Assessment Using Concept Maps

There are several ways to assess student understanding and learning using concept maps. Specific rubrics may need to be created to suit the need of the instructor. For example, it may be possible to determine if students have undergone changes in attitudes in addition to gaining more elaborate conceptual frameworks. Some suggestions follow.

* Total the number of concepts. This gives a general indication of the extensiveness of the knowledge.

* Determine the number of hiearchical levels extending from the main node. This is also an indicator of the depth ofunderstanding.

* Count the number of links, or if they exist, then tally the number of crosslinks. Crosslinks show that the inter-relatedness of the concepts has been gained.

* Are link descriptors present? If so, how many? Rate them as to their coherence and level-- for example, a link using "is a type of" would not be ranked as high as one like "expands to form".

* Inspect for poor conceptions/alternateconceptions/misconceptions and other errors in construction.

* Rank in terms of overall coherence and/or level of sophistication.

* Compare two maps before/after instruction to determine change in understanding.

Uses---Examples---Constructing a Concept Map---Assessment---Helping Students Learn to Map---Links & Sources

Concept Mapping Page-----McKenzie's Home Page