Collaborative Concept Mapping by Using CmapTools: Supporting Conceptualisation and Learning in Higher Education

In physics education the use of graphical knowledge representation tools like concept maps has been one promising line of approach, which is known to support the formation of organised knowledge. There are several information technology (IT) solutions for concept mapping, which allow a flexible collaborative construction of concepts maps. However, the IT solutions need to be made as invisible as possible, yet managing to provide students a full access to different technical facilities of the tool. For this kind of a concept mapping CmapTools provides an excellent platform, with many options to flexibly modify the structures. The feedback form student of the use of CmapTools is positive and encouraging and shows that students feel that they have had much advantage of the CmapTools in their learning. Also the possibility for collaboration and for negotiations over meaning is highly valued by students.