Multiple Intelligences (MI) In Education And Multiple Intelligences In Agriculture (MiA) – The Bests Are Yet To Be!

The idea of “multiple choices” is prevalent neither in E­ducation nor in Agriculture neither in the Philippines nor elsewhere – as a Teacher and Agriculturist, I have always wondered why. I came to know about Multiple Intelligences (MI) in 2011(?) when I learned about Cahbriba Alternative School (CAS) and sent my children there  - Neenah, Edwin and Ela – to study via the new educational paradigm called “Multiple Intelligences” (MI) that was brainchilded by Harvard psychology professor Howard Gardner. Here is my list of MI:

1. Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence (“Body Smart”),
2. Creative Intelligence (“Thinking Smart”), added by FAH,
3. Existential Intelligence (“Life Smart”),
4. Interpersonal Intelligence (“People Smart”),
 5. Intrapersonal Intelligence (“Self Smart”),
6. Mathematical-Logical Intelligence (“Number/Reasoning Smart”),
7. Musical Intelligence (“Music Smart”),
8. Naturalist Intelligence (“Nature Smart”),
9. Spatial Intelligence (“Image Smart”), and
10. Verbal-Linguistic Intelligence (“Word Smart”).

I sent my children to Cahbriba, and Neenah cultivated her Body Smarts; she is now into Dance – while Graciela cultivated her People Smarts; she is now a high school teacher at the Potter’s School in El Nido, Palawan.

Today, I think of “Multiple Intelligences” when I scan my personal list of the world’s Regenerative Agriculture (RA) practices totaling 13:

(1) Cover Cropping,
(2) Crop Rotation,
(3) Farm Crops + Tree Crops (Agroforestry),
(4) Green Manuring,
(5) Intercropping,
(6) Multiple Cropping,
(7) No-Till Farming,
(8) Organic Fertilization,
(9) Ratooning,
(10) Rotational Grazing,
(11) “Three Sisters” Planting,
(12) Trap Cropping, and
(13) Trash Mulching.
(bottom image from natural.com)

Now then: I call my RA list Multiple Intelligences Agriculture (MiA) to parallel Harvard psychology professor Gardner’s list of Multiple Intelligences shown above.

With MI, individual students’ learning becomes a pleasure;
with MiA, individual farmers’ earning becomes a treasure!

I don’t know but: Equally, both RA and MI are being brushed aside, bypassed, ignored, neglected, overlooked, or shrugged off! By our agriculture columnists, educators, universities, department heads, and legislators.

That science has long been neglected and declining in England, is not an opinion originating with me, but is shared by many, and has been expressed by higher authority than mine. – Charles Babbage

There is only one thing in life worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about. – Oscar Wilde

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. – Edmund Burke

Ignore the noise of the world, and you will find the symphony within. – Kiat

When you ignore the negativity around you, you give power to the positivity within you. – Jay Shetty

Each of the 13 MiA practices guarantee Very Low Costs=Very High Returns (VLC=VHR)! The Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA) is neglecting Filipino farmers by not declaring an MiA-based PH Agriculture and providing all sorts of assistances – technical and financial – to the farmers. Chemical agriculture is very high costs-very low returns (VHC=VLR). MiA: No expensive chemicals, neither fertilizers nor pesticides. We must choose VLC=VHR over VHC=VLR!

Our DA leaders should connect MiA with the fact that the Philippines remains the #1 rice importer in the world!@517