Concept mapping is a visual representation of knowledge that identifies relationships between concepts using nodes and links. It shows how an individual organizes their understanding of a topic. Nodes represent concepts, and labeled links show relationships. Concept mapping aids learning by integrating new and old knowledge. It helps teachers assess student understanding, identify misunderstandings, and select appropriate instructional materials. Students can use concept mapping to plan projects and develop understanding across subjects like language arts, social studies, and math.

1. Inspiration: The Road to
Concept Mapping
The University of Southern Mississippi

2. What is Concept Mapping
Concept Mapping:
 is a way of representing or organizing
knowledge
 is a visual graphic that represents how
the creator thinks about a subject, topic,
etc.
 identifies the way we think
 illustrates how knowledge is organized
for the individual

3. What is Concept Mapping (cont.)
 It
shows the relationships between
concepts, including bi-directional
relationships
 It is divided into nodes and links
 Nodes
(often circles) represent various
concepts
 Links (lines) represent the relationships
between concepts
 Linking Words are used to label the links in
order to explain the relationships

4. Why Concept Mapping
 To
generate ideas (brain storming, etc.)
 To design a complex structure (long
texts, hypermedia, large Websites, etc.)
 To communicate complex ideas
 To aid learning by explicitly integrating
new and old knowledge
 To assess understanding or diagnose
misunderstanding

5. Why Concept Mapping (cont.)
Concept mapping is an excellent planning
device for instruction because it:
 helps
teachers select appropriate
instructional materials
 visually explains the conceptual relationships
used for meeting lesson objectives
 illustrate areas that may appear minor or
trivial
 articulates the themes that teachers want to
emphasize

6. Why Concept Mapping (cont. 2)
Concept mapping helps teachers
 understand how students see or
organize knowledge differently from
themselves
 identify concepts that are related to more
than one discipline
 know what they want their students to
learn

7. Why Concept Mapping (cont. 3)
Concept mapping:
 provides a basis for discussion among
students and helps summarize general
course concepts
 supports a holistic style of learning
 sustains meaningful learning
 assists in collaborative learning

8. Why Concept Mapping (cont. 4)
 Student
made concept maps
allow teachers to see how students structure their
knowledge and comprehend a subject of study
 help teachers identify missing or misunderstood
concepts

 Teacher
made concept maps
enable students to identify and explore the structure
and nature of domain knowledge presented by the
teacher
 help students identify new concepts and relate them to
concepts that are already understood


9. Steps in Making Maps
 Write
down major terms or concepts about a topic
 Identify the most general, intermediate, and
specific concepts
 Begin drawing the concept map:
Concepts are circled
 Place the most general concepts at the top
 Place intermediate concepts below general concepts
 Put specific concepts on bottom

 Draw
lines between related concepts
 Label the lines with "linking words" to indicate
how the concepts are related
 Revise the map

10. Some Tips
 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/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 for a question in the question
node

11. Examples in Language Art
Inspiration helps students bridge the gap between visual
and verbal modes of expression as they brainstorm, draft
and revise their writing. Students simply switch to Outline
View to begin writing an essay.

12. Examples in Social Studies
In social studies classes, Inspiration helps students
explore historical events and people, as well as
understand cause and effect relationships.

13. Examples in Math
Inspiration visually explains concepts like
Addition and Multiplication, making difficult math
problems easier to comprehend.

14. Examples in Planning
Teacher Planning
Inspiration is used to
plan class projects,
activities, lessons,
and units. Visual
diagrams make it
easier to understand
and share a process.
Student Planning
Students can use
Inspiration to plan
speeches, presentations
and projects.
Hyperlinking to a file or
site makes Inspiration a
great choice for creating
student portfolios.

15. Examples in Planning

16. Resources





Concept Mapping,
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/pbl2.html
The Concept Mapping Homepage,
http://users.edte.utwente.nl/lanzing/cm_home.htm
Concept Mapping software,
http://www.inspiration.com/
A Video on Inspiration Introduction, Examples, and a
QuickTour,
http://www.inspiration.com/test/dswmedia/intro.html
Examples for Inspiration Integration into the Classroom,
http://www.inspiration.com/productinfo/inspiration/using
_insp/index.cfm