Two Model Approach to Learning

Sfard (1998) suggests that it is easier to concentrate on the metaphors underlying learning than the individual theories of learning to understand the concept of learning and the practice of both students and teachers. She opines that the educational research is caught between the acquisition and participatory metaphors. The acquisition metaphor explains learning as gaining of knowledge or development of knowledge through concepts and building on the existing understanding by refining the conceptual maps. The learner is the empty ‘vessel’ that needs to be filled and upon learning will own that knowledge. This is evident in the language used to explain learning and the processes of teaching and learning. ‘The idea of learning as gaining possession over some commodity has persisted in a wide spectrum of frameworks, from moderate to radical constructivism and then to interactionism and sociocultural theories.’ (Sfard 1998, pp 6)  The various suggestions by researchers cover following approaches to learning –

•             Passive reception of knowledge by the learner

•             Active construction of knowledge by the learner

•             Concepts transferred from social to individual plan and internalised by the learner

•             Continual process of development through continual interactions with the environment.

The key words in the participatory metaphor, on the other hand, are practice, discourse and communication and the learner is more interested in participating in certain activities instead of just accumulating knowledge. Sfard (1998) explains that, in the participation model, learning is about the process of becoming a member of a community by speaking its language, functioning under its rules and negotiating meaning with the other members. ‘The participation metaphor has a potential to lead to a new, more democratic practice of learning and teaching.’ (Sfard 1998 pp 9) The participatory metaphor appears to emerge from the problematic philosophical paradox. How can we arrive at new knowledge if we do not know what we do not know yet? This stems from the issue that knowledge is seen to be something that is being acquired and so is objectified. By removing this objectification and making the process that of ‘knowing’, the boundaries placed by objectification have been removed. Thus the metaphors appear to lie at the opposing ends ontologically.  The process by which the learning takes place allows for the use of the continuum between the metaphors. 

  The Metaphorical mapping - taken from Sfard (1998, pp 7)

While the benefits of participatory metaphor are clear it is not appropriate to disregard the acquisition metaphor as the very idea, of preparing to face future situation and the concept of competence, is based within the idea of acquisition of knowledge which allows us to transfer knowledge from one situation to another. Also by focusing on the participatory metaphor alone, where knowledge is contextual the methods of teaching are focused, making students members of communities of practice. This is now leading to a problem where there is gradual disappearance of well defined subject matter as meaning is negotiated within the community and new comers learn to become members of the community, which is not usually subject specific, as the very functioning of the community is multifaceted.

The other issue which necessitates using both metaphors is that educational practices when prescriptive to only one, can be detrimental ‘because no two students have the same needs and no two teachers arrive at their best performance in the same way, theoretical exclusivity and didactic single-mindedness can be trusted to make even the best of educational ideas fail.’ (Sfard 1998 pp 11) She also suggests that the same is true for the theories of learning. That which uses both metaphors appears to be stronger theory as it brings forward the strengths of each while holding back the weaknesses. If this is the case where the learning theories do not neatly fall within one or the other model and the best theory seems to be one that addresses both the models there is a need to explore other paradigms which may better explain the educational pedagogy for particularly online learning and teaching. 

The aspects that one has to keep in mind from Sfard’s metaphors are – active construction of knowledge, development through interaction and concepts transferred from social to personal understanding from the acquisition metaphor and learning through participation to become part of a specific community from the participatory metaphor.  This ensures that instead of viewing learning at opposing ends of the paradigm we see it as a combination of ways in which people learn in reality.

Reference

Sfard A, 1998, On Two Metaphors for Learning and the Dangers of Choosing Just One, Educational Researcher, 27 (2), 4 – 13.