I am interested in researching the power of metaphors in articulating a process that is largely internal.
I love to write, and metaphors are a powerful tool for a writer to help the reader understand a concept. But how would metaphors help a learner? And do they always need to be written down? Or can they have the same power in movement and art?
My proposed 'experiment' is this: at the end of class, to tell everyone to think of metaphors that describe the process of this course, and to do it through writing, visual art, or movement. Then I would like everyone to present their metaphor in class and have a discourse on the results. I might record this as well.
What I want to know is if the process helped anyone work through the difficult nature of this course? or did it even help refine one's question? What medium did you use, and why? Or was this not helpful at all?
I want to know because I imagine in my future work that I will be working with organizations that are having difficulty articulating the methods and process of their arts based projects, and need to for a grant or the like. I want practice in working with a group as well.
Love it!
ReplyDeleteWhen we did the context maps with teachers in our Ford research, and then they described them, it was really rich and revealing. Later, I remembered using metaphors (in the Barrington Stage example) and I wished we'd used metaphors because I think they draw out much more information. I think your plan is excellent. I wonder if you could do it a couple times (as in--right now) to capture different aspects of the process. Plus you'll have material to work with in the studio sessions