Blog Post # 12

For this week's blog post we were asked to create our own assignment in our field of study for future EDM 310 students. I am an Elementary Education major, and I am minoring in English. I decided on an assignment that not only would fit with my minor, but one that may also be used by educators of any level.

Metaphor Scavenger Hunt

Locate 5 metaphors having to do with Education. These metaphors can refer to any subject from technology in the classroom to a particular area of study. Metaphors can allow us to see things in a completely different light. We can learn from metaphors, however, everyone interprets differently. Metaphors shape behavior,create realities and roles. Read each metaphor and briefly summarize what the metaphor means and/or is referring to in your opinion. Include a link to where you found each metaphor in your summary.

1) Teacher's Mind Resources
"Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel." -Socrates
This metaphor refers to a similar idea we use in EDM 310 with eliminating "burp back education." Students truly learn by experiencing the lesson on their own. As educators, it is not our job to pour information into the minds of our students simply to have them just repeat it back. We are educators, not programmers of robots. By comparing Education to the kindling of a flame, Socrates is simply saying that as educators we must encourage our students to possess the desire to learn on their own. We are there to guide them in the right direction. Our students are dependent on us to be role models of  self- learning. They rely on us as a flame relies on fuel ,such as wood, for a fire to burn.

2) Teacher's Mind Resources
"A Lesson is a journey, knowledge is a landscape."
Knowledge is a landscape across which the learning journey travels. As we learn, we are essentially on a journey. A journey takes us on an adventure on which we learn from our experiences. We take a journey across an unknown landscape, and we learn from the lessons we experience in our educational journey across a landscape of opportunity.

3) Metaphors in Education
"Teachers are engineers of the soul."
As educators, we are to guide students in the right direction to be successful. One must possess the desire deep within, such as in the soul, to truly believe in themselves that they can be a success. A teacher is responsible for fostering a passion for learning in their students.

4) Teaching International Students
"A good teacher is a shepherd who tends to his sheep."
This metaphor is somewhat self- explanatory. A good educator cares about his/her students. In order to be a good educator, one must put their heart and soul into a love for teaching. If a teacher's heart is not in it for the benefit of the students, then the students will mimic this behavior.

5) Teaching International Students
 "Education is light, lack of it is darkness."
Education opens the door to new opportunity. Without education or learning, we would be essentially "sprinting just to stay in place." Education allows us to make a path for a new journey. Education brings new ideas to light that otherwise may have gone unnoticed.