Threshold Concepts in Analytical Chemistry

Abstract

Interest in “threshold concepts”─ideas that, once mastered, transform a student’s thinking about the discipline─has grown in recent years. Most chemistry educators relate to the idea that “aha” moments can propel students to a new level of understanding and thus help them retain foundational knowledge. Identifying threshold concepts in the various subdisciplines of chemistry can serve as a pedagogical tool when instructors design chemistry courses that guide students from a vague and disconnected understanding of individual course topics to a more nuanced, overarching comprehension of the subdiscipline. In the hopes of sparking a debate on the subject, we use this commentary to suggest three threshold concepts for Analytical Chemistry: (1) Statistics, (2) Molecular interactions, and (3) Chemical equilibria.