Week 2 Assignment: Concept Map & Short Paragraph
PART 1: Choose a career interest topic for your final project due later in the course. Your career interest topic should be realistic and one that you are actually interested in learning more about. The career interest might be a field in which you could become employed after completing your APUS degree program or additional training.
Using your career interest topic, create a concept map or outline to define the task in your research process. Use the process of outlining or mapping the topic for your final project so that you can focus your topic and determine the nature and types of information you will need later in our course. This assignment is a brainstorming activity, not a research task.
In your outline or concept map, include the following:
- 1 Sentence stating which career interest you will explore
- 4 or more specific questions about your career interest that can be later answered through source searching and presented in your final project
- For each question, two or more detail statements that describe the type of information needed to answer the question (the actual answers are not yet needed)
- For each detail statement or statement pair, a description of what kinds of sources might be helpful in providing the information you need
- Format appropriately for either an outline or concept map
An outline can be easily created using a word processing program, such as Microsoft Word. Formal, detailed outlines are useful organizational strategies–the more detail you include, the easier the final project will come together. If you choose to use an outline, it must be very detailed. Consider searching outlining strategies and designs.
Concept maps can be developed through one of several available websites or drawn by hand and scanned for submission:
- CMAP Tools http://cmap.ihmc.us This tool allows you to move between devices.
- https://bubbl.us/ This site allows concept map creation and has a companion app
- http://www.smartdraw.com/specials/ppc/mind-map-software.htm?id=264237 This site includes a free trial
- http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Main_Page Free mind mapping software
- Gliffy http://www.gliffy.com
- X-mind https://www.xmind.net
- Mindmeister https://www.mindmeister.com
- Mindmoto http://www.mindomo.com
PART 2: Write one paragraph (5-6 sentences) describing the information you listed in your concept map. Your paragraph should describe the career interest topic you chose, the questions you will answer in your project, the types of information needed to answer those questions, and your predictions of source types you might need.
