Using concept maps in a nurse internship program

Concept maps are visual representations of how information is interrelated. This innovative educational tool encourages participants to focus on the whole picture and not just on limited parts. This article provides an example of how concept maps were used for assessing knowledge and critical thinking of inexperienced nurses during a specialty internship program. Concept maps were used as a pretest to document baseline knowledge before participants attended the internship program. After completion of didactic training and several weeks of clinical training, concept map posttesting measured knowledge gained during the program. Concept maps provided an authentic assessment of knowledge before and after a specialty internship program.