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Concept maps provide a graphic representation of organised knowledge domains (Novak 1991; 1995). They consist of a set of labelled concepts represented as a series of nodes linked to other related concepts through a series of labelled lines which designate the nature of that relationship.

Novak has developed a concept map, which describes the structure of concept mapping

While traditionally concept maps have been conceived as hierarchically structured a range of other models have also been proposed which include web, chain, networked and cyclical structures (Safayeni, Derbentseva, Cañas, 2003)

Concept maps have been used widely in both curriculum design and course delivery (Coffey, Carnot & Feltovich et.al. 2003) to both clarify and evaluate the structure of course content and to provide a schematic overview of subject content.

Concept mapping in curriculum design

The following list of advantages in using concept maps for curriculum design, is drawn from a range of studies (Allen, Hoffman, Kompella, & Sticht (1992 ); Dyrud 1994 ; Edmondson 1993; and Martin 1994), and was prepared by the Grayson H. Walker Teaching Resource Center at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

• By constructing a concept map, you can see areas that appear trivial, that you may want to drop from the course.
• You can discover the themes you want to emphasize.
• You can understand how students may see or organize knowledge differently from you, which will help you better relate to the students and to challenge their ways of thinking.
• The mapping process can help you identify concepts that are key to more than one discipline, which helps you move beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries.
• Concept maps help you select appropriate instructional materials. You can construct a map that incorporates teaching strategies as well as time and task allocations for various parts of the course.
• You can visually explain the conceptual relationships used for your objectives in any course.
• You can facilitate efforts to reconceptualize course content.
• Rather than being a traditional course plan that assumes students will integrate learning, concept maps depict the intentions of faculty -- the integration you expect to occur.
• You can use concept maps to provide a basis for discussion among students and to summarize general course concepts.
• Concept maps support a holistic style of learning.
• Mapping concepts can increase your ability to provide meaningfulness to students by integrating concepts.
• Concept maps can increase your potential to see multiple ways of constructing meaning for students.
• Mapping the concepts can help you develop courses that are well-integrated, logically sequenced, and have continuity.
• Concept maps help "teachers design units of study that are meaningful, relevant, pedagogically sound, and interesting to students" ( Martin, p. 28).
• Concept maps help "the teacher to explain why a particular concept is worth knowing and how it relates to theoretical and practical issues both within the discipline and without" (Allen, et al).

Concept mapping in student learning

Concept maps have a variety of uses in the classroom. They may be used to provide general overviews of content or specific details of individual lectures. They can also be used as a self reflective learning tool to help monitor change and development in student learning.

In their extensive review of the literature on concept mapping in education Coffey, Carnot, Feltovich, et.al. (2003) suggest that the theoretical underpinning of concept mapping dovetails with current research on deep/surface approaches to learning (Ramsden 2003:47)

The motivation for the creation of concept maps came from Novak’s wish to follow and understand changes in children’s knowledge of science. Novak (1991) was aware of Ausubel’s (1963) very important distinction between rote learning and meaningful learning, and he hoped to encourage meaningful learning in children through the use of concept maps. Novak suggests that Concept Mapping is powerful for the facilitation of meaningful learning because it serves as a way to help organize and structure knowledge. (Coffey, Carnot, Feltovich, et.al. 2003:63)

They suggest that while many of the positive benefits attested to in studies of concept mapping may also be accrued to a range of similar interventions concept mappings particular strength is its focus on building relationships.

When Concept Mapping is compared with other sorts of activities such as outlining or defining concepts that also can induce the learner to take a thoughtful, systematic approach to engaging subject matter, the positive benefit often diminishes. However, even in these situations, it appears that Concept Mapping is especially good, in comparison to other interventions, for the learning of relationships among concepts. Understanding concepts and their underlying relationships is widely held to be necessary to the acquisition of flexible, generalizable knowledge. (Coffey, Carnot, Feltovich, et.al. 2003:64)

In their conclusions Coffey, Carnot, Feltovich, et.al. (2003:64) make three other significant points:

• Better results are achieved when concept mapping is used as an integral, on-going feature of the learning process, not just some an isolated “add-on” at the beginning or end.

• Concept mapping appears to be particularly beneficial when it is used in an on-going way to reinforce other educational experiences.

• Concept mapping should be sued as an active engaging “educational event” the teacher/facilitator challenge students to explain, justify, and formulate questions in the course of building a concept map.