Grading the Education Metaphors
By Rob Anderson - Sep 2nd, 2008 at 3:36 pmAt the education panel I blogged about earlier today, a few of the speakers decided to break out some pretty hefty metaphors to explain the state of America’s education system. Some of them were as effective as a FEMA official in New Orleans. Or, in other words, they could have used some work. I thought I’d grade some of the metaphors as I would if I were a ninth grade English teacher:
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty: Declaring that “we live in an iPod world,” the governor explained that we need solutions that will reform our education system just like the iPod changed how music is played on the radio.
Grade: B-
Reason: Let’s give him some credit for at least trying to sound hip with the kids, but, to understand his metaphor, I would first have to understand how the iPod transformed radio stations. Anyone?
Rev. Al Sharpton: Comparing the Republican and Democratic Parties to abusive parents, Sharpton proclaimed that “Our children cannot be the children of a battered marriage.” There was more about vows, divorce, and broken marriages.
Grade: B+
Reason: He got his point across, but he probably could have used a more sensitive comparison to make it.
Former Speaker Newt Gingrich: In the first of two Olympic metaphors, Gingrich noted that you can’t look at the world records of Olympic athletes in the 1950s to judge the success of today’s athletes. The same goes for our education system, he argued (i.e., we need new ways to determine whether or not our schools are succeeding).
Grade: A+
Reason: The comparison actually makes sense, and it even refers to a popular event that is still on many Americans’ minds.
Former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer: In the second Olympic reference of the afternoon, Romer said: “If we had the Olympics of math, we wouldn’t be first in line.” We’d “be 25th in line,” he added.
Grade: C
Reason: What would the Olympics of math look like, and why would we be standing in line in the first place?
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