Published: January 1, 1995

Intelligence Report

On paper, Celia fell somewhere in between. She was good on almost every traditional measure of success but not outstanding on any one. But rather than fall somewhere in the middle of her class at Yale, Celia proved to be a standout. Her talent was adapting well to the demands of her new environment and figuring out what was expected of her. She was, in other words, "street smart,'' Sternberg says.

Most educators know students like Alice, Barbara, and Celia. Sternberg, however, coupled his experiences with these students with extensive readings in psychology and other fields and came up with what he calls his "triarchic theory of intelligence.'' In simple terms, it holds that intellectual ability takes different shapes--not all of which are captured by the traditional means schools use to measure it.

In addition to Alice's analytical kind of intelligence, Sternberg suggests, people also possess creative intelligence, which allows them to cope with novelty, and practical intelligence, which enables them to apply what they...