Oregon Educator Licensure Assessments (ORELA) Practice Exam

What role do concept maps or webs play in learning?

1. They summarize academic content

2. They enhance memorization of facts

3. They illustrate connections among concepts

4. They provide a narrative structure for stories

The correct answer is: They illustrate connections among concepts

Concept maps or webs are valuable tools in learning because they visually represent the relationships among different concepts, allowing students to organize and structure their knowledge more effectively. By illustrating these connections, concept maps facilitate a deeper understanding of the material, enabling learners to see how various ideas relate to one another. This holistic view promotes critical thinking and helps learners integrate new information with what they already know, supporting more meaningful learning experiences. While summarizing content and enhancing memorization can be part of the learning process, the primary strength of concept maps lies in their ability to convey complex relationships and interconnections rather than just presenting isolated facts. Additionally, the narrative structure of stories is not a typical role of concept maps, which focus on the relationships between ideas rather than telling a specific story. This reinforces the importance of visualizing knowledge structures in learning.