The volume of information that students have to ingest to do well in exams can often feel overwhelming. One way to simplify things and aid understanding is to create maps to organise and visualise syllabus content.
What is a mind map?
Mind maps are a simple way of visually representing knowledge in a hierarchy, showing the connections between different areas.
You start with a central topic (Japan, for example) then create different branches leading to sub-topics (such as culture, technology, natural disasters and so on) and then have more branches extending from those (such as etiquette, bullet trains and tsunamis), thus creating a tree-style diagram.
Different points on the diagram can refer back to others elsewhere, helping you to see how things are connected.
The basic principle of mind maps goes back to at least the 3rd century AD, but the term “mind map” was first popularised by psychologist Tony Buzan in the 1970s.
How can it be used to help students revise?
With reliable source materials at hand, such as revision guides or textbooks, drawing a mind map can cast light on which concepts students have and haven’t grasped already.
The diagrams can then be used for retrieval practice, helping to ensure that knowledge is ingrained. Do this by creating mind maps with blanks to be filled in from memory, or creating new better versions.
Simplicity is important, with single or two-word labels on each branch, rather than full sentences. Use of colour to highlight important areas is also encouraged, as are drawn illustrations, as they can act as memory triggers later on.
Mind maps also provide a handy overview of topics for last-minute, at-a-glance revision before the exam itself.
What does the research say?
There is research evidence to suggest that students find mind maps and other similar exercises helpful.
A found that 80 per cent of 9th- and 10th-grade students in the US (aged 14 to 16) thought “mind mapping helped them understand concepts and ideas in science”, even though it didn’t necessarily improve their test scores.
A - a non-hierarchical version of mind mapping - concluded that it was more effective than “reading text passages, attending lectures and participating in class discussions” for retaining and transferring knowledge.
There was also evidence that concept mapping was “slightly more effective” than activities such as writing summaries.
The same analysis highlights evidence that students with lower verbal ability may benefit more from “instructional diagrams” than high-ability students.
Tips and tools for success
While for many learners, creating and perusing a neat visualisation of exam content can be extremely helpful and aid understanding, there are some pitfalls to avoid when using mind maps for revision.
Using too many words really overcomplicates a mind map and defeats the object of the exercise. One hapless student on The Student Room website - almost certainly affected by this issue - said their experience of mind mapping was “like just taking clutter and re-cluttering it”. Beware cognitive overload, in other words.
It’s also important to use your mind map once you’ve created it. Just staring at it will not ensure that the knowledge sticks in the brain or that you have understood it. Ask friends and family to quiz you on its contents, or time yourself making a new version from memory.
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