Educational diagrams

According to C.S. Peirce, diagrammatic constructions may be represented by words in a sentence, an algebraic formula, or a graphic display. They are the basis of all valid reasoning and provide a significant means for discovering unexpected truths. Using Peirce's work as a point of departure, the sources and uses of diagrams in education are discussed. With some educators, like Froebel, these diagrams are presented in a highly conspicuous manner. With others, they may be much less noticeable. But they are always there in any reasoned discourse, in one form or another. To the extent that these diagrams are followed, educational theory and practice may be considered to be controlled by diagrammatic constructions.