Tech-Tac-Toe Tools #2: Popplet

The second of my "Tech-Tac-Toe" activities relied on the use of concept maps as an instructional tool. Here I decided to use Popplet, a Web 2.0 map generator we experimented with early in our Tech in Ed course. The tool (available after creating a free account at http://popplet.com/) is very user-friendly and despite its fairly basic Flash interface, can yield some impressive mapping results for the creative teacher. Since my field is secondary social studies, I decided to use Popplet for a lesson on government - a subject that definitely lends itself to concept mapping.

Grade Level: 11-12

Subject: Government/civics

Lesson Topic: U.S. Constitutional amendments

Objectives:

- Students will know the basic provisions of amendments to the U.S. Constitution and how they affect American government and citizens.

- Students will be able to connect individual Constitutional amendments to their underlying concepts, such as civil liberties and federalism.

Standards:

Social Studies Common Core

- RH.11-12.7: Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as in words) in order to address a question or solve a problem.

- RH.11-12.10: By the end of grade 12, read and comprehend history/social studies texts in the grades 11-CCR text complexity band independently and proficiently. 

Core Technology Standards

- ISBE-TECH.3: The competent teacher will apply learning technologies that support instruction in his or her grade level and subject areas. He or she must plan and deliver units that integrate a variety of software, applications, and learning tools. Lessons developed must reflect effective grouping and assessment strategies for diverse learners.

I envisioned the map depicted in this Popplet (or something similar, since this example was done by one person rather than a collaboration of an entire class) as something developed by a U.S. history or government class over the course of several units or an entire semester. The concepts on the map grow outward from more general social studies concepts (civil liberties, political liberties, federalism, etc.) to the specific 27 amendments to the U.S. Constitution and their provisions. As the class learned about and discussed those amendments, the teacher and students could add new elements to the map. There may be some debate about where exactly they belong, but given the importance of critical thinking and differing viewpoints to a social studies classroom, I'd view that as a success!

One of the best things I can say about Popplet is that the example above just scratches the surface of what the application can do. I played around with color-coding to help visual learners and illustrate where the concepts overlapped, but the tool has many other functions. It wasn't until I was done with this map that I realized that I could embed not only pictures in the Popplets, but videos and social media links as well. As part of an exploration-style activity, a teacher using this map could have students link relevant videos or web pages to the corresponding Popplet. Finally, I had a lot of fun designing this activity. While some concept mapping I've done for my own research works better with something like Gephi (because of the sheer volume of data), Popplet works as well on a limited scale, and has a much smaller learning curve. As with Wordle, I expect to be using this tool again!