Concept Maps

A concept map is a special form of a web diagram for exploring knowledge and gathering and sharing information. Concept mapping is the strategy employed to develop a concept map. A concept map consists of nodes or cells that contain a concept, item or question and links. The links are labeled and denote direction with an arrow symbol. The labeled links explain the relationship between the nodes. The arrow describes the direction of the relationship and reads like a sentence.

Uses:

•      Develop an understanding of a body of knowledge.
•      Explore new information and relationships.
•      Access prior knowledge.
•      Gather new knowledge and information.
•      Share knowledge and information generated.
•      Design structures or processes such as written documents, constructions, web sites, web
•      search, multimedia presentations.
•      Problem solve options.

Critical Questions:

• What is the central word, concept, research question or problem around which to build the map?

• What are the concepts, items, descriptive words or telling questions that you can associate with the concept, topic, research question or problem?

Suggestions:

• Use a top down approach, working from general to specific or use a free association approach by brainstorming nodes and then develop links and relationships.
• Use different colors and shapes for nodes & links to identify different types of information.
• Use different colored nodes to identify prior and new information.
• Use a cloud node to identify a question.
• Gather information to a question in the question node.

Useful Links:

Concept Mapping Home Page: http://users.edte.utwente.nl/lanzing/cm_home.htm

How to Make a Concept Map: http://www.coun.uvic.ca/learn/program/hndouts/map_ho.html

Steps in Concept Mapping: http://trochim.human.cornell.edu/kb/conmap.htm

Graphic Organizers: http://www.graphic.org/concept.html

Landscape Map: http://w3.aces.uiuc.edu/AIM/Discovery/Graphics/mary-map.gif

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My email: ellen@psu.edu