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KNOWLEDGE-BASED CONCEPT MAPPING TASK

A knowledge-based concept mapping tool asks students to visually represent bodies of knowledge relevant to an interdisciplinary problem. This can assist students in drawing links between disciplines, identifying ambiguities, and educating collaborators in their own fields.

This task is most suitable for:

Interactions
Mixed (interdisciplinary) groups

Degree of Integration
Interdisciplinary

Problem structure
Open-ended problems

Skill targets
Meta-cognitive, interdisciplinary problem-solving

Ability to generate
analogies/metaphors

Enhanched
critical thinking

Ability to communicate disciplinary content

Ability to interpret
other disciplines

Interactional
expertise

Humility, sensitivity
to bias and empowerment

Systems-thinking

Knowledge
integration

Methodological
integration

Assessing value/pay-off
of identification

Problem-framing

Identification
task allocation

Methodological 
choice

Evaluation

Identifying and
sharing competencies

Defining/assigning
roles

Defining shared
group values

Defining rules of operation
and group engagement

Facilitating
communication

Coordinating
roles/tasks

Facilitating
feedback

Consensus and
trust building

Facilitating personal
development

What are Knowledge-Based Concept Mapping Tasks?

In a knowledge-based concept map students (individually or in groups) visually represent conceptual knowledge for a body or bodies of knowledge. Concepts represent physical or social quantities and qualities such as for example types of chemical element or economic social class. In a map concepts are placed and then linked. Links can represent cause/effect relations (or correlations) and functional relations, as well as logical relations such as membership relations (or component relations) or other hierarchical relationships.

Representations can be put together through pen and paper, or digitally. A task can be performed individually or collaboratively in small groups.

Ready-made Resources

Knowledge Based Concept Mapping Lesson Pack

This resource includes a lesson plan, lesson slides and a warm-up activity.

CoNavigator

Universal tool usable for students & researchers to map out relationships between disciplines and planning.

CoNavigator
Article

An interesting article about the CoNavigator tool.

Miro

A platform for visualization (very useful for concept and process mapping).

Potential Uses

  • Communicating Disciplinary Knowledge

    Students map out the conceptual structure of a relevant discipline or field (or part of it) of their own at the beginning of a project in order to facilitate cross-disciplinary communication with group members.

  • Developing Disciplinary Knowledge

    Students map out the conceptual structure at the beginning and end of a programme in order to illustrate development in their own “reflective” disciplinary understanding through interdisciplinary interaction.

  • Integrating Disciplinary Knowledge

    Students mas out a schema of knowledge integration illustrate links between different conceptual frameworks both before and after a project in order to facilitate integration and demonstrate interdisciplinary development.

Interesting Sources

Description of paper by Krupczak:
Krupczak, J. (2007, June), Using Insights From Non Engineers To Improve Introduction To Engineering Via Functional Analysis  Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2–2191

Description of paper by Nair:
Nair, I. (1998), Life Cycle Analysis and Green Design: A Context for Teaching Design, Environment, and Ethics. Journal of Engineering Education, 87: 489-494. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2168-9830.1998.tb00383.x

Description of paper by Scherl et al:
Scherl, A., Dethleffsen, K., & Meyer, M. (2012). Interactive knowledge networks for interdisciplinary course navigation within Moodle. Advances in Physiology Education, 36(4), 284-297.