Let’s make (and break) those connections
A key skill utilized in this semester’s design as cognitive artifact studio is to summarize research in visual/textual form via concept mapping. Early in the semester it became apparent that forming collaborative partnerships with peers to share understanding and clarify thoughts would be essential to success. Most frequently, this required one student be at the board writing and sketching concepts and ideas while the other student talked freely. Concept mapping proved to be an essential step in facilitation creative thinking. By organizing the information in a hierarchical fashion and recognizing cross-links, each map allowed for further development of design thinking that served as a sense-making tool.