About the Book
Most people in the West believe that education is relatively fair today, and gives equal opportunity to all children. After all, the social barriers of an earlier time have disappeared and children are not discriminated against according to their background. There is, however, a deep mechanism behind this that lingers from an earlier time that does create discrimination, and does prevent all children from gaining equal opportunity in school and so in life. This mechanism lies in the cultivated belief we have today that a child is born with a quality of intelligence that can be known, and that this is directly linked to the socio-economic background of their parents. 'The Hidden Secrets of Intelligence' explains why a child's intelligence cannot be related to the intelligences witnessed in members of their family line. As it does so, it brings into question the whole concept of the Intelligence Quotient, or rather I.Q. as we have come to know it, and so brings realisation that we make a great mistake when we talk about the IQ of a person or how food effects IQ. IQ is only an idea that intelligence can be measured. It gives no suggestion as to what intelligence is or how it forms.Yet, because of the way we have been cultivated to think, when we use the term IQ we do think of intelligence as being largely inherited.
To understand how the myth of a measurable intelligence arose, this book examines how Galton stimulated the idea of inherited ability, as a political weapon to counter the rise of early socialism in the 19th Century. From this, it explains how Galton led Spearman to create the idea that intelligence is a singular feature of the inherited mind, which we still hold to today, as a means to enable it to be measurable. This led Pearson to devise his system of comparison that claims to show, but does not, the relationship of the genes to the environment in intelligence. To bring balance to this, the book explains how the French scientist Binet created a simple test to differentiate normal children from those who may be retarded, and never created the intelligence test said of him, for he fervently believed intelligence could never be measured.Yet, it was only by corrupting Binet's one to one verbal assessment into a written Yes or No questioner, that enabled Goddard and Terman in America to be able to index human intelligence on such a massive scale that they were able to politically structure their society as they did.For it was through their work that the Scholastic Aptitude Test or SAT later came into being, which American education today functions through and operates about.
The book builds upon this procedure to explain how the British, through their empire, had steered global education to follow their social and so political policies, and how this role was taken over by America after the Second World War through the prestige she acquired as the new superpower. While the British had built global education upon social ability, the Americans inspired a belief that 'any child could do anything'. The format of their examinations, however, which really controls the whole process, were little different to those used by the British, with the outcome just as predeterminable through the level of language and the subject matter chosen.As this is understood, so is a deeper meaning to education gained and a realisation as to what we could change to give all children a better life.In a book that explains why it is never possible to know the inherited value of the intelligences of any two normally born children, 'The Hidden Secrets of Intelligence' introduces a whole new view of what intelligence could be. It is very important that we consider this, because if intelligence is not what we think it is, then the way we educate children is wrong!
About the Author :
Roy Andersen has been devoutly committed to improving education for over 30 years. He has experience of numerous and diverse work situations, and has travelled to over 30 countries and lived in 4. He is deeply interested in how children learn, and equally concerned with the striking changes of this century, which he believes will redesign not only our thoughts upon people and work, but also our social patterns. Both of which, he believes, are totally ignored by educational planners in their preparation of the future citizen. In general terms, he is interested in the stabilization mechanics of a civilization: The role of past-religion and current-media. The geographical, cultural, economic, military and social forces that give each people their identity. How our identity has been shaped by past technologies and how it may be shaped by futuristic ones. At school, Roy did very badly and completely failed all his final examinations. He left school at 17, with no qualifications. However, 3 years later, he went back into education and this time passed the same examinations, but all now with distinction. He went on to marine college and was recognized as the top student, qualifying with near 100% passes in all his examinations. For many years, these differences in his ability puzzled him. Yet, it was only in moving to Denmark that a chance arose for him set aside all other considerations and in reflecting upon his own experiences, try to understand how children learn and how they could be better taught. To this end, he embarked upon academic studies in genetics, neuro-psychology, bio-chemistry, social anthropology, social and cultural behavioral skills, intellectual, mental, nervous and muscular disorders, principles of learning, the management and teaching of education, the planning and employment of human resource, political science and molecular technology. In the course of which, he studied under Professor Reuven Feuerstein, at his world famous academy for teaching and learning principles in Israel and qualified as a specialist in this methodology. The culmination of these efforts, spanning over 20 years, are represented in the five books he has written about how children learn and how education works. Roy has been a teacher for over 30 years in Europe and Japan. In the later case, he taught widely from infants to scientists, as well as working as a lecturer in the renowned Ibaraki Medical University for 8 years. Since 1995, he has lectured widely on his theories and findings in Denmark, Sweden, England, Russia, Israel, Italy, Hungary and Japan. He is a qualified teacher in the Feuerstein Cognitive Training System and to the blind. He is a specialist in dyslexia and teacher to children and adults with learning problems. He lectures and has written articles on: Pre-natal Development, Infant and Child Learning, Educational Systems and Procedures, The Importance of Feedback in Learning, The Child, The Teacher and Their Systems, Human Resource in Society and The Effect of Technology on Social and Educational Polices. In 1998, his first book Can Children Learn Better? was published by Ungtryk in Denmark. The Illusion of Education, The Hidden Secrets of Intelligence, The Brain Environment Complex' and Preparing Education to Serve a New World: The Global Citizen represents nearly half a century of a personal struggle to understand the purpose of the citizen in the society in which they live.
Review :
"Roy, These are four very important books that should be read by every parent and educator in the world." Dean David Martin Ph.D Gallaudet University Washington, D.C. USA "The most important books I have ever read about a child's intelligence." Prof. Tatyana Oleinik, Pedagogical University, Ukraine "Dear Roy. These books should be in the library of each school in every corner of the world. They should also be part of the syllabus in the institutions who are offer child psychology, and teacher training diplomas and degree programs, or at least they should be the part of a refresher course." M.Imran Khan Director of Educational Training Saudi Arabia. "Roy, your writing is beautiful. It is as if I read a novel by Jane Austin. I am fascinated and very much impressed. These books should be the "BIBLE " of every educator. I learnt so much from your books. I have read many, many books and articles about education and these four books are the BEST !!! You are so profound. The books answer many questions that every educator asks ." Helen Hadar-Hen Headteacher Israel. "Roy: These are very important and interesting books, with lots of valuable points for parents and teachers. They bring learning and education to a whole new level. Well done!" Prof. Mads Hermansen. Denmark. "Roy...thank you! I started reading the first bits and was immediately hooked (this does not happen often, maybe once a year, I'm SUPER fussy about books, I've read too many...). You are a fantastic writer, not just because your info is of obvious high quality (just skimming a bit made that obvious) but the way you write too - it's warm and entertaining and easy to read - no wonder you have such high applause from your critics!" Lydia Cooper Mother of 3, South Africa. " Roy, I would like to thank you for sharing your passion, heart, brilliance, and intellectual journey with me. I am very much enjoying your knowledgeable perspective on some very important challenges." Christopher John. psychologist. USA. "Roy: I appreciate your time, energy and effort in this research." Erin Calhoun.National Institute of Learning Development. USA "Roy I am enjoying your work immensely. It has been taking me longer to read than I had imagined because the of the weight/importance of your thoughts.I can see how thorough and current your research is, andI expect thatthe works in their entirety will draw together many threads and weave them into a rich texture of powerfully stated knowledge. I have not had to put this much time into reflection and soul searching since Iread Janov's 'The Primal Scream' and 'The Feeling Child' way back in the 70s." Leigh Ann Collinge Educator Australia. "Dear Roy I really like your way of writing. Your narrative writing style captures me as a reader in your universe. Do you keep some lectures in Europe over the summer? I would really like to attend a lecture. I might learn something from you." Lone Birgitte Skov Jensen Psychologist Denmark.
