The mind is a muscle to be exercised:
We interpreted this metaphor to mean that when the mind is exercised on a particular function repetitively, it becomes stronger (i.e. more able to perform that function with less effort). This is the reason, we thought, why math teachers have us do so many repetitions of mathematical exercises.
The mind is a cavern to be illuminated:
One way we interpreted this metaphor was that there is possibly much already in the mind, and that our job is to discover what is already in there. Plato, in fact, thought this was true. All learning, to him, was remembrance.
A teacher who teaches by the cavern metaphor might be the kind who "gives us a light" or an opportunity to explore the reaches of our minds.
The mind is a cup to be filled.
This metaphor made us imagine that our mind can be filled with information from an outside source. as a pitcher fills a cup. However, this metaphor also suggests that the mind can be completely filled until there is no room left
The cup metaphor also made us wonder why information leaves our brains. Does it evaporate? Are our cups actually sieves? Also, what happens when a teacher dispenses information and we don't receive it? Is it the teacher's fault (being the pitcher) or the student's (being the cup)?
We decided that a teacher who worked by the cup method would tend to lecture a lot or insist that a student receive all his/her learning from a book.
The mind is a garden to be cultivated.
In order for a garden to grow, we said, many elements must combine: sunlight, water, air, seeds, soil, rain, etc. We thought that this could represent the variety of subjects and approaches we need in order to create a proper learning environment.
However, a garden doesn't tend itself. It needs a caretaker actively cultivating the garden. We decided that this cultivator isn't the teacher, it's the student. The teacher can bring seeds, fertilizer, etc. to the garden gates, but the student must do the work to make them grown.
We noted that the garden type teacher might be the kind that uses all of the mind metaphors: providing opportunities (the light in the cavern), information (pouring water into the cup), and exercise.
