A scoping review comparing different mapping approaches pointing to the need for standardizing concept maps in medical education: A preliminary analysis

This study aims to analyze how visual tools, labeled as maps, are built, and used in medical education. Based on the educational model of concept maps (CMs), proposed by Novak and Cañas (2008), and adapted to medicine by Daley and Torre (2010), we are currently analyzing the results of a scoping review following the PRISMA extension methodology, specifically for these purposes. Other visual tools, such as knowledge maps (KMs) and mind maps (MMs), used in medical education, were also included. The search was made through the databases EBSCO, PubMed/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Eric, using the following items: “concept map*”, “knowledge map*”, “mind map*” and “medical education”. Only articles in English were considered and exclusively in medical education, from undergraduate to resident training. The analysis of selected articles included the following features: construction rules (if they followed Novakian instructions), teaching area, student level (undergraduate, postgraduate/residents), and use for assessment. Other features were the capacity to relate basic science knowledge to clinical concepts, the use of maps with other educational methods, such as problem-based learning (PBL), and providing feedback to students. From a quantitative perspective, the use of CMs is dominant in all phases of medical education. A failure to follow Novakian rules was found in around half of the articles labeled as CMs and KMs. As for MMs, which follow different rules for construction and use, they were considered relevant in helping students to summarize and retain information. Simultaneous use with other educational methods was only found with CMs.