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Case Study: Visual Metaphors

Attribution

Original work: "Educators' guide to multimodal learning and Generative AI" — Tünde Varga-Atkins, Samuel Saunders, et al. (2024/25) — CC BY-NC 4.0
Adapted for UK Nursing Education by: Lincoln Gombedza, RN (LD)
Last Updated: December 2025

Concept​

Asking students to generate an image that represents a concept can reveal their depth of understanding.

The Task​

"Generate an image that represents 'Holistic Care'."

  • Student A generates an image of a nurse holding a hand. (Focus: Empathy).
  • Student B generates an image of a puzzle being put together. (Focus: Multidisciplinary Team).
  • Student C generates an image of a tree with deep roots. (Focus: Social determinants of health).

Example Student Output: "The Roots of Health"​

Holistic Care Tree A student-generated image representing how "unseen" roots (social factors) support the visible tree (patient health).

Discussion​

The class discusses why they chose those metaphors. The prompt engineering reflects their conceptual framework.