الفهرس 
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Abstract
Conceptual representation is an externalisation produced as a result of a cognitive activity. It can be classified into three categories: formal, informal and semi-formal. But for any level of formality it is necessary to provide computer support to aid the development of conceptual representation. There are lots of tools that already have been developed to support conceptual representations in the form of concept mapping; rCTool and rHMC CmapTools are two examples of these tools.
The rCTool is a cognitive support tool designed to provide support through conceptual representation. It has various functions that assist learners to interact with the contents and represent it by constructing conceptual mapping. An empirical study has been conducted to evaluate the rCTOOL functions, and to measure its effectiveness compared to different conceptual mapping tools and methods.
A number of valuable insights have been resulted out of this study.
One of these is a confirmation that most learners found that conceptual representations are very effective in supporting learning. However,
they encountered some problems during the construction of concept maps which lead to some vague and unreadable maps. That is why our investigation was motivated by the need to identify rules and
guidelines that support the construction of conceptual representations used during a structured learning process. This research aims to identify the features and characteristics of conceptual presentations that could support self-study and produce a set of guidelines and rules that could help users in generating and using such representations. As a long-term objective, we hope that these features & characteristics and rules & guidelines will contribute to the identification of the specifications of a software application that capable of supporting the use of conceptual representation in self-study. So, although this research does not aim to produce a software application, the development of such an application, we hope, can build on the conclusions reached.