The Effects of Thinking Maps on Reading Scores 1998
Reflections on This Dissertation
by Marjann Ball, Ed.D.
As an instructor of reading, study skills, and English for the past 19 years in a junior college, I have been confronted with difficulties of students in their processing of information. Their variances in reading abilities from the 4th grade upwards as well as in their range in A.C.T. scores add to the complexity of the problem. In spite of the disparity in abilities, a commonality exists between the students who can read well and those who cannot: very few possess the thinking strategies necessary to process what they read. Some years back I tried various thinking skills approaches, but I discovered that there was very little transfer to reading across disciplines. Since I began using Thinking Maps seven years ago, my observations, testimonials from students, and my doctoral research have confirmed that my search for a vehicle to transfer and integrate thinking skills in all areas is over. My research confirmed what my experience showed: a highly significant correlation between the use of Thinking Maps and improved reading comprehension scores of my students (using a controlled, pre-post design and the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test; form G for pre-test, form H for post-test). see "Lesson Plans" Students who learn to use Thinking Maps in my reading and study skills course are continually bringing in examples of their applications. One "non-traditional" student, returning to college after 20 years in the work force was failing economics; he began using the maps to organize the voluminous material, and by the end of the semester he made an "A". A "traditional" nursing student was having difficulty remembering details in an anatomy course. She began using the Thinking Maps and software to organize the information: her scores on tests increased as well as her retention of the information later in the year. At the end of every semester I have students evaluate the course. Over the past three years (9 classes), between 85% to 90% of the students identified Thinking Maps as the most helpful tools for learning and transfer across their other classes.

Some of my students also elaborated with comments about the Thinking Maps, such as:
"Thinking Maps are the best strategy I have ever used to organize and help me recall information"
"The Thinking Maps allow me to see what I'm thinking and then reflect on what I thought"
"Why didn't we learn these in elementary school? Or on the job?"
"May I take these home to my children?"