I have been interested in the application of concept mapping (since ‘mind mapping’ is a trademark name) to learning for some time. I have worked with students using Kidspiration and Inspiration, as well as Smart Ideas.(The websites for these tools provide lots of educational information.) Students take to this tool/technique of organizing their tasks quickly […]
Continue reading Minds On…. mapping Posted in: Week 09: Visual-Intensive Learning
Hello Group 9; I have to admit that I have not used mind mapping much as a student or as a teacher, even though I have been introduced to it a number of times by different people. ETEC 512 was one of the first times I really had to hash out a comprehensive mind map […]
Continue reading Mind Mapping as a Tool Posted in: Week 09: Visual-Intensive Learning
Dennis: I also have used Prezi’s as a learning activity within my Technology Education grade 10 class. The ability to integrate video, audio, and text in interesting and appealing formats does enhance the learning environment. By providing students with the opportunities to use such software to expand their thinking and reasoning skills, they are gaining a technological competency needed within the 21st century market.
Dani
Hi Group, Thanks for the informative overview and great examples of mind mapping! What Makes a Good Mind Map? As you have illustrated through your examples, good mind maps use linkages to show how the facts/information relate to each other. The importance of certain points is highlighted through the use of a larger font. The […]
Continue reading What makes a good mind map and classroom uses of mind mapping Posted in: Week 09: Visual-Intensive Learning
Debroah: Thank you for including your ideas of how mind mapping could be used withint he classroom environment. I appreciate that you included assessment. I too think that it would be a great option for visual learners!
Dani
Dani,
In my experience, students really enjoy choice and would much rather do anything on the computer versus pen/pencil and paper! I will definitely be sharing Cacoo with my students and my colleagues.
Thanks,
Deborah
Well done Week 9 Group! I have used mind mapping, fairly extensively in other courses (both Prezi and C-Map), but have not explored the Learning Theory as extensively and as eloquently as you have presented to us. So I thank you for that. My reflection is based on how online mind mapping can be […]
Continue reading Well done Week 9 Group! I have used mind… Posted in: Week 09: Visual-Intensive Learning
HI David,
I would have agreed with you completely about the benefit on a personal level versus collaborative work until I joined in the collaborative map. I found I could still add my own personal connections within the map as it developed. More importantly I found myself more embedded in the mapping exercise and teasing out the group’s other connections more than if I were just looking at the map. Whilst I agreed with some and would have changed other linkages or ideas, they all made me reflect more than I woudl have on my own.
A useful exercise
Denise
Hi David,
I agree with you most except the last point. I think by collaborative mind mapping, we can not only illustrate our own knowledge patterns, but also have them verified and extended by other group members. We can also verify our untested understanding with other’s existing maps, to confirm, add or change them. This process of thinking is more inspiring and efficient than thinking by oneself. After the collaboration, one can certainly develop his own mind maps, not waterred down by others, just to show what’s exactly constructed in his mind.
I do have experience that some maps I made were changed by other people in unexpected ways, but I would change them back if I disagreed, and I was more glad to see the untouched part in my maps, because they are verified and safer to remember since then.
Thanks for your insight reflection! Thank you too, Denise!
Ping
Denise and Ping,
Thanks for your thoughts/responses. You’ve encouraged me to reflect further on my experiences with mind maps, and to the extent that prior to now, all of the mind maps I have completed have been individual and until this time I have not participated in a collaborative one. I see how adding other people’s voices can validate what you may have deemed as important while pushing you to see ideas from other vantage points and looking at things that you might not have otherwise considered on your own. As Ping points out, you can always make individual mind maps from the collaborative piece.
David McInnes
Hi Group 5: I enjoyed your presentation on mind mapping software. I’ve always thought of concept maps as learning tools but you’ve used it quite effectively as a teaching tool. As a science teacher, I would rate concept mapping as one of my top educational tools to engage students in deeper thinking and metacognition. I’ve […]
Continue reading My experience with mind mapping Posted in: Week 09: Visual-Intensive Learning
Hi Tim,
Thank you for sharing your experience with mind mapping with us! As you have said, mind mapping is a great tool to pull ideas together and organize thoughts. It might be a bit weird of an analogy but it reminds me somewhat of the pensieve in Harry Potter (the instrument used to review memory) as it does have the advantage of letting you see your past thoughts at a glance and hence make easier connections that way.
It is interesting that you mentioned a map comparison function for computer generated maps. How do you envision this would look like? I am interested because when I read that comment, I was trying to imagine a way of doing it. The only way I could think of that would work is that the mind map would have rigid structure to allow for easy comparison that the computer would recognize. The different versions must share some commonalities, such as wording, for the computer to be able to sort the nodes and compare them effectively. Am I understanding what you proposed correctly? This could possibly be the next venture in mind mapping 🙂
Sherman
Hi Sherman:
Yes, the versions would need some commonality but not necessarily as rigid as you imply. I think two ways that this could be done would be to use tags consisting of related words; possibly smart-tag suggestions from a database in the program as the mind map is being created. Another way would be to simply compare the maps to a database containing synonyms and other related words to see if similar connections are being made. With a growing ability in computer analytics, I should think this to be possible.
Tim
Hi Tim,
I have used mind maps/webs in very similar manners to those you described. I appreciated your distinction between using them for learning and for teaching. I think this is the first time I have seen them used as instructional tools, rather than as formative assessment tools. I hadn’t formally made that connection until you mentioned it. Thanks!
Janet
Hello all, First off all, great presentation week 9 group. I enjoyed the ‘who are we’ section a lot. Added that human connection to the presentation. I’m not sure if I’m too earl to post but anyways, just thought I’d share some ideas…. Where do you see it (mind mapping) going in the future? As […]
Continue reading the benefits of mind mapping…. Posted in: Week 09: Visual-Intensive Learning
Hi Regen,
It’s never too early to post! Sometimes it’s just better to put your thoughts on paper (or on screen) before you forget about them.
In regards to your venture idea, I find the concept of segregating users by interests, beliefs and opinions interesting. When you mentioned that, I immediately thought of the timeline layout in Facebook…. a much more delinearized version of it though, where people would be posting their thoughts, experiences, comments etc on a single, centralized topic. I wonder how that would be regulated though. Do you have any thoughts on that? Or is it necessary to be regulated even?
Sherman
Hi regen,
One of the things I like about Prezi is that you can explore the mapping on your own, or you can follow a structured pathway and then explore. I feel this allows for the complexity and busyness of some visualisation formats to be moderated, and for individual preference.
Denise
Everybody likes to take notes especially if we want to work on an assignment or task. The notes will help us arrange our plans. What if the notes became visual? Definitely the task will be much easier to grasp and control. We are all visual learners and putting our thoughts into a visual framework […]
Continue reading Welcome to Week 9: Visual Intensive Learning Posted in: Week 09: Visual-Intensive Learning
Impressive work week 9 team.
It is fascinating to see the variety of applications for mind mapping in education. I am particularly interested in mind mapping for assessment so will start exploring it. Your visual EVA is quite impressive.
Looking forward to exploring cacoo and contributing the the collaborative mind mapping.
Leonora
Thank you, Leonara!
We had a lot of fun making the EVA collaboratively. It’s an amazing process to see our thoughts speading out structively and visible to everybody. I think “mind mapping for assessment” is a very interesting topic. Why not you just drop a concept in our collaborative Cacoo map, and our peers will gather around and think with you together? Waiting to collaborate with you.
Ping
Hi Ping.
I can see the Cacoo map is coming along really well. For some reason I can’t edit but I will keep trying.
Leonora
Hi Leonora,
To edit the Cacoo map, click the edit button in the bar located just above the different tabs showing you the different mind maps we have. Once clicked, a new window will open with a map that you can edit. Please let us know if you run into any other problem 🙂
Sherman
Thanks Sherman,
I was able to log in and edit.
Leonora
Very interesting presentation Week 9 team! One of my favourite topics and there is so much to learn here. I am amazed at the detail and content provided in the concept maps you have presented. I had just connected to Cacoo and look forward to exploring this tool – collaboratively. Helen
Well done group 9!
I find concept maps/ mind mapping such great tool for collaboration. I am not in the K-12 system, but will use mind maps when I’m trying to figure out a departmental issue in my department in higher education. Recently, we’ve been working on a series of maps to illustrate to students the different paths they can take (in terms of course planning and registration) – I have to say, working on these maps is one of the more fun tasks of my job.
Thanks!
Lisa
Hi Helen and Lisa,
Happy to hear that you like mind mapping. Please come to the Cacoo map, the collaborative mind mapping has already started there!
Ping
Hello!
I must confess I have not used many mind maps – I usually find them confusing and time consuming to construct . . . perhaps it is the aps I have been using so far. Cacoo certainly looks interesting and provides many ways to create mind maps. I certainly hope that by the end of week 9 I will feel more comfortable using mind maps! Like Lisa, I am not in the K-12 system and find that as a FSL I don’t really have much use for mind maps. I do need to use them within this MET program so I hope to learn a few tricks to add to my learner tool box.
Marie-France
Hi Marie,
I think your problem with mind maps might more likely because of the program, not a best one maybe. Try this one Cacoo. And certainly it’s not the final version. Tools are evolving fast. The feeling you find them “confusing” might because a visual intensive diagram transfers too much information at one time to our brains, and dazzled us a little at the beginning. I think maps still needs to be “read”, just follow the links and navigate at ease, you will find the mind map convey meaningful information to you much quicker than texts. It’s a tool for thinkers, no matter in what professions they are.
Ping
Hi Ping,
I think you are right, I have been using the wrong mind map tools and that is likely why I found creating them so confusing. In comparison, I find that Cacoo is easy to use, and I love the fact that one can also work collaboratively at a project. In my last ETEC class I tried to find a mind map program that would allow this type of co-editing and just could not find one.
Although I don’t work within the K-12 world I can certainly see how this collaborative feature could be used when class-mates need to build mind maps together.
Being very visual, I think I like the idea that you can add symbols or pictures instead of just wording (which I often find overwhelming). I also believe that since mind maps created by individuals speak to them in a specific wa, this is why some maps may not appeal to others.
It takes lots of practice I think to make a map clear enough that others can really benefit from them. Now that I have tried Cacoo, I can see how I could create a mind map that describes to my FSL students the memorization process of a second language works. With this in mind, I would need to create something that is visually appealing and easy to understand, using key words and images.
Marie-France
I have used mind maps in order to help make clear connections between concepts and to brainstorm ideas. However, I find that they are very personal and the exercise in completing a mind map can be more valuable than the mind map itself. Although I can appreciate the connections made by others, I learn better by doing, as do most people. They are effective in helping one see relationships and can be a great study skill in many subjects areas; history being one that immediately comes to mind. C-Maps is a program that I have used and find to be quite versatile and has a few functions which clean up a messy map with one click. They can easily get out of hand so this is a nice feature.
I have not used, or even heard of Cacoo so thanks for the introduction to a new program and experience. I am actually having difficulty editing the mind map which is part of the activity. I can see the diagram on Cacoo, I select the “edit” button, and although it says “loading diagram” I see nothing…on any of the pages. I have tried signing up for the site and it does not seem to make a difference. I am just checking to see if anyone else has the same problem or if it local (me).
Thanks,
Bridget
i agree. i find visual learning tools like mind maps are very personl. My expereince of using them in MET was valuable (used Cmap and Vue) as a learning and reflective exercise. When we shared our end results it was very easy to see that they were highly personal and that many of us had highlighted different areas or made different connections. it was easier to have viewed other people maps once I had done my own, it woudl have been overwhelming if the maps had been shown completed, and without the personal experience.
Problem solved. At the bottom right is an icon that said I was offline…..must be online to see or edit. All is fine.
Bridget
Hi Bridget,
Glad to know that your problem was solved. You’re right that mind mapping is kind of personal, and the doing process is more valuable for the author than for the reader. In my own experience, a good mind map should also be easier to understand, and should contains as many visual-intensive elements (image, graphics, video etc) as possible. However, I find many mind maps are still text-intensive, only link-and-arrow flow charts. It’s certainly not enough.
Ping
Hi Ping,
Well, I guess I just got lucky that one time. i cannot see the diagram at all once I click “edit”.
Bridget
Hi Bridget,
You need to sign in before click “edit”, otherwise the editable maps will not show. Just check your sign in status (on the top-right corner) before click “edit”. If you still have problem, please let us know here or in our trouble-shooting google doc.
Ping
HI Ping,
I do wonder whether too many visual intensive elements might cause cognitive overload?
Denise
Hi Danise,
You raised a very good question. I think visual intensive elements might cause cognitive overload if they carry too much extra information than what to be expressed. Unlike texts that have been defined accurately by dictionaries, we have little standard to restrict the exact meaning of an image/graph which are created personally. I think in the future we could develop richer stencils, visual dictionaries etc. to assist the mind mapping, to make it more accurate to express, and easier to understand.
Ping
Thanks for the wonderful examples! I haven’t used mind maps much, but I can certainly see their potential. I especially like the notion of using pictures or graphics to get things to “stick” better than simply using words. I look forward to exploring more throughout the week.
Deborah
I think that mind maps are useful tools, that can help learners not only make connections between a variety of disparate and often complex ideas, but also to organize their own thoughts and creative process. Admittedly I had a little trouble getting Cacoo to work like I wanted, but I know that there a plenty of other great tools out there for learners to use both cloud-based and software based.
Cloud-based collaborative concepts make have a lot of potential to engage a large number of learners and help them to think differently than if they were to just pursue a concept map on their own.
One of the issues I see with concept maps it that many times the users can be overwhelmed with the number of possible options and clickable features found in digital concept map tools and then attempt to use them all. This then makes the maps overly complicated and distracting. Anyone have a good “one-sheet” for approaches to creating concept maps for learners?
Hi Dave. It’s not a one page ‘cheat sheet’ but this link may have the answer you are looking for. http://www.flaguide.org/cat/conmap/conmap7.php
Hope it helps. Concrete suggestions for implementation and evaluation in content heavy subject areas. Helen
Hi Group 9
Thank you for the innovative and interesting mind maps you have presented. I have only used mind maps myself in courses in the MET program. I have also used simplified mind maps in the grade 3 classroom to facilitate student brainstorming and for exit cards in science. The ability for students to use pictures and text have opened independent brainstorm sessions to students who have difficulty contributing with written output.
I look forward to further explorations through the collaborative mind mapping activity.
Valerie
Hi Valerie,
Hopefully this week’s presentation and learn lots more about mind maps. I do think that computer mind mapping has a potential for younger grade levels, so be sure to share what you think with us after you have done your exploration!
Cheers,
Sherman
Hi Grp 9.
Veyr well thought out and visually impressive presentation. I have provided the option for students in the class to use mind maps to help with ideas and brainstorming sessions. If students have acces to the computer, they choose to use Kidspiration/Inspiration. What I really like about Kidspiration (Inspiration is the adult version) is that the user can browse through images and use the visual for the map. If students choose not to use mind maps, they think of creative ways of transcribing the information. Mind Maps are another great tool for educators to show their learners as a way of collecting thoughts or In the MET program I have used mind mapping, and although I found the program that was selected for us to use frustrating to navigate, I still enjoyed the process .
Thanks again group!
Jon
Hi Jon
Inspiration is definitely a useful program. I have also used Mind-meister with my classes as it is web-based and setup a class account/password so that they could collaboratively build a concept map.
Hi there!
I’ve come to post an answer to one of Week 9’s discussion questions: “What makes a good mind map?”
To me, a good mind map allows the reader to both see the big picture and focus on details with relative ease. It facilitates comprehension and retention of information and indicates clear links between ideas. It groups bits of information into manageable chunks – neither scattered bits of data, nor long rambling paragraphs. A good mind map is well-structured. If, by contrast, it is overwhelming and distracting, the reader might actually experience a temporary drop in IQ (Visocky O’Grady & Visocky O’Grady, 2008). Sometimes a written report or a PPT presentation is more effective than a mind map for communicating information, so the content and the format need to be matched properly.
Here’s a blog entry that explains map shock, which is a term to describe the sense of visual information overload:
http://blog.modellearning.com/blog/2011/4/25/map-shock.html
Here’s a blog entry about designing effective visual graphics:
http://www.johnrandle.co.uk/graphic-design/information-design/
Here are a variety of very effective infographics that you can select from the roll-down menu at the top right, where it says “Select Visualization”. Note that some examples are interactive.
http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/the-hierarchy-of-digital-distractions/
Visocky O’Grady J. & Visocky O’Grady K. (2008) The information design handbook. Cincinatti, OH: HOW Books.
Cheers,
D
Thanks you everyone in Week 9 for this excellent presentation “Visual Intensive Learning – Mind Mapping for K-12 Learning.” I really enjoyed viewing the presentation and learning about the mind mapping. I find it interesting that in Britain, it is called “spidergram” and “spidergraph” instead. Thank you also for introducing Cacoo as part of this visually enriching presentation. I certainly enjoyed creating my own mind mapping activity. What a great interactive idea! Kudos for thinking of it.
Allan
Thank you to all in Week 9. I was very impressed with the amount of information you were able to present not only textually, but visually as well. I quite enjoyed playing around in Cacoo and will most certainly add it to my growing collection of teaching and learning tools.
gillian
Hello week 9 group,
It is interesting to look at a cooperative mind map since each person needs to conform to the previous additions yet has the ability to be creative. Some used graphics, colours and various shapes while others used the standard rectangles. Some wrote full sentences inside the nodes while other preferred 1-2 words and linked with another word. The flexibilty and customization of mind maps makes them easy to use for many types of learners. This was an enjoyable exercise and interesting to see the final product.
Thanks,
Bridget
Before you publish your posting, please make sure that you select a category (eg. Introductions) as well as assign some meaningful tags (keywords).
mariefrancehetu 4:47 pm on July 5, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hello,
Thanks for providing this list. It will be very useful and I will keep it tucked away when I have more time to explore mind map tools later this summer.
I absolutely agree that for a mind map to work it needs to connect the learner with content in an engaging way. You say that maps need to make sense to the learner, not the viewer. However, when making collective maps this may become an issue, for what may appear to be an ‘engaging way’ to one creator, may not be perceived in the same way by other creators. Also, when creating a mind map as a teaching tool, it is difficult to create one that will appear engaging to everyone. I do agree that there are basic rules to follow nonetheless. Maps need to be concise and clear, various themes or categories identified in different colours, and interesting symbols or pictures used (sparingly) to guide or emphasize points, making it easier to follow links.
Marie-France