COMPREHENSION CHECKS
The rationale for using the MindMap concepts individually is that they each provide a succinct tool for thinking (for separating relevant from irrelevant information). The rationale for using the sets of concepts in the Divergent Strategies list, is that they frame your definition of relevance so that it includes all of the considerations that are pertinent to a particular category of experience. As Albert Einstein said, it is necessary to make things simple enough to provide a good explanation, but not any simpler than that. The rationale for using the sets of concepts in the Convergent Strategies list, is that they help to narrow decisions and choices down to a manageable number, so as to avoid information and/or cognitive overload.
There are a variety of aspects to comprehension – to comprehend will involve understanding one or more of these aspects: (1) Main Idea, (2) Cause & Effect, (3) Problem and Solution, (4) Comparing & Contrasting, and (5) Making Judgments. What follows are some suggestions readers can use to demonstrate to themselves and others their comprehension of the concepts in The Human Knowledge MindMap.
Main Idea
Can you identify the main idea for each concept? What information is presented to illustrate this idea? What do you think this idea implies about the people, situations and events you encounter? Can you present the concept in fifty words or less? During an elevator ride?
Cause & Effect
Are there causes and effects involved in the explanation of the concept? Are there causes and effects involved with the application of the concept to your experience? Spell them out. Could you use the concept to cause an effect you wanted or to prevent one you didn’t want?
Problem & Solution
Does the presentation of the concept identify a problem, or perhaps imply one? Can you identify problems the concept addresses? Are solution presented or inferred? What can you infer? Does this concept uncover problems or solutions that would otherwise remain hidden? Give examples.
Comparing & Contrasting
What comparisons (similarities) are presented regarding the concepts? What contrasts (differences) are presented? What do comparisons and contrasts achieve? Do you see any advantages, or disadvantages to comparing or contrasting? What are the trade-offs?
Making Judgments
Is the concept interesting? Are the explanations and examples adequate? Can you think of other explanations or examples to illustrate the concept? How can you use the concept? When and where is the concept worth using, and why? Talk about all of this, or write about it, or both.
RECTIFICATION REQUISITES
In many cases the claim “I don’t understand” could more properly be express as “I disagree.” When people encounter a “disagreeable” idea they often find it hard to accept that they are actually perceiving it correctly – “there must be some mistake here” may be the first thing that comes to mind. It is not necessary to believe in the authenticity or truth of a concept in order to use it – you can temporarily suspend your disbelief and treat it as a cognitive tool.
Actual lack of comprehension can be rectified through the use of a variety of heuristics (search techniques): (i) Asking Questions, (ii) Assessing Arguments, (iii) Considering Context, (iv) Drawing Conclusions, and (v) Integrating With Prior Knowledge. The purpose of these heuristics is to enable a search through your own conceptual space that will identify the cause of the impediment to understanding.
Asking Questions
What is the gist or main point of the concept? Have you referred to a dictionary, thesaurus, or other reference? Compare and contrast synonyms and antonyms, and consider the extent of overlap and divergence. If something remains unclear, is it the concept’s definition or its use?
Assessing Arguments
If you have a problem with the argument presented for a concept, is it that you don’t understand it, or is it that you disagree with it. If you don’t understand it, deconstruct the argument into the steps involved. If you disagree with it, consider whether there is any way or circumstances in which you could tentatively agree to use the argument just to make a point.
Considering Context
What is the larger environment, or larger issues in which the MindMap is situated? What might be the author’s purpose in creating the MindMap and explaining the concepts? What would be the reader’s purpose in understanding and using the MindMap?
Drawing Conclusions
What can you conclude from the explanations in the MindMap? Can the MindMap concepts be useful in drawing conclusions about other people, situations, and events? Will the MindMap concepts influence any of the previous conclusions you have drawn? How?
Integrating With Prior Knowledge
What do you already know that is similar or complementary to the concepts in the MindMap? Does any part of the explanation of a concept strike a familiar chord? Can you extend your prior knowledge to encompass MindMap concepts, or use MindMap concepts to extend or revise your prior knowledge?