The use of mind mapping technique in che

Untitled Balım, A G , Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the South Eas.

Balım, A G., Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia: The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the SouthEast European Countries (10-14 Eylül 2006) THE USE OF THE MIND MAPPING TECHNIQUE IN CHEMISTRY TEACHING Ali Günay BALIM1, Ertuğ EVREKLİ1, Güliz AYDIN1 Dokuz Eylul University, Faculty of Education, Izmir-Turkey agunay.balim@deu.edu.tr ABSTRACT There has been a growing tendency for the countries to be globalized in terms of the advances in science and technology Meaningful learning becomes significant for the science and technology to progress due to the fact that such a progress is much possible through people who have creative ideas, who apply what they have learned to real life situation and who reach the new information by means of what they have already known Meaningful learning is realized through the connections between their previous cognitive structure and new information The effective methods and techniques lead to the realization of meaningful learning Visualization of the cognitive structures of the learner is believed to contribute to meaningful learning One of these techniques that help visualization is mind mapping developed bye Tony Buzan in the late 1960’s which helps individuals express the knowledge and concepts visually through images, drawings and pictures Mind mapping is claimed to get students to learn meaningfully Individuals may use their brain wholly, retrieve their acquired knowledge and reflect the current knowledge through mind mapping Moreover, through this technique learners mind correct their contextual mistakes and make necessary amends In this study, tries to tackle the mind mapping technique effective in students’ recalling their knowledge, their connecting the previous knowledge to the new one, releasing meaningful learning, determining the current fallacies and overcoming them through exemplifications Key Words: The Mind Mapping Technique, Chemistry Teaching INTRODUCTION The rapid development of science and technology in recent years has caused reformations in the education systems of countries Due to those developments, many countries have started to apply active learning – teaching methods and techniques in order to uncover creative skills in individuals and realize meaningful learning in the process of teaching Individuals, who can think creatively and learn meaningfully are needed to keep up with the age of science and technology Teaching science has an important place in raising such individuals In teaching chemistry, only by means of effective techniques can the students settle the concepts and knowledge into the complex structure in their minds and remember them Under the light of latest technological developments and theoretical knowledge that progress in Turkey as well, all educational institutions from primary education to universities make efforts to renovate their teaching programmes Traditional teaching approaches are replaced by approaches which construct knowledge and provide meaningful learning Constructivism, one of those approaches, is important in that it realizes meaningful learning of concepts and knowledge, and enables individuals to use their mental activities effectively As remembering Balım, A G., Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia: The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the SouthEast European Countries (10-14 Eylül 2006) knowledge and inter-knowledge correlations require an effective use of mental skills, it is necessary to apply techniques based upon approaches which focus on the effective use of the brain in course activities The Mind Mapping, one of those techniques mentioned here, initially emerged as a notetaking technique and then gradually started to be used in many branches including science teaching The application of this technique in teaching chemistry is thought to be important in that students will be able to comprehend and interpret the subjects in chemistry MIND MAPPING TECHNIQUE AND RADIANT THINKING Dr Sperry, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for the studies he conducted on the brain, published the outcomes of his research on the cerebral cortex, the region of the brain which develops the most and is most open to change, toward the end of 1960’s His first findings point out that both hemispheres of the brain differ from one another by their basic mental tasks (Buzan and Buzan, 1995) According to the outcomes of Sperry’s research, the left hemisphere is for analytical skills; logic, language, words, analysis and numbers are governed by the left brain The right hemisphere is for emotions and creativity; correlations, images, imagination, holistic thinking, dimensions and colours are governed by the right brain (Buzan and Buzan, 1995; Smith, 1999) In the early 1970’s, Tony Buzan, who took the studies of Sperry as a basis, has developed the Mind Mapping technique which enabled the use of the right lobe and left lobe of the brain together The Mind Mapping, which represents and classifies the knowledge (Weideman and Kritzinger, 2003), is a powerful graphic technique for uncovering the potential of the brain (Amma, 2005) Generally, a Mind Map provides to organize knowledge by means of hierarchies and categories Along with this, those hierarchies and correlations in Mind Maps spread around meaningfully from a central image without a certain order (Budd, 2003) That is to say, Mind Maps are the expression of the radiant thinking on a piece of paper The radiant thinking is about the associated thinking processes which connect to a central point or originate and advance from a central point This phenomenon takes place naturally and spontaneously in the brain functions of all people (Gugenheimer and Szule, 1998; Amma, 2005) Mind Maps can be used to increase the performance of humans in all areas of life Besides, those Maps help planning concepts and then facilitate reaching further concepts by means of those concepts and enable to point out those correlations in an order (Fisher, Moody and Wandersee, 2000; Rabino and Scarlatti; 2003) HOW TO PREPARE MIND MAPS? Based upon the use of the right and left lobes of the brain together, the Mind Mapping is an effective visual technique that expresses a subject, thought or concept by means of figures, images and Balım, A G., Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia: The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the SouthEast European Countries (10-14 Eylül 2006) keywords With the help of this technique, individuals use the natural associating and correlating functions of the brain to remember and correlate a thought or knowledge (Rostron, 2002) A big piece of paper and a few colour pencils are needed to prepare a Mind Map Basically, creation of a Mind Map starts with the illustration of a main theme by a figure, then branches spreading outwards are drawn An easy-to-remember keyword representing the subject or the word phrase is written in each branch and branches related to each other are associated (Ladge, 2002) According to Buzan, (2002) and Buzan (2005) preparation of a Mind Map consists of seven basic steps: Turning the page side wards and starting from the center: A start from the center enables the mind to think freely towards all directions Using a figure or an image to express the thought in the center: An image is worth thousands of words and helps to imagine and recall the knowledge and thoughts Using colours throughout in the Map: Use of colours enables the the right hemisphere of brain to function actively and remember the thoughts better Correlating the central image to the main branches and correlating thoughts related to the main branches to the new laterals: The brain functions on the basis of correlating and associating Mind Maps are a visual instrument that develop complicated schemes and helps the individuals to think and assimilate the new knowledge (Zhao, 2003) Piaget believes that there are structures called schemes for human mind to comprehend outer world Humans can adapt to the environment, comprehend problems and sort them out by means of these cognitive structures When inter-knowledge correlations are created, knowledge becomes permanent in the mind and it is easier for the knowledge to settle into the schemes of the individuals’ minds Mind Mapping is in concordance with the scheme theory concerning the cognitive process that the existing structural categories in which the knowledge related to a concept are filed (Williams, 1999) Besides, Mind Mapping enables the brain to use the processes of correlation creating, thus it facilitates the creativity and development of the individuals (Rissner, 2003) Using curving branches instead of straight ones: Straight branches may be boring for the brain as it does not reach from a thought to another directly Curving Branches like trees are more attractive Using a keyword to represent a thought on every branch: The visual expression of thoughts in Mind Maps facilitate organization of ideas on a broad subject and an increase in the mental flexibility (Martinelli, Mento and Jones, 1999) By writing the thoughts like a text, it is not possible for the brain to correlate them Yet a striking keyword may trigger the brain and the Balım, A G., Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia: The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the SouthEast European Countries (10-14 Eylül 2006) thought related to that word is easier to remember Each keyword must be chosen to represent the expression it is associated with Using images throughout in the page: As in the central image, each image expresses thousands of words, making it easier to remember the knowledge and increases creativity THE ADVANTAGES OF MIND MAPS Mind Mapping is a graphic technique, which develops ideas and concepts, organizes thoughts, encourages creative thinking and increases problem-solving and note-taking skills (Polson, 2003 ) Mind Maps can also be used as a brainstorming technique by which thoughts on a subject are freely expressed Mind Maps are not only easy to use; they can also enable a holistic view of thoughts and concepts (Ehrlich, 2001) According to Buzan (2002) and Buzan (2005) using Mind Maps helps individuals as follows:   Creativity and thinking creatively  Concentrating on the subject  Remembering better  Working straightforward  Problem-solving  Organizing thoughts  Working more effectively and quickly Being able to see the complete area at one glance MIND MAPPING AND TEACHING CHEMISTRY Knowledge can be learnt meaningfully and permanently by creating inter-knowledge correlations and associating them Teacher-centered approaches or approaches based upon memorizing the knowledge are out of date From time to time, students have difficulty understanding the subjects in Chemistry courses Using visual teaching materials attracts students’ attention to the Chemistry courses and it is very important in uncovering show students organize knowledge and how they realize learning Some of those visual-mental materials are Concept Maps, Mind Maps, Knowledge Maps and Concept Cartoons The Mind Map, one of those materials, is useful in discovering and correlating the concepts on a subject in Chemistry teaching and being able to express them visually Mind Mapping encourages divergent thinking and makes it easier for students to start from a central thought and reach further ideas and create associations with those ideas (Lumbsdaine, 1995 narrated by Chang, Hsiau and Yeh, 2001) With the help of this technique, an individual’s mental organizations can be expressed Balım, A G., Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia: The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the SouthEast European Countries (10-14 Eylül 2006) on a piece of paper and when necessary s/he can remember the knowledge by means of association, taking place when the right and left lobes work together Starting from 2006-2007 Academic Year, new curriculum are going to be applied in all of the universities of Turkey The curriculum concerning Science courses have been renewed and Chemistry Teaching Programme has been changed Especially in teaching Chemistry, a student-centered programme is on the agenda This programme is remarkable in that it provides integration with the constructivist learning approach which is also on the agenda of Primary and Secondary Education Institutions In Education Faculties, which train teacher candidates, it is important to apply above mentioned modern approaches in Chemistry teaching so that candidates could learn how to get, interpret and use the knowledge that they need in Chemistry courses The objective in choosing the Chemistry courses on purpose here is to point out that appropriate method and techniques which are in concordance with the modern approaches are convenient to apply in Science teaching Therefore, a Mind Map example which is on the important subject of “ATOM” in chemistry courses is given, and also a technique which can be applied within the constructivist approach is explained CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS Researches on Science and Technology are important in reaching the knowledge, using it and making it permanent The Chemistry courses, one of the branches of Science are also effected by the new teaching environments The efforts to set up active learning environments in chemistry education come along with the methods and techniques which aim at learning knowledge and concepts Balım, A G., Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia: The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the SouthEast European Countries (10-14 Eylül 2006) meaningfully and discover creative ideas Concordantly, many techniques have been developed and put into practice Mind Mapping, one of these techniques is the visual expression of the thoughts and concepts on a piece of paper Mind Maps are based upon using the brain as a whole Although Mind Maps can be used in many areas, it is not applied very often in the teaching process Such an advantageous technique is believed to help students create and remember correlations and put forward creative ideas It is also thought that active participation of students into the teaching process will increase by means of this technique It is believed that applying activities with Mind Maps in lessons is useful in that it increases the interest in the chemistry courses and make lessons more attractive It can be said that this study is significant from the point of the researchers, teachers and students who study on the Chemistry as it gives an idea REFERENCES: Amma, C (2005) Effectiveness of Computer Based Mind Maps in The Learning of Biology at The Higher Secondary Level New Delhi: ICDE İnternational Conference Budd, W J (2003) Mind Maps as Classroom Exercises Journal of Economic Education (35) Buzan, T ve Buzan, B (1995) The Mind Map Book London: BBC Books Buzan, T (2002) How to Mind Map Great Britain: Thorsons Buzan, T (2005) Mind Map Handbook Great Britain: Thorsons Chang, P., Hsiau, S ve Yeh, T (2001) İmprovment of the İnterdiciplinary Approach for a Technological Creativity Course Norway, Oslo: İnternational Conference on Engineering Education Ehrlich, A R (2001) Mind Mapping An Overview Bibliography http://studenttabletpc.blogs.com/the_student_tablet_pc/files/mind_mapping_overview.pdf (Son erişim: 13 Mart 2006) Fisher, K M., Wandersee, J H and Moody, D E (2000) Mapping Biology Knowledge Hingham, USA: Kluwer Academic Publishers Guggenheimer, P ve Szule, M D (1998) Understanding Learship Competencies Boston: Course Technology Crisp Ladge, D (2002) How We Write? London, England: Routledge Mento, A J., Martinelli, P, and Jones, R M (1999) Mind Mapping in Executive Education: Application and Outcomes The Journal of Management Development 18 (4) Polson, K (2003).Mind Mapping in Learning and Teaching: Pupil and Teacher Perspectives Scotland: Teacher Researcher Programme Rabino, G ve Scarlatti, F (2003) The Study of Percation and Project of The Territory Using Brain Storming Iyvaskyla: University of Iyvaskyla Ersa 2003 Congress Rissner, C (2003) Seminarwork Mind Maps http://Krottmaier.cgv.tugraz.at/veranstaltungen/seminar/abgeschlossen.html (Son erişim: 27 Haziran 2006) Rostron, S S (2002) Accelerating Performance: Powerful New Techniques for Developing People USA, Milford: Kogan Page Balım, A G., Evrekli, E ve Aydın, G (2006) The use of mind mapping technique in chemistry teaching Ohrid, Macedonia: The 5th International Conference of the Chemical Societies of the SouthEast European Countries (10-14 Eylül 2006) Smith, R L (1999) The Knowledge Mapping Application: Ford’s Robust Engineering Process Journal of İnnovative Management Weideman, M ve Kritzinger, W (2003) Concept Mapping-A Proposed Theoretical Model for İmplementation as a Knowledge Repository New York: ICT in Higher Education Williams, M H (1999) The Effects of Brain Based Learning Strategy, Mind Mapping, on Achievement of Adults in A Training Environment with Consideration to Learning Styles and Brain Hemisphericity University of North Texas in Texas: Doctor of Philosophy Zhao, Y (2003) The Use of a Constructivist Teaching Model in Environmental Science at Beijing Normal University The China Papers 78- 83