| Chapter 1: | Study One: Introduction / Overview of Study Goals |
This is a limited free preview of this book. Please buy full access.
Concept mapping is a graphical representation of relationships between concepts using words to indicate the semantic relationship between concepts (Novak & Gowin, 1984). Therefore, concept mapping not only indicates that concepts are linked together; it stipulates the nature of the relationship. Concept maps are useful tools in examining what a learner knows by representing his / her knowledge structure. However, as Novak and Gowin noted, they do not suggest that concept mapping will result in a complete representation of this knowledge structure. Furthermore, they recommended that students be trained in this technique so that they acquire skills for concept mapping. They further suggested that concept maps must be redrawn, as the first concept map an individual draws will most definitely have errors. These final comments should serve as cautionary notes to researchers intending to use concept maps as representations of knowledge structure. Although a valuable tool, researchers must consider the facts that the concept maps provided by subjects may not be complete representations of knowledge structure, may contain errors, and will improve as the subjects’ concept mapping skills improve. Research has indicated that the concept maps of experts more closely match actual subject concept connections than cognitive maps of students (Jonassen, et al., 1993). In addition to using concept maps as tools for assessing knowledge structure, concept maps can also be valuable in helping students to learn information by having them focus on relationships between concepts (Novak, 1990; Novak & Gowin, 1984).
Pathfinder networks are similar to concept mapping, but allow for easier comparison between human knowledge structures and information structures presented on a website. Pathfinder networks provide a technique to analyze connections between nodes by examining the link structure between those nodes. Links between concepts can be direct or indirect such that two concepts can be directly connected without the aid of a mediating concept or they can be linked indirectly through a third concept (Jonassen, et al., 1993). Furthermore, pathfinder networks analyze proximity data using algorithms that express the nodal connection structure and eliminate all paths but the most frequently occurring path (as indicated by the proximity data).