Today we were introduced to the concept of Inspiration, a thinking tools program that enables the user to develop mind maps and concept maps.
After a brief introduction on the mechanics of the software, we were encouraged to 'play' with it, to explore its uses and boundaries.
Two things became immediately apparent as I developed the concept map on space. The first was how apparently boundless it was! I was able to provide links to websites (after first checking their suitability), add notes that could be conveniently and aesthetically hidden by the author, and add pictures of my own, sourced from images on the web, to replace the simple template pictures provided by the software.
The second thing I realised was that in actually producing the concept map, I was forced to think about the relationships the main subject (in my case the Sun) had with the other chosen space objects, such as planets, galaxies and supernovae. The visual nature of the concept map made this thinking process immediately engaging and absorbing. It struck me that it would be a very useful tool to engage with before embarking on a research project, as it showed both the gaps in my knowledge and the interrelatedness of the subject matter.
Most modern students love to use technology. I feel that the concept and mind mapping software would be useful for students to focus their mind and direct their attention to gaps in knowledge and the flow of a research project. It would also serve as an extremely useful tool for myself as a teacher to plan a unit of study.
While the concept map could be presented to a student in its finished form as the basis for a Webquest of sorts, the mind map seemed particularly useful for focusing student or teacher attention before beginning a unit of study. As I developed the mind map on snakes, I first added, then deleted, then added again, branches, first with broad headings and then more branches with subheadings, and even sub sub headings. This process forced me to rearrange, rank, sort and identify exactly what it was I was trying to convey. It was a difficult, yet highly engaging activity that employed higher order thinking.
I feel that both the mind maps and concept maps are very useful educational tools, for both teachers and students, and ones that I will definitely make an effort to benefit from during my teaching days.
