THE 5 MOST IMPORTANT ELEMENTS OF THE CONCEPT MAP - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024

A concept map is a diagram that visually expresses the relationship between concepts and ideas. Much of the concept maps draw ideas as boxes or circles, also called nodes.

They are structured hierarchically and connections are made through arrows or lines. The lines that are used are identified with words or phrases that explain the connections between the ideas.

Concept maps are also known as concept diagrams. Other diagrams may look similar, but concept maps have certain characteristics that make them different from other tools.

The brain processes visual elements 60,000 times faster than text. Concept maps are designed to organize and represent knowledge. They also help to visualize the relationship between various concepts and aid in their understanding.

The 5 main elements of the concept map

1- Concepts

The concepts refer to the mental images that are associated with the memory of a word.

Mental images are common to all individuals, although they have personal nuances.

2- Phrases or connecting words

The connecting words or phrases are located on the lines or arrows that connect the elements in a concept map. These words or phrases explain what the relationship is between two concepts.

They should be concise and, if possible, contain a verb. Examples of connecting words are "includes," "requires," and "cause."

3- Propositional structure

Propositions are meaningful statements that are made up of two or more concepts. These are connected with connecting words.

Statements are also known as meaning or semantic units. Both propositions and concepts are the basis for creating new knowledge in a field.

The concept map explicitly expresses the most relevant relationships between a group of concepts. This relationship is represented by connecting phrases that form propositions.

For example, in the following image the relationship between the concept "chemical composition" and "of the different species" is expressed in the connecting phrase "what does it depend on?"

Propositions should not be confused with prepositions, which are grammatical forms such as "to", "before", "with", "from", "from", among others.

4- Hierarchical structure

It is about the hierarchy of concepts. The most general concepts go at the top of the hierarchy and the most specific go below.

Concept maps tend to represent hierarchy graphically. In the image above, the concept "biology" is the most general and goes above all others.

As they go down, the concepts get more specific. For this reason concept maps are read from top to bottom.

You don't always have to start with a single concept. They can start with various concepts.

They can even have other shapes; for example, a concept map on the water cycle could be cyclical. For the purposes of the study, it is easier if you start with a single concept.

5- Lines

The lines are used to connect the concepts and also to indicate the flow of information in the concept map. They indicate which concept follows the previous one and help to visualize better.

References

1. Editor (2016) What is a concept map? 11/30/2017. Lucid Chart. lucidchart.com
2. Novak, JD (2003) Concept of Concept Maps. 11/30/2017. Center for Teaching University of Iowa. Teach.its.uiowa.edu
3. Åhlberg, Mauri. (2004) University of Helsinki, FINLAND. Handout in the Poster session of The First International Conference on Concept Mapping. edu.helsinki.fi
4. Alberto J. Cañas & Joseph D. Novak (2003) What is a Concept Map? 11/30/2017. Cmap. cmap.ihmc.us
5. Brian Moon, Joseph Novak (2011) Applied Concept Mapping: Capturing, Analyzing and Organizing Knowledge. 11/30/2017. By Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.