Mind Mapping

Mind Mapping Overview

By the end of this lecture you should be able to:

• Define “mind mapping”

• Describe the main advantages of mind mapping relative to the traditional linear approach to taking notes

• Describe several situations in which mind mapping can be usefully applied

• Outline the main “laws” of mind mapping

• Outline the main steps in “Mind Mapping Organic Study Technique”

What is Mind Mapping?

• A non-linear approach for taking notes, organising thoughts, and generating ideas.

• Consists of a central topic image and several radiating branches containing information about the central topic.

ADVANTAGES

APPLICATIONS

RULES

EFFECTIVENESS

Problems with Traditional Linear Notes

• Obscure keywords• Inhibit recall• Waste time• Prevent associations from forming

CENTRAL IMAGE

HIERARCHY

PERSONALISE

CLARITY

TEXT NOTES

LECTURES

ESSAY OUTLINES

PUBLIC SPEAKING

MEETINGS

Empirical Evidence• Lecture Recall Study (Howe, 1977)

• 6 Conditions 1. Complete transcript (given)2. Complete transcript (student)3. Sentence summary (given)4. Sentence summary (student)5. Keyword notes (given)6. Keyword notes (student)

• DV = Exam performance, verbal performance

Mind Map Organic Study Technique

(MMOST)

MMOST Phases

1. Preparation

2. Application

Preparation Phase

4 Sub-Phases

– 1. Browsing

– 2. Setting Limits

– 3. Preliminary Mind Map

– 4. Setting Questions and Goals

P1. Browsing

• Casually glance through book, chapter or article.

• Get a feel for: – organisation– length – difficulty– number of tables and figures– location of summary and conclusion section

P2. Set Limits for Time and Amount

• How much time do you want to spend studying?– massed practice– distributed practice

• How much information do you want to cover in the allotted time?

P3. Mind Map Current Knowledge

Take 2 minutes to jot down as much as you can about the topic being studied.

P4. Set Questions and Goals

• What do you want to get out of the chapter or article?– Gist? – Detailed understanding of everything?– Answer specific question?

• Take up to 5 minutes to make a preliminary list goals and questions.

• If necessary, revise questions and goals as you progress.

Application Phase

4 Sub-Phases

– 1. Overview

– 2. Preview

– 3. Inview

– 4. Review

P1. Overiew

• Generate an overview of the chapter or article.

• Focus on overall structure not detail.

• Don’t feel compelled to start on p. 1!

TYPES

IMPROVING

APPLICATIONS

MODELS

NEURAL BASIS

P2. Preview

• Start filling in general details.

• Focus on:– summary and conclusion sections– beginning and endings of paragraphs

• Don’t read everything! Select and reject content based on your questions and goals.

P3. Inview

• Start filling in specific details.

• Level of detail depends on questions and goals.

• Initially skip difficult sections. – Return later when you have more

knowledge– Easier to understand

P4. Review

• Study and reorganise your maps.

• Identify gaps in knowledge, and return to source to search for specific information.

• Test your knowledge by recreating maps from memory.

Mind Mapping Resources

BOOKS• The Mind Map Book (Buzan & Buzan, 1993).• Use Your Head. (4th ed., Buzan, 1995).

SOFTWARE• MindManager

– http://www.team-link.org

• MindTools – http://www.mindtools.com/index.html