Teaching Metaphors to Scientists: A Mixed Methods Approach

Abstract

Teaching STEAM students from the perspective of technical and professional communication presents an opening for diverse pedagogical strategies to help develop more well-rounded STEAM students. The strategy discussed in the following article utilizes Conceptual Metaphor Theory in the classroom to help students learn to ground their research through experiences that are relatable to wider audiences. Lakoff and Johnson discuss at length that good and potent metaphors and, by extension, communication are grounded in experiential frameworks. Using experience as a starting point for teaching STEAM students as well as Technical and Professional Communication students is one of the ways we can develop better scientific communication. In addition to this entry point, the methods in this project take a more quantifiable conceptual approach to research in order to help legitimize the study of language on a very technical level. These techniques can be taught in a writing classroom as well as engineering and science writing classrooms to produce critical analysis that blends STEAM with writing in interesting ways.