(Alberta Journal of Educational Research, 2007) Mutonyi, Harriet
This article looks at the importance of student-generated analogies, metaphors, and similes
as an entry point into their understandings of HIV/AIDS. In addition, it argues that
analogies, metaphors, and similes are good tools for eliciting students’ prior
understandings of HIV/AIDS, especially matters relating to sexuality that are often
figuratively communicated in many Ugandan cultures. It posits that students’ prior
knowledge determines how they respond to messages about HIV/AIDS. The article
suggests that in order to prevent vulnerability to HIV/AIDS among Ugandan youth,
learning should be viewed as a process of conceptual change so that students become active
participants in their own learning process.
