Teachers in groups 1 to 3 create mind maps to visualise and make words more concrete. Such a mind map offers numerous opportunities to enrich teaching and further stimulate vocabulary development. Can educational AI support learning and teaching in this?
mAIndmap: learning words visually with AI
A co-creation project by NOLAI for primary education
- Duration
- September 2025 until now
- Project type
- Research
- Organisation
- National Education Lab AI (NOLAI)
Challenge in education
Mind maps help to expand vocabulary. A theme such as “spring” is explored over several weeks, during which the number of words and images on the mind map grows. Finding suitable images for the target group takes time, both during and after the lesson, and slows down teaching. And only limited interaction is possible, let alone independent work, which reduces engagement.
What teachers want
Teachers at Noorderlicht, Meander and De Hobbit of the ATO Scholenkring find that teaching with mind maps works, but believe it can be both more efficient and more effective. Could an AI-supported, interactive mind-map tool not only simplify but also improve vocabulary teaching for pupils in groups 1 to 3?
Smarter through co-creation
Through NOLAI, the schools have been connected with developers from Prowise and researchers from the University of Twente and the Donders Institute. Together, they are developing and studying a prototype of an intelligent mind-map tool for (initially) pupils in groups 1 to 3 of primary school.
Development goals
- A user-friendly mind-map interface for teachers
- Selecting appropriate concepts for the target group
- Sorting concepts without reinforcing stereotypes
- Visualising concepts through suitable images that can change over time
- Generating appropriate tasks on screen, in print and on tablets
Research questions
- How can an interactive mind-map tool contribute to teacher-led vocabulary development that matches the language level of children in groups 1–3 of primary school?
- How can the structure of the developing mental lexicon be determined automatically, including suitable accompanying images, without reinforcing potential biases?
Current status
This project runs from 2025 to 2028 and has begun with the preparation and concept phase. In every co-creation project, work is carried out consecutively on a concept, a working prototype and validation of the prototype. The results are shared online as quickly and openly as possible so that education, research and EdTech companies can benefit from them.
