Graphic Organizers

Reflecting on What I Know- Chapter 10

1. How do you know that students understand a concept?

Graphic organizers are used to build models that visually represent a students understanding of concepts and ideas while expanding their knowledge by sharing and learning from others (Morrison & Lowther, 257). Graphics organizers can also assist students in finding meaningful ways to visualize their knowledge and organize information into new patterns that lead to greater depth of understanding (Morrison & Lowther, 257). Studies have proven that graphic organizers can improve student learning and performance across grade levels, with diverse students, and in a broad range of content areas (Morrison & Lowther, 264). Educators can visually see and recognize their student's understanding of the concept and of the lesson by using graphic organizers. The function of the graphic organizers is to actively engage the student in reading, analyzing, categorizing, organizing, and paraphrasing. All of these functions help students organize information into new and meaningful patterns that will show that they understand the concept of the lesson.

2. How can you depict student misconceptions of key information?

Graphic organizers are very adaptable for use with students in grades pre-K through high school. They can be used with all subject areas and can be integrated easily into many lesson plans. Graphic organizer activities can be planned for individual, small-group, or whole-class interaction (Morrison & Lowther, 266). One way to depict student misconceptions of key information while using graphic organizers is by assessing the student's understanding of the concept. An educator can create an assessment strategy and include the following criteria:

• Relevance of key components
• Meaningful connections
• Relevant graphics
• Logical organization
• Creativity that strengthens understanding

3. How can students capture and transfer brainstorming ideas into written thoughts?

Graphic organizers offer a brainstorming tool that allows students to record an idea and instantly create a link and new icon that can hold additional information and ideas. This feature captures a student's thoughts as they express them and encourages students to add new ideas, along with their fellow classmates. Once students have used the brainstorming feature, they can review their ideas, modify and rearrange their ideas into meaningful groups, without having to retype the information.

Brainstorming allows students to outline their thoughts, ideas, and their understanding of a concept. This creates a pathway to completing their assignment.


References:

Morrison, G., & Lowther, D. (2010). Integrating computer technology into the classroom, Skills for the 21st Century (Fourth Edition). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.

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