The metaphor that I think works best for me is “learning is like a tree, it’s ever expanding”. This metaphor is probably a very popular one as it seems rather fitting to me. My take on it may be slightly different from others however.
The basics, or fundamentals, are rather simple. The tree starts out as a seed, an infant if you will, and then grows rather quickly from a seedling (early childhood) to a sapling (middle childhood), from a young tree (teenager/young adult) to an adult, and then eventually living out the rest of its life. Learning is vast in the beginning, building up our cognitive schemas or what I like to call ‘knowledge structures’. To me these represent the trunk of a tree; it’s sturdy and carries us through our life. As we grow, just like a tree, our knowledge structures expand based off our experiences and the information that we are exposed to. We develop branches that include skills such as critical thinking, math, reading, writing, and higher cognitive functioning. These aren’t just skills, or branches, they are a part of who we are and how we interact with the world around us.
There are many elements that can be incorporated into this metaphor. For example, the seasons represent different periods of intellectual growth (such as the spring for learning something new or the winter for contemplation and processing). The different animals and plant life that would inhabit our tree could represent the different life stages such as career changes, relationships, psychological development, and so on. All of which is connected to learning and expanding our knowledge structures.
Tori,
ReplyDeleteI would like to build upon the tree metaphor by introducing the effect that the environment has on the growth of the tree. The growth of the tree will depend on the amount of water, various weather conditions, soil, and other growing related needs and conditions. This also is true for the learner in that a supportive school and home environment will assist the student’s intellectual development. Individuals learn from their experiences, and the environment provides a vast array of learning experiences.
Also, this relates to the nature vs. nurture concept. Both factors are significant in the process of learning. There are different philosophical camps on the impact of nature (genetics) vs. nurture (environment) in the growth and development of children. Genetics and the environment have an impact on learning and the tree, and many times it becomes unclear of the influence of one upon the other. I enjoyed reading and thinking about your tree metaphor.
-Karen
Excellent points Karen! Yes the nature versus nurture discussion is usually a lively one in my classes. I tend to lean a bit more towards nurture when it comes to learning, but also think the instinctual/innate element is important. It was difficult to describe and explain this metaphor in roughly 250 words because there was so much more I wanted to go off on a tangent about. I'm glad we are able to expand on the discussion here though.
ReplyDeleteWow, what an excellent metaphor, Tori. I love that you chose something organic. Learning is always happening, just as a tree is always growing, and everything we learn works together just like all the parts of the tree. I particularly like your point about how rapidly a tree grows when it is young and how it fills out as it ages. I also like your comment about how important it is to have a strong trunk. If a tree gets a disease in its roots or trunk, nothing will be healthy on the tree. It's a great analogy for how important learning is in the early years. Karen extends the metaphor well, too. All in all, I think this metaphor works really well.
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