Dewey is my tree's trunk, sturdy and solid. To me, Dewey's theories about education seem to be the most all-encompassing and commonsensical. It seems like most of what we're learning about in this program are tenets of his beliefs, i.e. child-centered activities, planning curriculum around children's interests and your observations, etc. When climbing my tree, I will always start by putting one foot on the trunk, so Dewey is kind of like my foundation. Once I climb a little higher, I am presented with some options: I can climb onto the branches of either Montessori or Vygotsky. When I climb onto Montessori's branch, I view the world from a child's eyes. That is, I am reminded that children are little adults who can think, reason, figure, decide, and act for themselves. When I climb onto Vygotsky's branch, I put on my hardcore teacher hat (I was already wearing my teacher headband, obviously), but now I'm considering with the utmost care and consideration what each of my students' ZPD looks like and thinking about how I can scaffold to effectively accommodate and support them all. There is a certain way that I can place one foot on Montessori's branch and one on Vygotsky's; when I get in that position, the view is amazing and I can see very far.
The tree produces fruit that I can eat. (Of course it does, I made it up!) There are two types of fruit: Eriksonberries and Pinepiagets. Both fruits ripen at different paces and taste differently in different stages of ripeness. Eating Eriksonberries over the changing seasons reminds me of the eight stages of psychosocial development of children. (It's also true that if I eat too many Eriksonberries too quickly without chewing them enough, I'll usually have to deal with them later...ick!) Pinepiagets also develop different tastes as they go from underripe to ripe to overripe. This reminds me of the different stages of cognitive development that children undergo. Chewing on a concrete-operational pinepiaget (that's fancy orchard talk for fruit that has ripened for 6 to 12 years) helps me think through potential roadblocks or challenges that many of my students encounter in their own thinking. Both fruits give me perspective as I try to understand what my students could possibly be thinking (or not thinking).
Let's not forget about the roots! So important. Kohlberg is my root system. To me, morality is one of the most fundamental and wonderful aspects of being human. No matter whether we are teachers, cops, astronauts, doctors, bakers, or executives, we are connected by the fact that we are all people. Even though I don't necessarily see them or think about them, my morals are always at the base of anything I say or do. They reach out into the soil like roots, collecting experiences like water and nutrients, which feed my moral development. It is often a subconscious development, just as roots are subterranean.
This is NOT a perfect metaphor, but it somewhat represents my thinking thus far!
Olivia- Your metaphor is insightful, clever, and entertaining all at the same time! You do an excellent job incorporating the theorists and how you plan to use their teachings in your own. I especially enjoyed the way you "climb" your metaphor, continuing your journey and learning!
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