The Mystery of Metaphors

A Paper in the Use of Metaphors in Teaching Sociology

Lewis Simpson

About Me

• PhD student at the University of Leeds in Sociology

• Heavily influenced by Bauman’s sociology

• University Centre Grimsby - Sociology

• Leeds Beckett University – Criminology

Lakoff and Johnson (1980; 5)

“the essence of metaphor is

understanding and experiencing

one kind of thing in terms of

another”.

Hviid Jacobsen in Davis (2013:19)

“…metaphors are ways with which to navigate

in and organise a complex and changing world

of immense possibility. Is this perhaps the

reason why some sociologists … find

metaphors so intriguing to work with?”

Rationale

• Common practice within the discipline of sociology

• Students need to discuss complex language of social science without past knowledge

• Double hermeneutic for students (Giddens, 1982)

• First task for any student is to do battle with the most commonly used term ‘society’

• But there are more to grasp! Capitalism

Reflexive Modernity

Related Theories

• Metaphors as a method of cognitive mapping (Trepagnier, 2002), allowing the learning of ‘radically new knowledge (Petrie, 1979)

• Two types associated with education (Sfard, 1998)

• Acquisition metaphors - knowledge as commodity, linked to behaviourism (Olafson & Schraw, 2006)

• Participatory metaphors - self-reflection and participation - links to ‘community of practice (Lave and Wenger, 1991) and constructivism (Vygotsky, 1978)

An Example

What Student Thought

• Students were asked to

complete a small

questionnaire

• Mixed methods applied

• Purposeful use of

Appreciate Inquiry

(Michael, 2006)

• 43 students responded

Statistical Findings

• Always = 32.6%

• Often = 58.1%

• Sometimes = 7%

• Rarely = 2.3%

Are metaphors Helpful?

• Planned = 7%

• Spontaneous = 76.7

• Mixed = 16.3%

Spontaneous or Planned?

Qualitative Findings

• Table to explain social

theories

• Cultures as ponds and

subcultures as fish

• Garden as a form of

modernity

• Family Guy

• Fried egg as capitalist

society

• The shopping trolley of life

• “Because it was funny and the

class was involved”

• “Because it was spontaneous and

fun and something that can be re-

delivered in other classes”

• “Because it was visual and funny”

• “Because it was a group

discussion and everyone took

part”

• “Because we did a task on it and

this explained if further”

Most Recognisable? Why?

Opening Up the Debate

• Where should the construction of metaphors be in the

class room; teacher or student?

• Metaphors can both be applied in a spontaneous way and

planned way; with students still achieving a similar

experience

• Humour and movement; increases experience and

rememberability - involves all students

• How to apply metaphors to teaching to give students the

greatest experience and bigger impact on learning

Conclusions

• Metaphors help to ‘break-down’ the barriers caused by

academic language

• Focus needs to be shifted from look at metaphors as a

teaching tool to a student experience

• Experimenting with spontaneous student metaphors

• Applying more interactivity to build seminars and activities

Creative Changes to my Practice

Bibliography

•Davis, M. (2013) Liquid Sociology: Metaphors in Zygmunt Bauman’s Analysis of Modernity. Surrey: Ashgate.

•Giddens, A. (1982) Profiles and Critiques in Social Theory. London: Macmillan.

•Hviid Jacobsen, M. and Marshman, S. (2008) ‘Bauman’s Metaphors: the Poetic Imagination in Sociology’. In

Current Sociology, Vol. 56, No. 5, pp. 798-818.

•Lakoff, G. and Johnson, M. (1980) Metaphors we Live By. London: University of Chicago Press.

•Lave, J. and Wenger, E. (1991) Situated Learning: Legitimate Peripheral Participation. Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press.

•Michael, S. (2006) ‘The Promise of Appreciative Inquiry as an Interview Tool for Field Research’ in

Development In Practice. 15:2, 222-230, DOI: 10.1080/09614520500042094

•Mouraz, A., Vale Pereira, A. and Monteiro, R. (2013) ‘The Use of Metaphors in the Process of Teaching and

Learning in Higher Education’ in International Online Journal of Education Science, ISSN: 1309-2707.

•Olafson, L. and Schraw, G. (2006) ‘Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices Within and Across Domains’. In

International Journal of Education, Vol. 45, pp. 71-84.

•Petrie, H. (1979) ‘Metaphors and Learning’. In Metaphor and Thought, pp. 438-461.

•Sfard, A. (1998) ‘On Two Metaphors for Learning and the Dangers of Choosing Just One’. In Educational

Researcher, Vol. 27, No. 2, pp. 4-13.

•Trepagnier, B. (2002) ‘Mapping Sociological Concepts’. In Teaching Sociology, Vol. 30, No.1, pp 108-119.

•Vygotsky, L. (1978) Mind and Society. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.