LITREToolKit

Learning in a Technology Rich Environment

Concept Mapping as an Assessment Tool

Concept mapping is a strategy that involves stating concepts and linking them to show relationships between them. It involves visually structuring terms, usually in a circle or square, and interconnecting those terms with arrows. Words are usually placed on the arrows to indicate the nature of a relationship between two terms. Mapping is useful both as a learning tool to help students reflect on relationships between concepts and as an assessment tool to depict what students know or have misconceived about a topic. As an assessment tool, concepts maps are helpful as they can provide a means to see how students represent a particular topic or concept, reveal their understanding as well as their misconceptions as well as show the complexity (or lack of ) relationships that the students demonstrate.

Useful Resources

Alternative Assessment with Electronic Concept Mapping Software. This PowerPoint by Dr. Dianne Raubenheimer and Dr. Kevin Oliver at North Carolina State University provides a comprehensive overview of concept mapping and its use for assessment.