Comparing Map Learning between Touchscreen-Based Visual and Haptic Displays: A Behavioral Evaluation with Blind and Sighted Users

The ubiquity of multimodal smart devices affords new opportunities for eyes-free applications for conveying graphical information to both sighted and visually impaired users. Using previously established haptic design guidelines for generic rendering of graphical content on touchscreen interfaces, the current study evaluates the learning and mental representation of digital maps, representing a key real-world translational eyes-free application. Two experiments involving 12 blind participants and 16 sighted participants compared cognitive map development and test performance on a range of spatio-behavioral tasks across three information-matched learning-mode conditions: (1) our prototype vibro-audio map (VAM), (2) traditional hardcopy-tactile maps, and (3) visual maps. Results demonstrated that when perceptual parameters of the stimuli were matched between modalities during haptic and visual map learning, test performance was highly similar (functionally equivalent) between the learning modes and participant groups. These results suggest equivalent cognitive map formation between both blind and sighted users and between maps learned from different sensory inputs, providing compelling evidence supporting the development of amodal spatial representations in the brain. The practical implications of these results include empirical evidence supporting a growing interest in the efficacy of multisensory interfaces as a primary interaction style for people both with and without vision. Findings challenge the long-held assumption that blind people exhibit deficits on global spatial tasks compared to their sighted peers, with results also providing empirical support for the methodological use of sighted participants in studies pertaining to technologies primarily aimed at supporting blind users.

Map Learning in Aging Individuals: The Role of Cognitive Functioning and Visuospatial Factors

Aging coincides with a decline in map learning ability, but it is unclear to what extent different aspects of the mental representation are susceptible. The present study aimed to investigate knowledge about landmarks, their positions and distances (categorical and distance relations, respectively) in relation to aging as well as cognitive functioning (measured with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment [MoCA]), visuospatial abilities, and self-reported wayfinding inclinations. Thirty young adults and 60 older adults (30 aged 63–74 and 30 aged 75–86) learned a map, freely recalled the landmarks and performed a map drawing task (considering the number of landmarks missing, position accuracy and distance accuracy). Before that, older participants were also assessed regarding their general cognitive functioning (MoCA) and a series of visuospatial measures. The results show age-related differences among adults in recalling landmarks and in both categorical and distance relations, with a worsening of performance of old-olds only in the former. Older adults’ MoCA score related to accuracy in the three measures, and an additional role of spatial anxiety was found for distance accuracy. Above and beyond the age-related decline, the quality of older people’s spatial mental representation is related to higher general cognitive level and lower spatial anxiety.

Cognitive map formation through haptic and visual exploration of tactile city-like maps

In this study, we compared cognitive map formation of small-scale models of city-like environments presented in visual or tactile/haptic modalities. Previous research often addresses only a limited amount of cognitive map aspects. We wanted to combine several of these aspects to elucidate a more complete view. Therefore, we assessed different types of spatial information, and consider egocentric as well as allocentric perspectives. Furthermore, we compared haptic map learning with visual map learning. In total 18 sighted participants (9 in a haptic condition, 9 visuo-haptic) learned three tactile maps of city-like environments. The maps differed in complexity, and had five marked locations associated with unique items. Participants estimated distances between item pairs, rebuilt the map, recalled locations, and navigated two routes, after learning each map. All participants overall performed well on the spatial tasks. Interestingly, only on the complex maps, participants performed worse in the haptic condition than the visuo-haptic, suggesting no distinct advantage of vision on the simple map. These results support ideas of modality-independent representations of space. Although it is less clear on the more complex maps, our findings indicate that participants using only haptic or a combination of haptic and visual information both form a quite accurate cognitive map of a simple tactile city-like map.

Assessment of academic achievements and memorisation power of students by concept map strategy and traditional lecture approach

The challenges in the 21st century have made learning a complex process. In this age, new and conceptual learning strategies are being used to compete with the challenges. The concept map learning strategy has shown positive influences on students’ academic achievements and quality of education. This learning strategy has also showed a significant effect on students’ critical thinking skills. A research study has been conducted to assess the students’ academic achievements and memorisation power by concept map learning strategy and traditional learning approach. The students of a primary school studying in fifth grade in general course for section A (concept map learning strategy) and section B (Traditional lecture learning strategy) were assessed. The descriptive statistics and t-test analysis were also carried out on the results obtained from the students by concept map and traditional learning strategies. Statistical analysis showed that concept map learning strategy improved the students’ academic achievements and memorisation power significantly. Keywords: Critical thinking skills, learning skills, microbiology, strategies, primary school.

Learning Maps to Navigate Space

This chapter explains how humans and other animals learn to learn to navigate in space. Both reaching and route-based navigation use difference vector computations. Route navigation learns a labeled graph of angles and distances moved. Spatial navigation requires neurons to learn navigable spaces that can be many meters in size. This is again accomplished by a spectrum of cells. Such spectral spacing supports learning of medial entorhinal grid cells and hippocampal place cells. The model responds to realistic rat navigational trajectories by learning grid cells with hexagonal grid firing fields of multiple spatial scales, and place cells with one or more firing fields, that match neurophysiological data about their development in juvenile rats. Both grid and place cells develop in a hierarchy of self-organizing maps by detecting, learning and remembering the most frequent and energetic co-occurrences of their inputs. Model parsimonious properties include: similar ring attractor mechanisms process linear and angular path integration inputs that drive map learning; the same self-organizing map mechanisms can learn both grid cell and place cell receptive fields; and the learning of the dorsoventral organization of multiple grid cell modules through medial entorhinal cortex to hippocampus uses a gradient of rates that is homologous to a rate gradient that drives adaptively timed learning at multiple rates through lateral entorhinal cortex to hippocampus (‘neural relativity’). The model clarifies how top-down hippocampal-to-entorhinal ART attentional mechanisms stabilize map learning, simulates how hippocampal, septal, or acetylcholine inactivation disrupts grid cells, and explains data about theta, beta and gamma oscillations.

WHICH IS MORE EFFECTIVE, A MIND MAP OR A CONCEPT MAP LEARNING STRATEGY?

A mind map and a concept map learning strategy are two learning strategies that are often used to improve students’ learning achievement. This study aimed to describe the differences in learning achievement between students who studied with a mind map learning strategy and those who used the concept map learning strategy, as well as the students’ responses toward the learning strategy applied. This type of study was a quasi-experiment with a pretest-posttest control group design. The methods used in this study were a test and a questionnaire. Data of students’ learning achievement were analyzed using inferential statistics of covariance analysis, while data of students’ responses were analyzed by descriptive statistics. The results of the study indicated that there were significant differences in the learning achievement between students who used the mind map learning strategy and those who studied with the concept map learning strategy. Those who used the mind map learning strategy had better achievements than those using the concept map learning strategy. In addition, the students’ responses were more positive toward the mind map learning strategy than to the concept map learning strategy.