Kinesthetic The ability to use one’s physical body Dancers, athletes, acrobats
well
Interpersonal The ability to sense other people’s Salespersons, PR persons,
feelings and be in tune with them politicians
Intrapersonal The ability to know and have a deep Psychologists, therapists,
understanding of one’s own mind and counselors/wise elders/ monks
body, and be aware of one’s own
desires, feelings and motives
Verbal/Linguistic The ability to communicate well, orally Poets, writers, orators
and in writing, perhaps in many
languages
Logical/ Mathematical The ability to learn science and Mathematicians, engineers
mathematics; to handle complex, logical
arguments
Musical/Rhythmic The ability to learn, perform and Musicians, composers
compose music
Naturalistic The ability to know and understand Biologists, naturalists
different species (recognize patterns in
nature)
Visual/Spatial Ability The ability to know where one is relative Surgeons, sailors and
to fixed locations; to accomplish tasks fishermen charting the sea
requiring 3-dimensional visualization; to without navigational aids
imagine and manipulate visual objects
in one’s mind
The theory of Gardner has implications for teaching using project-based approach. For
example, in creating teams to do a project, a teacher may select a team whose members comprise
the “highest” or the biggest pool of talents or abilities as identified, and thereafter encourage dividing
specific tasks in line with specific high levels of talents found in the group. That way, each member
of the group will have a specific contribution to the accomplishment of the project. Another strategy
would be to allow those with highest levels of intelligence in a certain component to work in another
area, to encourage development of knowledge and skills in other areas.
Robert Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence
- considers intelligence as a mental activity directed towards purposive adaptation to selection, and
shaping of real-world environment relevant to one’s life. He thinks Gardner’s multiple intelligences
are better viewed as individual talents (Ormrod, 2015)
- asserts that intelligent behavior us an interplay of three factors, namely:
a. Environmental context in which behavior occurs
b. The way in which previous experiences are brought to bear on a particular class
c. Cognitive processes required by the task

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Sternberg focused only on three domains, namely (“Theories of Intelligence,” n. d., Ormrod,
2015):
1. Practical Intelligence – ability to do well in formal and informal educational settings,
adapting to and shaping one’s environment; street smarts
2. Experiential Intelligence – ability to deal with novel situations, ability to think in novel
ways, ability to effectively automate ways of dealing with novel situations so these are easily
handled in the future
3. Componential Intelligence – ability to process information effectively. Metacognitive,
executive, performance, and knowledge acquisition components that help steer the thought
processes
In a sense, Sternberg’s approach to the field of intelligence is similar to that of Gardner.
However, the focus of Gardner lies in identifying specific intelligences aligned with academic
disciplines or occupations, while Sternberg focuses on helping people develop components of
intelligence that will help them perform best in whatever they do.
Sternberg believes that intelligence can be improved with study and practice. Some of his
work focuses on “street smarts” versus “school smarts". He believes people are good and talented
in one of these areas, but not on the other. This has to do with the idea that the type of learning
acquired out of school is different from that acquired in school. Hence, teachers who are skillful in
using project-based approach to teaching and learning can help students design projects consistent
with their learning abilities and interests.
David Perkins’ Analysis of Research Studies on the Measurement of IQ and Programs for
Developing Better IQ
- Strongly supports Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. He came up with the assertion
that intelligence has three major components or dimensions
1. Neural Intelligence – attributed to the efficiency and precision of one’s neurological system. A
high level of neural efficiency and precision can be achieved if at the time of pregnancy, the mother
was on vitamins and other nutrition supplements or did not use drugs, alcohol, or was not exposed
to dangerous or toxic chemicals and substances.
2. Experiential Intelligence – refers to one’s accumulated knowledge and experience in different
areas. It is thought of as the accumulation of one’s expertise. People who live in rich or stimulating
environments comparatively have an intellectual advantage over those who live in less stimulating
environments.
3. Reflective Intelligence – refers to one’s broad-based strategies for learning, for attacking
problems, and for approaching intellectually-challenging tasks. This is the ability for reflective
persistence, systematization, and imagination, self-monitoring, self-regulation, and self-
management.
Perkins wrote in 1992 that education can be considerably improved by more appropriate
teaching focusing on higher-order-cognitive skills and the use of project-based learning. Again, this
suggests the importance of practice, training, and experience in improving intelligence (Moursund,
1999).

Jean Piaget’s Theory of Intellectual Development

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- asserts that the developing child builds intellectual structures or schemas, mental maps of
networked concepts for understanding and responding to physical experiences in the environment.
A child’s cognitive structures grow in sophistication as he grows older and as he gains experience
with his environment.
Following are Piaget’s stages of intellectual development:
1. Sensorimotor Stage (approx. 0 to 2 years): The child learns through reflexes, senses and
movement. The child’s thinking involves seeing, hearing, smelling, moving, touching, tasting, and
the like. Through constant interaction with the environment, the child builds a set of concepts about
reality and how it works. The child does not know that physical objects exist even if they are not
seen (object permanence).
2. Preoperational Stage (approx. 2-7 years): At this stage, the child begins to develop language
and begins to use symbols to represent objects. Generally, he thinks in the present and has difficulty
with the past and the future; cannot yet conceptualize in abstract terms, and needs concrete physical
situations to understand; has difficulty understanding the point of view of another person.
3. Concrete Operations Stage (7-11): As physical experience accumulates, the child starts to build
logical structures that explain his physical experiences; starts to solve problems not only with
concrete objects, but with abstract ideas as well; understands past, present and future; can think
logically about concrete problems.
4. Formal Operations Stage (11-15): By this time, the individual has developed mental structures
that enable him to do abstract reasoning; can think hypothetically and deductively; can solve
problems in logical fashion; thinking approximates that of an adult and includes conceptual
reasoning.
As a way of understanding better the theories that explain the nature of intelligence, an
attempt has been made to categorize and come up with a system and put in proper perspective
what intelligence is all about. This categorizing process looks at theories of intelligence as belonging
to two groups: factor theories and cognitive theories of intelligence.
Cognitive Theories Factor Theories
Faculty Theories Uni-factor Theory
Spearman’s Theory
Thorndike’s Multi-factor Theory
Thurstone’s Primary Abilities/ Group Factor
Theory
Guilford’s Model of the Structure of Intellect Vernon’s Hierarchical Theory
Cattell-Horn’s Fluid and Crystallized
Intelligence Theory
Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences Theory

What have been presented are definitions and theories of intelligence. At best, they are
abstract ideas, which mean that the concept of intelligence needs to be further studied. However,
Gardner made an attempt to define intelligence and its components in terms of behavioral indicators.
These are behaviors presumed to indicate or suggest the presence or absence of those intelligence
characteristics, and which are observable. However, the study of intelligence has reached a more
advanced stage, than reliance on behavioral indicators by the development of tests or tools that
measure it. Thus, intelligence tests, whose validity have been established by their developers,
should be a more reliable and scientific way of measuring intelligence. However, such tools or tests
are not readily available in schools. So, in the absence of these tools, the teacher can use behavioral
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indicators of intelligence to get a feel as to where their students are, since these indicators are
grounded on the corresponding theories developed.
In many ways, intelligence provides the “foundation” for the thinking processes in learning
like, thinking, knowing, and problem-solving. It defines what one can or cannot learn. In other words,
how learners’ approach and deal with various learning materials depends to a certain extent on their
level of intelligence. These make up for individual differences in how learners learn. To emphasize
a point, all these theories of intelligence attempt to explain the nature of intelligence, and its
importance should not be overlooked because it impacts on the teaching learning process. A teacher
should be able to consider the abilities of his students when planning for instructional materials and
experiences; and in implementing them in the classroom. Knowing that there is such a concept as
individual differences, teachers would be able to adjust, and address different needs and abilities of
students with appropriate classroom experiences, and learning materials.

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