I feel that environment is what influences the intelligence of people and not genetics. I believe this to be true because even if the parents are smart they are teaching their kids the importance of education and showing them their study habits. Because the parents are smart they have the upper hand to learn from their parents which is the environment not genetics. If teachers believe that genetics determines the students fate then why teach kids if their genetics will allow them to be smart.

I agree with you Ashley. Yesterday in class I found the lecture interseting. Actually last night at dinner with my roommates we were talking about intelligence and how they thought it came from genetics as well, so I told them what we had talked about in class that day and how environment plays the big role in a child's life. I can say that it is environment from a personal stand point. My father did not graduate from high school and my mother just got her high school degree. So if it does come from genes then I should not be in college from most peoples eyes. So i do believe that environment is a huge role in childrens lives.

I agree with you both. I think that the environment is one of the largest factors, not genetics. There are many kids who have come from supportive and resourceful homes where the parents are not seen as "intelligent". But because of the environment, maybe support from the school, teachers, or the community, the students have succeeded and done well. I also think your individual situation plays a large part as well. My dad didn't graduate from high school either. He had to get a job to help support his family. Many people would look at him, call him a dropout, and judge him as "unintelligent." However, he is actually a very intelligent person and now owns his own business. I think that environments and situations, not genetics, definitely affect and control your success and achievement in life.

I too feel that environment is the most important factor in producing intelligence in kids. However, I also think that genetics cannot be overlooked. Look at kids with special needs, in many cases genetics cause these problems. I don't think you can discount genetics, even if they play a very small part. Also, just because some of our parents did not graduate for high school does not mean they are unintelligent. Plenty of smart people are not cut our for school, that does not mean they are not as smart as someone who graduates, they might just be intelligent in other ways.

I think you brought up a great point Adam, in that just because a person does not graduate from high school or a university does not mean they are not intelligent. People are exposed to different experiences and opportunities in their environments that create knowledge. That's why it's so important for children to have positive parents, teachers and mentors that expose them to many educational opportunities from a young age.

I agree that the environment (positive influences from parents, teachers and peers) has an effect on one's intellegence or ability to learn. I arrived at this conclusion by the direction of disproving the idea that genetics have total influence over a person's intellegence. For example, two intellegent adults (maybe they have master's degrees) get married and have a child. There is always the chance that this child could be mentally handicapped for some reason. If this child took an IQ test they would be deemed "unintellegent", but the parents are intellegent, aren't they?
Would it not be as likely for "unintellegent" parents to have a child raised in a spectaular school that turned out intellegent?

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Audrey Fowler

I think it also comes down to what intelligence is. There are plenty of individuals with mental handicaps who are incredibly intelligent. I think it is interesting that so many people seem to be equating a mental handicap with unintelligence. To me intelligence is much more than that. Many an individual is not very good at math, yet is excellent at music. To me they are intelligent.

Anyway, yes I believe that environment has a huge pull on success in school. If you have support from parents or a teacher or someone who will sit down and work with you because they care about you then you are very likely to perform well in school.

Abby i agree with you in that mentally handicap does not equal unintelligence. Kids with Autism are extremely intelligent they just don't learn they same way as typical kids learn. Just because someone is not "normal" does not mean we should label them unintelligent. They just have a different way of doing things and living life!

I feel like this thread is converging with the thread on IQ tests, which really reflects how interconnected and complex these topics are. With my previous post I incorrectly equated IQ with intellegence. Why? Because that is what the test is made out to be in our world. This is one of the problems of IQ testing, it only reflects so much about a person.

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Audrey Fowler

I'm glad that this thread brought up the point that intelligence isn't necessarily doing well on an IQ test. Some of the most intelligent people I know never did well in school. There was one particular guy I went to school with who didn't always make good grades because he was "too smart" for the work. The work was so easy for him that he just wouldn't do it, or he would try to make it harder than it was. I think this is a prime example of the flaw of equating intelligence with success in the classroom or on a test.

I agree that the environment has a strong influence on a person's intelligence. Just because a child is born of parents with low IQ's doesn't mean that the child is stupid or is doomed. The more children are exposed to things and the more resources that are available, the more that child is able to learn. If parents or another role model spend time with a child, working with them, reading and writing with them and so forth, the more that child is able to learn. Even children who have difficulty learning will bloom and be more successful with encouragement from those they look up to and love.