MIND MAPPING IN UNIVERSITY CLASSES

1.- Challenge

I am a university professor, one of the main challenges for me is to get my students to break  with many of the traditional thoughts in the way of doing things and in the mechanisms  that lead them to make decisions. Those thoughts are normally taught at home. Most of my  students are from a lower-middle socioeconomic level, which influences that the focus of  their families is mainly on trying to cover basic or security needs with a short-term vision  and their decisions are in that sense. As explained by the video.

It is important to mention that some strategies that are seen in the course, I have already  applied in class, for example, Mind mapping.

2.- Selection: Mind Mapping

It is a tool for developing creativity through linking and correlating the different aspects  that may be related to solving a problem. I selected it for my challenge because it is a very  useful tool for students. Today university students have an infinite capacity for thought and  connection of ideas, I think that they must be guided and given the tools that facilitate them  to systematically find these paths so that they can be able to find solutions to the current  problems that we are facing, that they become entrepreneurs who attack social and  economic environmental problems but with a different perspective, since we can see that  classical thinking has not necessarily created positive results in the environment, for  example.

In this tool it is very important to have different profiles that allow the construction of a  diversity of complementary points of view, that is, if there are different perspectives on the  same problem, surely a more creative and comprehensive solution to a problem can be built,

My goal is to make my university students understand that there are different mechanisms  of thought and very useful tools, that will allow them to save time and effort in achieving  their achievements, and that one of the key aspects for them to achieve this is to break the  paradigms that they have and open your mind to new knowledge building options. For this  I have applied Mind mapping and combine it with visualization.

The reference of the video is Marian Moore's explanation where she indicates that this tool  seeks different patterns and perspectives that lead to more creative solutions to the design  challenge.

3.- Application:

What I already do in my classes is the following:

-  Divide students into 5 teams of 8 people

-  The teams are made up of different racing profiles

-  I explain the methodology and ask that each team develop a map, the most diverse  they can do and that they do not discard any idea.

-  An environmental problem arises

-  Later they have to present their map and at the end of the class I invite you to  understand how the contributions of the 8 people was very important and it is even  more so when the contributions of the five teams are added, achieving a greater  impact by having a vision broader and more constructive on the same problem.

-  Which can lead to a more creative solution to the problem,

4.- Insight & Approach

According to previous occasions where I have applied this knowledge, the results are  diverse, fortunately, it is a fun and constructive method that gives high value to teamwork,  which is why my students are excited to learn it.

The result obtained is the development of their vision, many times the students are  surprised by the results when they did not initially think that the contributions made were  important. They have understood that no idea is initially discarded because it can serve to  build others. Another significant learning is that by having a map they can visually correlate  ideas and see solutions that they could not see before. This has led them to have a greater  commercial sensitivity and develop business opportunities.

5.- Approach

The next time I apply this tool, I will be much more creative myself so that my students find  more and better business opportunities and improvement of the environment. Surely over  time I will be improving and understanding more how to help them better and so that they  perfect the method and internalize it in their way of thinking.

I am going to combine this tool with visualization and also with teamwork dynamics, I think  it can be of great benefit for the development of different managerial and directive skills to  achieve results.

