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Useful discussion activity

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A Diamond 9 card sort is a useful way to generate discussion in the classroom.  So that you can try the activity out, we’ve provided an example where each card represents an identifier for ‘when assessment for learning is working’. This sorting exercise asks you to place the card with the greatest impact on learning at the top, down to those with the least at the bottom, to form a diamond shape of nine cards.  You won’t have enough spaces for all the cards, so you’ll have to choose which ones to leave out.

TASK: Try out the Diamond 9 activity and reflect on your practice

15 minutes CPD – discuss with colleagues and post in the community group

1. Take a look at this example Diamond 9 Card Sort.  Read all the cards and think about which ones you most agree with and why?

2. Post in the comment below, which statement would YOU put at the top, and why?

3. Look at the answers of others and respond to ONE post with where you would place that statement in your diamond 9 and why for you, it’s more or less significant.

After completing these steps, you’ll have a better idea of the choices you make about assessment for learning in your teaching. You’ll also be familiar with how diamond 9 works to stimulate discussion, giving you rich data to inform where you go next with your class.

Additional resource

Download this card sort resource and complete this card sort with colleagues.

To receive an alert when a new post is added, please set your preferences - you can choose to receive notifications as they happen, once a day or once a week in a digest of the week's activity.

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Bitesize CPD #1 Diamond 9 ranking activity

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A Diamond 9 card sort is a useful way to generate discussion in the classroom. So that you can try the activity out, we've provided an example where each card represents an identifier for 'when assessment for learning is working'.

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Cross-Cultural Capability & Global PerspectivesGuidelines for Curriculum Review

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Cross-Cultural Capability & Global PerspectivesGuidelines for Curriculum Review

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https://www.mindmeister.com/blog/mind-mapping-benefits-who-needs-mind-maps/

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If you've ever built a mind map, you might have experienced some of the benefits of the exercise. Maybe the visual nature of a mind map helped you recall information better. Maybe the simplicity of mind mapping allowed you to capture your ideas more quickly.

These are both benefits that our customers here at MindMeister cite frequently, but for this article, we were more interested in learning what the research says about the benefits of mind mapping. So we dug into a variety of survey results and studies to find out.

Here's what we learned.

7 Research-Backed Benefits of Mind Mapping

We looked at a variety of surveys and research studies to find the seven biggest benefits of mind mapping. According to research, mind mapping improves learning, information recall, productivity, creativity, and more.

1. It Enables Meaningful Learning

In " Making Learning Visible: The Role of Concept Mapping in Higher Education," researchers define three levels of learning:

Non-learning is used to describe a state where there's no measurable difference between a student's knowledge before and after being taught new material.

Rote learning is used to describe when new knowledge is learned but not connected to any existing knowledge a student has on the subject.

Meaningful learning is used to describe when students have acquired new knowledge and have connected that new knowledge to knowledge they already had.

The researchers define meaningful learning as change, which is "a consequence of the integration of new material and the prior knowledge structure."

The researchers assert that mind mapping helps to create this meaningful learning because it forces students to find connections between new learnings and existing knowledge.

By mapping disparate pieces of knowledge around a central topic, students can form connections between what they already know and what they've just learned, an exercise that leads to meaningful learning.

2. It Helps with Memorization and Retention

These days, we have tools like printing presses, home printers, word processors, ball-point pens, and the internet-tools that all make it easy to document our thoughts on paper. But these tools have not always been as readily available as they are today.

Back when writing things down was much more expensive and time-consuming, Greeks and Romans used a visualization technique called loci to memorize and recall information. Essentially, they would develop mental visuals for the things they needed to remember, allowing them to recall large amounts of information-such as an entire speech-at will.

Mind mapping is a similar technique to loci, and as W. Martin Davies writes in his study " Concept Mapping, Mind Mapping and Argument Mapping: What are the Differences and Do They Matter," it provides the same benefits for memorization and information retention.

"Diagrams are more easily stored in memory than other kinds of representational formats," Davies writes. "Maps allow the separate encoding of information in memory in visual and well as propositional (written) form."

In another study-" The Efficacy of the Mind Map Study Technique "-researchers found that studying with mind maps helped boost retention by 10-15%.

3. It's a More Engaging Form of Learning

Davies also argues that "meaningful engagement is a critical factor in promoting deeper learning." Unfortunately, some of the most common learning methods-such as listening to a lecture or reading a textbook-do not create meaningful engagement.

@mindmeister thank you for helping me teach scientific vocabulary in a more meaningful way! Collaboration and Concept mapping of anatomical term builders. @TCCHS_tccentral pic.twitter.com/n2j694Splu

- Ms. Brumbelow (@MsBrumbelow) September 11, 2019

Mind mapping, on the other hand, does create meaningful engagement because learners actively engage in the process of brainstorming, generating ideas, and connecting concepts together while reviewing and developing mind maps.

In addition to recommending that teachers use mind maps in the classroom while teaching, Davies suggests having students create mind maps of their own that can be used to assess learning-and to compare their mind maps with those of their classmates for additional meaningful learning activities.

4. It Makes Complex Issues Easier to Understand

Every two years, Chuck Frey of Mind Mapping Software Blog conducts a survey to uncover the use cases for and benefits of mind mapping in business.

In his 2017 survey, most respondents said that the biggest benefit of mind mapping is that it helps them form an "improved understanding of complex issues."

This makes a lot of sense when you consider some of the tasks where respondents report using mind mapping the most: more than half of respondents use mind mapping for project management and knowledge management, and nearly 40% use it for strategic planning.

There are few things in business that are more complex than planning major projects, developing a searchable knowledge base of company assets, or creating strategic plans for the future of a company. But the survey results show that mind mapping simplifies these complex tasks:

92% of respondents said that mind mapping helps them "distill information and reach clarity faster"

83% said mind mapping helps them "share their ideas with greater clarity and impact"

81% said mind mapping helps them "manage projects more efficiently"

67% said it helps them "identify the root causes of business problems"

And when Frey asked respondents "Does your mind mapping software enable you to tackle more complex tasks and projects that you would have previously avoided?" 67% said yes.

5. It Improves Your Productivity

Another takeaway from Frey's survey was that one of the biggest benefits of mind mapping is that it boosts your productivity. Frey writes:

On average, mind mapping software helps busy executives to be 20-30% more productive in their work.

That finding, he says, has been consistent across every survey he's conducted in eight years.

16.7% of the respondents to Frey's survey say that mind mapping saves them 7+ hours a week. Another 30.7% say it saves them 3-7 hours per week, and 41.4% say it saves them 1-3 hours per week.

6. It Ignites Your Creativity

The final takeaway we'll share from Frey's survey on the benefits of mind mapping is that respondents said it helps them increase their creativity. In fact, beginner and expert users alike said that mind mapping provides them with a 50% increase in creativity.

This is a benefit we hear a lot from our customers at MindMeister, too:

I know a lot of people already do this but working with Mindmaps really helped me sort my thoughts and make great connections for creative projects. @mindmeister is STILL my go-to-tool for that, even after 10 years. Great work everyone!

- Julius Koroll (@juliuskoroll) November 29, 2018

According to Mark Dykeman, mind mapping helps ignite your creativity because you can "get your ideas on paper as quickly as possible, and "you can empty out your head when inspiration strikes."

I cannot believe the progress on my #Horror novel #IAmWriting.

Every time I get a scene I throw some notes into my @MindMeister map. Now the scenes are starting to order themselves into sublevels, and eventually, chapters.#HorrorNovelAlice pic.twitter.com/PovhpJqjwF

- Alice Asgaard (@AmazonAutism) June 9, 2019

7. It Improves Your Writing

In a 2009 study, researchers looked at the writing of two groups of students. One group received traditional in-class writing instruction with textbooks and lectures. The second group received this instruction as well as mind mapping software that they were instructed to use for each writing assignment.

While researchers wrote that there were no significant differences between the writing skills of the students in either group from a writing test that was administered before the research began, notable differences were observable after the instruction was complete.

The study found that students in the group that used mind mapping software "made higher gains in writing achievement as a result." Their results "showed more relevant details and better organized and connected ideas than paragraphs written by the control groups."

The Biggest Mind Mapping Benefit Is Its Flexibility

You've seen from the benefits listed above that there are no limits to what mind maps can be used for, and mind mapping benefits people of all ages. Anyone from first-graders to CEOs can use and benefit from this versatile technique. Here are a few examples:

Thanks for sharing. I'm a huge FAN. I also use MindMeister for my sitemap, my editorial calendar and lots of other stuff. It's so powerful and flexible. I'm also like little brother @meistertask and the integration with the mind maps #productivity #planning

- Warwick Brown (@warwickabrown) January 17, 2019

Mind maps are great for learning, planning, and even presenting what you've learned and planned. They're better than text-heavy slideshows that distract from what you're saying but just as good as PowerPoint presentations at helping you remember what you need to say.

Getting Started With Mind Mapping

If these benefits sound good to you, MindMeister makes it easy to get started with mind mapping. Sign up for our forever-free plan to create your first mind map, or if you need help learning how to create and use mind maps, check out our free Mind Mapping 101 course.
Originally published in September 2012, this post has been completely rewritten to focus on the research-backed benefits of mind mapping.

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7 Research-Backed Benefits of Mind Mapping - Focus

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If you've ever built a mind map, you might have experienced some of the benefits of the exercise. Maybe the visual nature of a mind map helped you recall information better. Maybe the simplicity of mind mapping allowed you to capture your ideas more quickly.

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Revealing & Dealing with Misconceptions 

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Revealing & Dealing with Misconceptions 

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Revealing and dealing with misconceptions

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See also: https://www.edutopia.org/blog/just-in-time-teaching-gregor-novak

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Extracts are available online e.g. https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FUL-VEFGGFMC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

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Learning through storytelling refers to a process in which learning is structured around a narrative or story as a means of 'sense making'. It involves the use of personal story and anecdotes to engage learners and share knowledge. Stories are everywhere in human life and can be termed narrative case study life history myth anecdote legend scenario illustration or example storytelling and/or critical incident. 'Stories' can be 'told' in many ways - spoken written filmed mimed acted presented as cartoons and/or as new media formats (Moon 2010).
Where does learning through storytelling come from?
The art of storytelling has always been an essential part of being human. Before the advent of the written word storytellers were viewed as special members of society. Storytelling was viewed as a vocation and storytellers were required to develop skills in the appropriate use of language communicating with impact insight and sensitivity. In addition storytellers were required to develop their memory and visualisation skills and use these skills to paint a picture in the mind of their audience a picture through which they might simplify complex issues enhancing their accessibility and meaning (Egan 1989). In some communities the appointment of the leader was "based largely on their proficiency as a storyteller" (Parkin 1998).

Although educators have always used storytelling as a way of sharing information and helping their learners to make sense of issues until recently these stories often occurred spontaneously and were considered too lightweight to be integral to learning and teaching activities (McDrury and Alterio 2002). However with the growing awareness of the need for reflection within learning and the recognition that meaningful links need to be created between theory and practice the potential for learning through storytelling is beginning to be recognised (Clandinin and Connelly 1990; McDrury and Alterio 2002; Pendlebury 1995; and Witherell and Nodding 1991). Storytelling is now being used in a reflective creative and formalised manner to facilitate learning within the realms of science medical training in business schools and executive education as well as in the more obvious realms of English Languages Arts and Drama. Anthropologist Peg Neuhauser describes how

stories allow a person to feel and see the information as well as factually understand it ... because you 'hear' the information factually visually and emotionally it is more likely to be imprinted on your brain in a way that it sticks with you longer with very little effort on your part. (Neuhauser 1993 p.4)
How does storytelling work?
The essential components of a story (McAdam 1993; Ganz 2010) are:

character(s);

a plot - beginning middle and end;

a challenge;

a choice;

a resolution.

Stories are effective tools for learning due to their ability to facilitate the following cognitive processes: i) concretizing ii) assimilation and iii) structurizing (Evans and Evans 1989).

i) Concretizing - stories help us to make sense of what might otherwise be an abstract or complex subject through the provision of links with tangible or concrete examples. For example the story of the impact of the market upon healthcare can provide a concrete example of marketization within the public sector something which may otherwise seem hard to conceive of.

ii) Assimilation - learning is a constant process of integrating new information with current information and cognitive structures (cf. 'scaffolding' and Piaget's stages of learning). The use of a story particularly a well-known story or one to which everyone can relate can be an effective way of introducing a new topic to learners or enabling them to see earlier information through a new perspective. For example the scene from Alice in Wonderland where Alice meets the Cheshire Cat and asks for directions is a familiar story which can take on a new perspective if introduced to us as adults within the framework of 'goal setting'.

iii) Structurizing - the use of stories in teaching can support students in applying the concepts they have been taught to use in other situations not directly related to the initial context (Parkin 1998). Simons (1984) explored the power of story for teaching complex subjects such as electricity. He tested 61 students and followed the teaching with 40-item multiple choice tests. The results of Simon's study found that teaching using stories led to improved performance in all students with those who learnt from story having a more tangible grasp of the topic and of the relationship between concepts than those whose learning did not involve story.

Sector Snapshot
Where is it currently being used?
Learning from storytelling is gaining in popularity in a number of areas. In the realm of executive education and leadership development storytelling is gaining increasing credence as part of the discipline of "leadership as performance" (Peck and Dickinson 2009) and forms a central part of leadership development within the public sector for example the NHS Leadership Academy Nye Bevan and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson programmes. See: http://www.leadershipacademy.nhs.uk/programmes/elizabeth-garrett-anderson-programme/
'Digital storytelling' - that is the construction of short stories through the use of programmes which combine photographs or other visual material with audio or text content - has been used to good effect within higher education and reflects the growing use of new technologies to assist with learning. Notable examples include a project run in collaboration between Sheffield Hallam University Faculty of Health and Wellbeing and Pilgrim Projects Limited in Cambridge in which students supported health and social care users in making digital stories with a reported improvement in self-esteem and confidence ( www.patientvoices.org.uk).

Internationally storytelling has been utilised as a means of developing literacy with aboriginal youth in Canada (McKeogh et al. 2008).
What are the potential benefits of learning through storytelling?
When storytelling is formalized in thoughtful and meaningful ways it captures ... everyday moments and turns them into learning opportunities. (McDrury and Alterio 2003)

The previous section describes how storytelling can be used to facilitate learning. Storytelling however is able to do more than this; stories can encourage engagement and capture flagging attention; storytelling can encompass the dbigger picture' including affect values and other unspoken material (Moon 2010). Bruner (1986 p. 14) portrays the way in which storytelling can link fiction/non-fiction and action and reflection when he describes how fiction develops "the outer landscape of action and the inner one of thought". Mattingly (1990) describes the use of story to facilitate sense-making and learning in action research projects with professionals from the world bank and relates how the act of telling and hearing stories provided a springboard for change on both an organisational and personal level. Similarly Boje (2001) describes how stories can be used to facilitate change through enhancing powers of reflection. Alterio (2003) in a useful guide on the HEA website (see below) advocates storytelling as a way of developing critical thinking skills through its facilitation of a consideration of events from the perspective of more than one character.

Getting Started
How do I get started with this topic?
Stories come in many shapes and forms and can serve a variety of purpose so it is important to choose your story well. Some questions you may wish to consider before starting include the following:

1. Is storytelling the most compelling and memorable way for this group of students to learn about this topic and if so why?

2. What form of storytelling best suits the students' learning needs and objectives?

3. What outcomes do I want this group of students to achieve?

4. Will these outcomes be assessed and if so how?

5. What forms of support are needed?

6. How can confidentiality and anonymity issues be addressed?

7. Whose story do you want to use? Your own? A fictional story? A story from practice? The student's story?

8. What is the key lesson that you wish your story to convey?

9. Do you have time to plan your story or would a spontaneous story fit the time and purposes more effectively?

What should I expect if it try this approach?
While some students may feel very comfortable in hearing and telling stories others may require more support and assistance in order to gain maximum learning benefit from this tool. Creating an environment in which students feel 'safe' to share stories is important and will owe a lot to the way in which you approach stories yourself. When students tell and process their stories they may experience strong emotions such as anger frustration or sadness; stories that may sometimes be connected to past and perhaps unresolved experiences. If emotional aspects become overwhelming and beyond the educator's capability to manage it is essential that students have access to appropriate support such as trained counsellors. Similarly the act of listening to stories can also evoke strong emotional reactions. Sometimes tellers' stories connect with listeners' experiences and trigger emotional reactions or unresolved aspects that also need addressing.

Next Steps
Where can I learn more?
Maxine Alterio's guide to the use of storytelling on the Higher Education Academy (HEA) website provides an excellent introduction to the subject. In addition there are a number of websites relating to storytelling and its use in education and these are also listed below.
What other topics might I find interesting? Action learning Collaborative learning What HEA resources should I take a look at?
Alterio M. (2003). Using Storytelling to Enhance Student Learning. Higher Education Academy: http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/resources/detail/id471_using_storytelling_to_enhance_learning
How else can the HEA support my professional development?
The UKPSF provides the framework for recording aspects of professional practice where Maker Culture could be included. Find out more about UKPSF.

Come to a HEA event to share your experiences with your peers - See https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/events-conferences

In your social media share your experiences of Maker Culture - you can tweet about it and include the #HEA to share it with those following the tag or perhaps you can submit a guest blog posting through us. See https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/blog

Talk and Share

@your_twitter_name #your_twitter_hashtag

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Discussion strategies - examples of scenarios

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Discussion strategies case study examples