The pedagogical value of conceptual metaphor for secondary science teachersShow others and affiliations
2018 (English)In: Science Education, ISSN 0036-8326, E-ISSN 1098-237X, Vol. 102, no 5, p. 1051-1076Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
The abstract nature of energy encourages metaphorical language. In educational settings, teachers and students use conceptual metaphors subconsciously to express their ideas about what energy is or how it functions in particular scenarios. However, research on scientific analogies and metaphors has predominantly focused on explicit instructional analogies, rather than implicit, everyday metaphor. In professional development for secondary science teachers, we sought to make explicit the embeddedness and ubiquity of conceptual metaphor in everyday language and in scienceparticularly, in energyto expand teachers' understanding of their students' ideas. In our microcase study, we observed and video recorded four secondary teachers discussing metaphor. We used interaction analysis methods, focusing on how both discursive and nonverbal interactions between people, objects, and environment change over time, to analyze the collected data. We found evidence of teachers' (1) learning about conceptual metaphor theory and (2) finding value in understanding conceptual metaphor in educational settings. In particular, teachers acknowledged that if they identify implicit metaphors in students' science language, they will better understand students' ideas about energy. We present possible mechanisms for teacher learning about and valuing of energy metaphor; we also suggest how to support teachers in noticing and valuing metaphors for energy instruction.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
John Wiley & Sons, 2018. Vol. 102, no 5, p. 1051-1076
Keywords [en]
Conceptual metaphor, energy, secondary science teachers
National Category
Educational Sciences
Research subject
Physics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:kau:diva-69402DOI: 10.1002/sce.21451ISI: 000444545400007OAI: oai:DiVA.org:kau-69402DiVA, id: diva2:1251495
2018-09-272018-09-272022-03-30Bibliographically approved