Easily construct meaning for your EAL learners by tapping into what they already know and using it to fix new information in their minds

‘Using Analogies to Make Meaning’ EAL Strategy: Explanation and Rationale

Analogies are a means of reasoning.

They make claims through comparison, using this to demonstrate similarity.

A good book is like a garden waiting to be explored.
Life is like a rollercoaster. It’s full of ups and downs.
Explaining a joke is like dissecting a frog. When you’ve finished, the magic is gone.

The inference is that the similarity which is shown extends to the thing in question more widely.

This gives insight into what it is and how it should be classed, as well as more specific elements such as its structure or specific features.

Analogical reasoning looks like this:

A is similar to B.
Therefore, there is reason to treat A in accordance with how we treat B.
We can use our knowledge of B to explain A. To make sense of it.

Analogies are useful because they convey meaning in a different sense to formal reasoning or detailed explanation.

They have a visual element to them, make use of existing knowledge, and play on our abilities to recognise patterns (specifically, patterns of similarity).

They can help explain complex ideas quickly and easily.

The explanation may not be total, but it will usually be sufficient.

And they are a very effective way of anchoring new knowledge by connecting it to existing knowledge.

For example, if I tell a learners that calculating the volume of a cylinder is a little bit like pouring a can of coke into a glass, I am immediately hanging the new thing I want the learners to do (calculate the area of a cylinder) on something with which I know they are already familiar (pouring a can of coke into a glass).

When working with EAL learners, it can be helpful to use analogies.

The greatest benefit comes from the leap in understanding that analogies facilitate.

Because they rely upon the prior knowledge of the audience, they to some extent circumvent the more elaborate, and sometimes tortuous, expositions that are often associated with complex or unusual ideas.

In addition, they can articulate clearly and precisely things that are difficult to formulate through extended speech or writing.

Analogies offer a shortcut.

An instant expression of complex information.

Rooted in our prior knowledge.

Analogies do the work of many words and can act as a booster to understanding for EAL learners.

Here’s an example from GCSE Sociology:

Functionalists see society as being like a human body. The different sections – education, the family, the police – are like the organs. All work together and complement each other. This means the whole system runs smoothly. If one thing breaks down, it affects the whole structure.

The analogy here is that, for functionalists, society is like the human body.

The analogy fits because society, like the human body, is made up of many parts, each of which is important and each of which has its own function to perform.

Equally, in both society and the human body, if one part breaks down there are consequences for the rest of the system.

In this analogy, the teacher is using something with which learners are familiar (the human body) to explain something that is new to them (the functionalist theory of society).

Here’s a second example:

The road network in the United Kingdom is like the circulatory system in human beings. In both, a collection of differently sized channels let bodies travel to their destinations.

Again, we have an analogy that uses the human body as the hook on which to hang new information.

The advantage of this is that everyone has experience of the human body.

Therefore, it is almost guaranteed that any audience will be able to understand the analogy.

Here, the fit is good.

And that is crucial in whether an analogy works.

If the fit is good, learners will see the relationship. If the fit is bad, it won’t work.

You need to think carefully about the analogies you use with your EAL learners. Tap into their existing knowledge. Use references with which they are familiar.

And when you land on a really good, really apt analogy, keep hold of it. You’ll be able to use it many years into the future.