Teacher as a Jigsaw Puzzle Piece(edge piece)

My Metaphor by Carrie Chipmana work in progress

School Home

Work

Learners

Teachers

Parents

Friends

SportsStudies

Mentors

The foundation pieces (4 Corners) The boundary pieces (Edge Pieces)

•Parents•Teachers•Mentors•Etc

The interaction pieces (Middle Pieces)•Studies•Sports

•School Life•Home Life•Work Life•Etc

The Bigger Picture

•Learners•Friends

Edge Puzzle Pieces and Teachers

•Edge pieces of jigsaw puzzles offer guidance much like a teacher does. •They take on the leadership role by structuring the boundaries .•They both help to create the desired result and provide helpful direction

advice. •Guidance is provided by aiding to plan and comparing workflows.•Edge pieces introduce problem solving skills, risk taking and responsibility.•They are innovative and offer many opportunities for learning by trial and

error.•Both provide options to develop individually or as part of a group.•Depending on the learner, both can provide part or full pictures to learning.

End thoughtsGozzi (1996) wrote the following quotes:

1. “You start, of course, with a large pile of randomised pieces. Thousands of them. It looks hopeless. Disorder reigns supreme.”

I believe as teachers, we will all have days were this appears to be the case. The randomised pieces of course being the new students at the start of the year, or the days leading up to a long awaited holiday or Christmas.

2. “In life, our fantasies, theories, ideologies are the pictures on the box. We try to put together the pieces of our lives so they will match these dreams.”

All we can ask of the students is to think about their own futures, to be able to learn how to learn and how to find the knowledge needed to create these dreams and then fulfill them.

3. “It is interesting to watch as individual pieces disappear when they are fit into place. At first, there is a clear shape waiting to be filled. We search for a piece with a good fit. Many are close, but do not fit. Then, when we find the right piece, it goes in effortlessly, and blends in so quickly that a gestalt is formed. We no longer see the piece which a moment before we were so glad we found. It has become another part of the growing context, as we work in from the edges.”