Threshold Concept Theory Research Articles

What puzzles L2 learners about German grammar? Using practitioner research to explore threshold concepts in language curricula

Taking the perspective of a language program director (LPD), this practitioner research (PR) study describes how analysis of learners’ reflections written for an advanced undergraduate German course in the United States helped an LPD see how students had experienced learning grammar in lower-level instruction. The study analyses a semester-long project based on the PR framework of exploratory practice (EP), in which students ( n = 30) pursued individual questions (‘puzzles’) about German grammar that would be most meaningful to them in their language learning journey. Initial analysis of the students’ questions revealed a general preference among learners to investigate grammar topics previously covered in the lower-division curriculum. In-depth case studies, focused on two learners’ experiences with EP, show how the project allowed students to investigate their grammar puzzles using resources across the entire curriculum, including dialoguing with teachers and students in other courses. The study looks to threshold concept theory to theorize students’ learning experiences vis-à-vis L2 grammar (specifically inflectional morphology, i.e. case markings) and argues that the flexibility of the EP framework and its core tenets of working towards understanding and involving others supported the LPD in seeing how learners understood and felt about German grammar and grammar instruction across the larger curriculum.

The troublesome nature of learning to teach critical thinking: Using Threshold Concepts Theory to support Teacher Education

Teaching critical thinking is fundamental for students’ academic success and helps to equip them for life after university. There are some studies which discuss teachers’ perceptions of the barriers regarding the teaching of critical thinking. However, more empirical evidence is needed about the actual challenges which educators experience when learning to teach it. Using the lens of threshold concepts theory, this small-scale collective case study examines the barriers encountered by 14 HE educators in the UK, as they experimented with teaching critical thinking in their disciplinary contexts. Educators identified the troublesome and transformative nature of learning to do so experienced through shortcomings in curricula, learning environment and ways of thinking and practising. These findings suggest that the process of learning to teach critical thinking could be a threshold concept of higher education which supports educators to think differently about how to teach this subject. It provides initial considerations for professional development programmes and resources to support educators to overcome their barriers and learn to teach criticality within their disciplines.

‘Hands on’, ‘hands off’ or ‘hands poised’? Exploring intrapartum midwifery decision making through ethnographic research

IssueInjury to the perineal tissues during childbirth is a frequent occurrence with most women likely to experience perineal injury during a first birth which, in some cases, can lead to significant long-term morbidity. The techniques used to minimise perineal injury are frequently termed ‘hands on’ and ‘hands poised’ or ‘hands off’. These terms are often undefined and used inconsistently in the literature, making it difficult to identify the best available evidence to inform midwifery practice. AimThis study aimed to answer the research questions: What do midwives do to minimise perineal injury during birth and what influences their decision-making? MethodsAn ethnographic study was undertaken during 2016 in a maternity unit in the southeast of England. Data were collected through participant-observation, ethnographic and semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis, informed by the pedagogic theory of threshold concepts. Findings31 midwives participated in the study. Evidence-based decision-making to minimise perineal injury during birth was identified as a complex concept. Within the context of threshold concept theory, three main themes were identified that contributed to the complexity: troublesome language, troublesome knowledge, and troublesome environments. ConclusionsMidwifery decision-making in the context of minimising perineal injury during birth is more varied and conceptually complex than has been previously described. Identification of the various aspects of troublesomeness in this context suggests that this element of practice is a midwifery threshold concept. Addressing this within midwifery curricula and practice education to enable evidence-based decision-making is important.

Thresholds of becoming: an exploration of threshold concepts as a means to support professional identity formation in competency-based curricula.

Inherent in every clinical preceptor's role is the ability to understand the learning needs of individual trainees, enabling them to meet their potential. Competency-based medical education frameworks have been developed to this end, but efforts to identify behaviours and activities that define competence are based on mapping knowledge, skills and ability, which can be difficult to integrate into a comprehensive picture of who the trainee is becoming. Professional identity formation, in contrast, prioritizes attention to who trainees are becoming, but provision of detailed guidance to preceptors on how to best support this form of development is challenging. The tension that results limits our ability to optimally support learners as strengths in competency development may mask professional identity development gaps and vice versa. To address this tension, this paper examines how the theory of threshold concepts - troublesome ideas that, once appreciated, fundamentally change how you understand and approach a particular activity - can shine light on professional identity formation and its relationship with developing competence. The recognition and identification of threshold concepts is offered as a means to improve our ability to identify, discuss and support behaviours and actions that impact the learner's capacity to act competently as they develop their identity at various stages of training.

Bridging Mathematics and Computer Science Through Threshold Concepts

Contribution: Using threshold concepts as the framework for curriculum design, a project on neural network methods for solving differential equations is presented, with a rich set of transformative concepts from mathematics and computer science. Projects of this kind complement a typical curriculum with expertise that is crucial for critique and fundamental development of modern machine learning. Background: The curricula of many schools of mathematics and computer science present a relatively shallow introduction to the other subject. Student projects, on the other hand, provide an effective environment for interdisciplinary research between the two disciplines. Intended Outcomes: Providing students from computer science and mathematics the opportunity to obtain a deeper understanding and appreciation of the other subject, beyond the confines of the school curriculum. Application Design: The project contains tasks that require acquisition, not just of knowledge, but also of effective strategies and mental models, relevant to a set of transformative concepts from both disciplines. The tasks require a spectrum of activities, ranging from rigorous theoretical work to coding. Findings: Although the theory of threshold concepts needs further development, the existing paradigms provide a helpful framework for curriculum design. The continuous formative assessment proved effective in monitoring the participants’ journeys through the liminal state.

Threshold Concepts Theory in Higher Education—Introductory Statistics Courses as an Example

The purpose of this research was to identify “threshold” concepts in introductory statistics courses by surveying engineering students. Threshold concepts are those ideas that bind a subject together and are fundamental to the thinking and practice within a discipline. In this exploratory study, the aim was to answer the following questions: What are the learners’ assessments of the proposed threshold concepts? Based on the learners’ assessments, which of the four threshold characteristics best describes the selected threshold concepts? What are the final proposed threshold concepts that incorporate the learners’ perspectives? What is the perception held by learners about the theory’s impact on the learning and teaching processes? Using qualitative and quantitative exploratory analysis to answer these questions, all students in the College of Engineering and Applied Science who took one of the 29 sections of the course Introductory Statistics offered at the University of Colorado at Boulder were surveyed. The findings reveal there are differences in threshold concepts identified by instructors and learners. The learners added 11 concepts to the 18 proposed by the instructors as threshold concepts. Based on these inputs, a list of potential threshold concepts incorporating the two perspectives—that of instructor and that of learner—was created, and a framework of knowledge to support curriculum design was developed. An important suggestion for future research is to explore how to incorporate these threshold concepts in redesigning the syllabi of such courses, depending on the proposed framework.

Should the concepts chosen to guide concept-based curricula be threshold concepts?

In this paper we propose that the concepts guiding concept-based curricula should be threshold knowledge concepts. We briefly discuss some of the hurdles of current concept-based curricular designs and describe how the concepts themselves, paradoxically, might perpetuate the continued emphasis on content in nursing courses. Until now, threshold concept theory has not been part of the mainstream conversation about concept-based curricula. Threshold concepts act as portals to professional identity development and are recognized by their troublesome and transformative potential to enhance knowledge acquisition and change worldviews. This feature differentiates them from the core concepts often described within concept-based curriculum literature. The identification of threshold concepts in existing nursing courses might help structure curricular revision with the goal of enhancing transfer of learning and decreasing faculty resistance to the concept-based curricular approach.

Using the Theory of Threshold Concepts as a Framework to Elucidate Development State in Professionalism Among Pediatric Residents.

Using the Theory of Threshold Concepts as a Framework to Elucidate Development State in Professionalism Among Pediatric Residents.

Enhancing project stakeholder communication under insufficient knowledge of project management concepts

PurposeAlthough the literature is clear on what comprises effective project stakeholder management, communication between key stakeholders and project managers is often ineffective. Research is silent on stakeholders' insufficient knowledge of project management terminology, which is a barrier for such effective communication. This paper aims to identify the project management concepts that key stakeholders should understand to improve effective communication.Design/methodology/approachThis paper employs a three-step research design. In the first step, based on threshold concept theory, the authors identify the key project management concepts through interviews with 20 project management practitioners, trainers and trainees. In the second step, the authors confirm the findings from the first step and identify effective approaches to enhance project stakeholders' communication through seven additional interviews with project stakeholders. In the third step, the authors construct a functional model of the research findings by employing a system-level modeling tool.FindingsThis research identifies five project management threshold concepts (TC) that are challenging for project stakeholders to understand (1) project benefits, (2) the iron triangle, (3) the critical path, (4) uncertainty and (5) project leadership. Following these knowledge barriers, the paper proposes unique approaches to develop effective project stakeholder communication.Originality/valueThis paper advances project stakeholder management research by identifying knowledge barriers and providing project managers with more effective approaches to better engage with their stakeholders.

Exploring Teaching Librarians' Beliefs about Undergraduate Student Learning

Whether formally articulated or tacitly held, all librarians have beliefs about how undergraduate students learn. Framing learning beliefs as a component of a teaching philosophy, this study explored how librarians described how undergraduate students learned best. Thirteen librarians from three doctoral universities in Texas were interviewed. Teaching librarians in this study believed that students learn in different ways; that students need to interact with others, act, and reflect in order to learn; and that students learn when certain conditions are met. The learning beliefs identified align with learning theories and the science of learning, but the threshold concepts theory underlying the ACRL Framework did not appear to influence how librarians conceptualized the learning process. These findings are a starting point for librarians considering how to articulate their own beliefs about learning.

Medical students’ experiences of a longitudinal integrated clerkship: a threshold concepts analysis

ABSTRACT Longitudinal Integrated Clerkships (LIC) are known to provide several pedagogical advantages including transformational educational experiences. The study explored the learning experience of undergraduate medical students who undertook a rural LIC in a Scottish primary care setting. This paper presents an analysis of the transformative role of LIC placements using the Threshold Concept (TC) theory. This qualitative study gathered students’ perceptions of their LIC experience longitudinally through written and audio diaries over a period of 1–2 months. The issues narrated in diaries were followed-up in individual semi-structured interviews. Transcripts were thematically analysed to identify key characteristics of TCs using a criterion-based approach. Data from 12 audio and nine written diaries, and five interviews led to identification of three inter-connected themes associated with the LIC year: professional identity formation, becoming an agentic learner and comfort with uncertainty. These appeared transformative in nature and resembled threshold concepts in their character and effect. An active and legitimate role in the healthcare team, longitudinality and transdisciplinary learning during LIC placements were contributary towards navigating these thresholds. The LIC exposure provided transformative learning experiences, and a stable environment that facilitated acquisition of specific TCs in the medical students’ journey towards becoming a doctor. LIC affordances fostered a transformed view of self, which was more confident in dealing with uncertainty, comfortable in the emerging professional identity, and described having enhanced agentic capabilities.

Traduzione audiovisiva e accessibilità. Riflessioni a partire da alcuni conflitti epistemici in ambito formativo

Over the past few years, the question of accessibility has become a central driver in Audiovisual Translation and, through this area, has spread into the field of Translation Studies. However, the ways in which accessibility is discussed and framed within Audiovisual Translation are not neutral. Following a short introduction to threshold concepts theory, the results of an investigation on threshold concepts conducted with a group of postgraduate Audiovisual Translation students are discussed. I then elaborate on some of their replies, which highlight a series of epistemic conflicts. I discuss how those conflicts may be related to the different ways that accessibility is introduced and discussed in AVT education. In the conclusion, I briefly discuss how such conflicts are connected to different ways of interpreting the claim that (audiovisual) translation is accessibility , and I argue in favour of a weak interpretation of said claim.

Opening the fan: Chinese postgraduate dance student’s experience in New Zealand

ABSTRACT Since 2015 many postgraduate dance students from the Beijing Dance Academy China, have completed a one-year Masters in Community Dance at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. This paper reflects on eight student’s experience of their year of international study. Data gathered through semi structured interviews were examined through the threshold concept theory and we found that these students were challenged by teacher/learner relationships, academic research in dance studies, and classroom communications. The article makes recommendations to both the Beijing Dance Academy and the University of Auckland as this academic partnership matures. While this study is specific only to the two institutions involved in the research, it may provide insights that are common across other tertiary dance programmes for international dance students.

Novice to Postgraduate Researcher Perceptions of Threshold Concepts and Capabilities in Signal Processing: Understanding Students' and Researchers' Perspectives

Signal processing is an engineering discipline known to involve abstract and complex concepts. Curriculum development should be informed by an understanding of the most critical and challenging learning in the field. Threshold concept theory and threshold capability theory provide a framework describing the features of the most critical and challenging learning in any discipline. The framework describes the effort of overcoming thresholds as troublesome, with a process that is often messy and long. Five coursework master's students, six postgraduate research students, and five academics were interviewed about their experiences with threshold concepts in signal processing. Two major threshold concepts were identified: time-frequency transformation and discretization. Self-regulated learning through years was needed to overcome the thresholds. Based on students' comments, the following are recommended to support learning in signal processing: integrated units, an introduction to how signals can be represented and why signal processing is used, examples of real applications, visualizations, practical laboratory exercises with prework, small applied projects throughout units, ample sample problems, the development of learning communities through consistent class groups, and opportunities to ask questions. Coursework and research students reported developing efficacy in self-directed learning as a consequence of overcoming threshold learning in signal processing.

Do We Need to Close the Door on Threshold Concepts?

Issue Threshold Concepts are increasingly used and researched within health professions education. First proposed by Meyer and Land in 2003, they can be defined as ways of knowing central to the mastery of a subject. They are framed as profoundly transformative, impacting the identity of those who encounter them through irreversible shifts in an individual’s outlook. Although Threshold Concepts have been identified in a multitude of educational settings across the continuum of health professions education, there has been little critique of Threshold Concepts as a theory of health professions education. Within adjacent fields critical discourse is also underdeveloped, perhaps given the educational resonance of the theory, or the way in which the theory encourages subject specialists to discuss their area of interest in depth. This commentary critically examines how Threshold Concepts have been used and researched within health professions education, applying critiques from other educational fields, to assist scholars in thinking critically regarding their application. Evidence Three significant critiques are outlined: 1) ‘The floating signifier problem’; 2) ‘The body of knowledge problem’; and 3) ‘The professional identity problem.’ Critique 1, the floating signifier problem, outlines how Threshold Concept theory lacks articulation and has been inconsistently operationalized. Critique 2, the body of knowledge problem, outlines the issues associated with attempting to identify a singular body of knowledge, particularly in regard to the reinforcement of entrenched power dynamics. Critique 3, the professional identity problem, argues that the way in which Threshold Concepts conceptualize identity formation is problematic, inadequately grounded in wider academic debate, and at odds with increasingly constructionist conceptualizations of identity within health professions education. Implications These critiques have implications for both educators and researchers. Educators using Threshold Concepts theory must think carefully about the tacit messages their use communicates, consider how the use of Threshold Concepts could reinforce entrenched power dynamics, and reflect on how their use may make material less accessible to some learners. Further, given that Threshold Concept theory lacks articulation, using the theory to structure curricula or educational sessions is problematic. Threshold Concepts are not synonymous with course learning outcomes and so, While considering Threshold Concepts may enable pedagogical discussion, the theory cannot help educators decide which concepts it applies to; this requires careful planning which extends beyond the bounds of this theory. For researchers, there are issues too with power and inconsistent theoretical operationalization, but also with the way in which Threshold Concepts theory conceptualizes identity formation, which cast doubt on its use as a theory of identity development. On balance, we believe Threshold Concept theory suffers a number of fundamental flaws that necessitate a shift from the positioning of Threshold Concepts as a theory, toward the use of Threshold Concepts as a less prescriptive reflective prompt to stimulate pedagogical discussion.

Threshold Concepts Theory as a Pedagogical Tool for Articulating Transformational Learning: An Initial Exploration

As the landscape of higher education gets more complex, there is a need to increase engagement and student reflection on their academic experiences. This research explores whether a threshold concept framework (TCF) can be used in an interdisciplinary social science culminating course as a tool for students to consider the transformative nature of their education and articulate the meaning of their educational experiences. Student reflective work was analyzed to see whether students can (1) understand TCF, which is typically used to analyze student learning, rather than as a reflective tool for students and (2) successfully apply TCF to their educational experiences. The authors conclude that using written reflections, students could understand and apply TCF to articulate the transformational nature of their education and consider the impact of their experiences as an undergraduate. These results illuminate the potential of using TCF as a pedagogical tool within the classroom and curriculum development.

Threshold concepts and ‘troublesome’ students: the uneasy application of threshold concepts to marginalised students

ABSTRACT For efficient and effective learning, intensive-mode programs have increasingly focused on threshold concepts – transformative, often-troublesome, moments in learning that represent the development of key knowledge. Threshold concept theory has support in the context of content-based, disciplinary domains, but questions remain about its applicability to curricula that have broader aims. This study investigated the ‘fit’ of threshold concept theory to participants, many of them previously marginalized, in an intensive Widening Participation (WP) program at a regional university in Australia. Thematic analysis of data from focus groups, comprised of students and teachers respectively, revealed that participants perceived not only the development of key conceptual knowledge as integral to learning, but that they also recognized that acculturation, metacognition, and affective attributes were important for success. This finding suggests that a narrow focus on academic knowledge – (both content- and skills-related) – is inadequate in programs that aim to include previously marginalized students in higher education.

Exploring a threshold concept framework to fan studies research methodologies

We turn to threshold concept theory to imagine ways scholars can approach fan studies methodologies and make their research and underlying values more explicit, as well as outline what some common and shared values and foundational concepts are in the discipline. We consider notions that all fans understand and value, regardless of home discipline, and the ways such shared understandings can lead to shared and consistent research methods and methodologies. We also provide some examples and illustrations from our own experiences before concluding with a threshold concept–inspired framework for conceiving of fan studies methodologies.

Biblical studies – troublesome or catastrophic? Strategies in ministerial re-formation

ABSTRACT Ministry students from conservative backgrounds have well-known difficulties when they first meet critical approaches to the Bible. However, as educators start to meet this challenge more frequently with intakes swelled by numbers from the global Pentecostal Diaspora, the pedagogical issues arising warrant further thought. Noting recent appeals to Threshold Concept theory, I suggest that we may rather underestimate Scripture’s unique type of ‘troublesomeness’ for some students, and that the applicability of such approaches to those from ‘intratextual’ faith contexts may need some qualification. Nuancing the problem via faith development and deconversion studies, I suggest the importance not so much of winning arguments, but of seeking to naturalise scriptural criticality within indwelt piety and discussing concrete ways of negotiating continuity of identity, integrity and vocation.

Refocusing Sustainability Education: Using Students’ Reflections on Their Carbon Footprint to Reinforce the Importance of Considering CO2 Production in the Construction Industry

The construction industry is the most significant contributor to the UK’s CO2 emissions. It is responsible for an annual output of approximately 45% of the total. This figure highlights the role the industry must play in helping to achieve the UK Government’s CO2 reduction target. It is ergo incumbent on construction-related educators to emphasise this issue and explore ways in which it can be achieved. Unintentional desensitisation has resulted in the term ‘sustainability’, particularly CO2 production, being seen by students as just another concept to be studied from a theoretical perspective. Many students fail to grasp its broader implications and how it should affect strategic environmental decisions about construction processes, technologies, and products. In an attempt to address this problem, an innovative learning, teaching, and assessment strategy was used with final year undergraduate construction students to improve their level of sustainability literacy. The theory of threshold concepts in the context of transformative learning was used as the baseline philosophy to the study. The approach involved asking students to calculate their carbon footprint and to reflect upon and extrapolate their findings to the construction industry and its practice. Content analysis was performed on the reflective commentaries acquired from student portfolios collected over four academic years. The results showed how the students’ reflections on their carbon footprints proved to be an enlightening experience. Terms such as ‘shocked by my footprint’, ‘surprised at the findings’, and ‘change in attitude’ were among the contemplative comments. When students linked their findings to the construction industry, phrases such as ‘waste generation’, ‘technologies’, and ‘materials’ were some of the concepts considered. By using their personal experiences as a benchmark, students were able to gain a deeper level of understanding of the causes and consequences of CO2 production. They also found it more straightforward to relate these issues to the construction industry and its practice. Several novel recommendations are made to raise the level of sustainability literacy in the construction industry thereby facilitating a potential reduction in worldwide CO2 production.