New Ways to Measure Systemic Change : Map & Analyze Patterns & Structures Across Time

Map & Analyze Patterns & Structures Across Time (MAPSAT) is a new set of mapping tools that are appropriate for analyses of system dynamics and structure in education. MAPSAT consists of two complementary methodologies: Analysis of Patterns in Time (APT) and Analysis of Patterns in Configuration (APC). In APT, a researcher creates temporal maps by observing phenomena and coding sequential and simultaneous event changes with categories in classifications. In APC, a researcher creates maps that represent affect-relations among components of a system. These affect-relations indicate system structure during some period of time. Examples are provided which illustrate a wide range of applications of MAPSAT: patterns of teaching and student engagement in elementary schools; patterns of First Principles of Instruction, academic learning time, and student mastery in postsecondary education; sequential patterns of scaffolding in technology education of preservice teachers; structural properties of activity settings in a Montessori classroom; structural change in mentoring affect-relations when comparing an existing and new doctoral program; extension of curriculum maps to include structural relationships among academic standards, units of instruction, and student learning achievement; and design of a computer simulation of educational systems.