Deciphering a Code or Unraveling a Riddle: A Case Study in the Application of a Humanistic Metaphor to the Reporting of Social Studies Teaching

Abstract

This paper identifies two difficulties in the task of deriving metaphors from the humanities and applying them to the social sciences: the large number of alternative characteristics that may be available for transfer from any humanistic source, and the lack of understanding shown by receivers of metaphors. To solve these difficulties, the notion of a deliberately designed metaphor is outlined. A case study of such a metaphor derived from drama and applied to a social studies lesson includes the text of a written review and a set of guidelines for the system of discourse and method of reporting. A conclusion relates the case study to the current research literature on humanistic metaphors in educational evaluation.