Annotated version of presentation at University of Lincoln, November 2011. References can be found at www.doceo.co.uk/lincoln/

1. Threshold Concepts and Professional Formation James Atherton (at the University of Lincoln) 15 November 2011

2. (This is the Lion Gate at Mycenae, through which Agamemnon may have passed on his way to Troy. 1300 BCE)

3. Ways of thinking and practising The presentation looks at these diffuse but important features of professional disciplines

4. Ways of thinking and practising The presentation looks at these diffuse but important features of professional disciplines Or “WTP”

5. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education

6. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them

7. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them ...and implications for curriculum and pedagogy

8. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them ...and implications for curriculum and pedagogy Didn’t get to do much on this in the session—I’ll write about it

10. If this vague and indistinctly bounded shape represents the WTP of a professional...

11. Political Background Legal Aspects Research methods Ethics Philosophies / models of Practice Discipline- Specific Theory Professional Studies Practice skills Technology Values Other contributory skills

12. Political Background Legal Aspects Research methods Ethics Philosophies / models of Practice Discipline- Specific Theory Professional Studies Practice skills Technology Values ...all these neat little boxes represent our efforts to devise organised courses to “cover” the formal knowledge, skills and WTP Other contributory skills

13. Political Background Legal Aspects Research methods Ethics Philosophies / models of Practice Discipline- Specific Theory Professional Studies Practice skills Technology Values But there are always bits of the WTP the formal curriculum cannot reach Other contributory skills

16. Situated Learning (a.k.a. “sitting next to Nellie”) Initial interaction is with other new entrants Progress is being allowed to take on more key, or risky, tasks The boundary is constantly moving Initial interaction is with other new entrants Progress is being allowed to take on more key, or risky, tasks Note: Lave & Wenger explicitly reject this kind of depiction of their model The boundary is constantly moving Legitimate Peripheral Participation

17. Situated Learning (a.k.a. “sitting next to Nellie”) Initial interaction is with other new entrants Progress is being allowed to take on more key, or risky, tasks The boundary is constantly moving Initial interaction is with other new entrants Progress is being allowed to take on more key, or risky, tasks Note: Lave & Wenger explicitly reject this kind of depiction of their model The boundary is constantly moving Legitimate Peripheral Participation We could (and do) rely on the “community of practice” to teach this for us, and back off from it.

18. Based on Wenger E (1998) Communities of Practice Cambridge; CUP p. 63 Participation Reification meaning world experience negotiation living in the world membership acting interacting mutuality forms points of focus documents monuments instruments projection

19. So the learning comes from the workplace and the existing practitioners Based on Wenger E (1998) Communities of Practice Cambridge; CUP p. 63 Participation Reification meaning world experience negotiation living in the world membership acting interacting mutuality forms points of focus documents monuments instruments projection

20. So the learning comes from the workplace and the existing practitioners But there is the problem that in the real world, not all practice is best practice... Based on Wenger E (1998) Communities of Practice Cambridge; CUP p. 63 Participation Reification meaning world experience negotiation living in the world membership acting interacting mutuality forms points of focus documents monuments instruments projection

21. Rite of Passage Initiation Marginal (Liminal) Status Return New Status Time Initial Status

22. Rite of Passage Initiation Marginal (Liminal) Status Return New Status Time Whatever the mechanism, the acquisition of a professional identity entails a period of liminality Initial Status

23. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them

24. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them So this is where TCs come in.

25. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them So this is where TCs come in. And also where the ideas become more personal/original/ speculative/ dubious/wrong!

28. Hence all the pictures of gates, doors, arches, etc.

29. Hence all the pictures of gates, doors, arches, etc. But a colleague from (I think) the University of Prince Edward Island suggested this is the best image. The TARDIS is bigger on the inside than the outside!

30. Convergent thinking - STEM (?)

31. Convergent thinking - STEM (?) For present purposes it is convenient to adopt Hudson’s distinction between “convergent” and “divergent” thinking

32. Convergent thinking - STEM (?) For present purposes it is convenient to adopt Hudson’s distinction between “convergent” and “divergent” thinking On the whole, convergent or “harder” disciplines unfold in a more linear manner than “softer” ones, so it is easier to find their threshold concepts

33. Subject learning outcomes 1 2 8 7 11 9 10 6 5 3 4 learning outcomes 2, 3, 7 and 9 are threshold concepts

34. Subject learning outcomes 1 2 8 7 11 9 10 6 5 3 4 learning outcomes 2, 3, 7 and 9 are threshold concepts Asked to operationalise TCs in their discipline, a group of engineers had no trouble coming up with this.

35. Convergent thinking - STEM (?) Divergent thinking - arts and humanities(?)

36. Convergent thinking - STEM (?) Divergent thinking - arts and humanities(?) In softer and more divergent disciplines, however, the routes are less prescribed and clear

37. Convergent thinking - STEM (?) Divergent thinking - arts and humanities(?) In softer and more divergent disciplines, however, the routes are less prescribed and clear There may be several routes and indeed several equally valid destinations

40. Time Knowledge/ skill etc.

41. Time Knowledge/ skill etc. This is a stylised “learning curve”, a fantasy of incremental progress

42. Time Knowledge/ skill etc. This is a stylised “learning curve”, a fantasy of incremental progress ...and this is the more realistic curve associated with learning a threshold concept

43. Time Knowledge/ skill etc. This is a stylised “learning curve”, a fantasy of incremental progress ...and this is the more realistic curve associated with learning a threshold concept in particular, this is the Liminal Trough

44. Reversing the normal order of discussion, TCs are frequently “troublesome”, counter-intuitive and potentially disturbing

57. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them

58. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them And some other issues thrown up by treating ideas as “threshold”...

59. Three possible forms which “threshold experiences” may take.

60. Three possible forms which “threshold experiences” may take. Note that “threshold experiences” has been adopted by Perkins (2010) but he does not talk about “skills” or “perspectives”

61. Wash your hands properly Always use a hand basin provided exclusively for washing hands Use comfortably hot water. Rub your hands vigorously to work in the soap Don’t forget the areas in between your fingers and around your wrists Rinse your hands before drying them

62. Wash your hands properly Always use a hand basin provided exclusively for washing hands Use comfortably hot water. Rub your hands vigorously to work in the soap Don’t forget the areas in between your fingers and around your wrists Rinse your hands before drying them When a group of catering teachers came up with this as a TC, we thought they’d missed the point...

63. Wash your hands properly Always use a hand basin provided exclusively for washing hands Use comfortably hot water. Rub your hands vigorously to work in the soap Don’t forget the areas in between your fingers and around your wrists Rinse your hands before drying them When a group of catering teachers came up with this as a TC, we thought they’d missed the point... ...but they weren’t just talking about “healthandsafety”; taking hand-washing seriously betokened...

64. Wash your hands properly Always use a hand basin provided exclusively for washing hands Use comfortably hot water. Rub your hands vigorously to work in the soap Don’t forget the areas in between your fingers and around your wrists Rinse your hands before drying them When a group of catering teachers came up with this as a TC, we thought they’d missed the point... ...but they weren’t just talking about “healthandsafety”; taking hand-washing seriously betokened... ...an ontological shift for their students; they saw themselves as professionals held to a higher standard than the general public.

67. A student who exceeds expectations A student who meets expectations A student who fails to meet expectations Can explain and provide specific examples of the values of patriarchy as evident in multiple artefacts of popular culture. Can recognize and provide a specific example of the values of patriarchy as evident in one or more artefacts of popular culture. Does not recognize the values of patriarchy as evident in artefacts of popular culture.

68. These are the assessment rubrics for the course; note the centrality of the concept of patriarchy for differentiation. The more you see of it the better you pass. The concept is a given . A student who exceeds expectations A student who meets expectations A student who fails to meet expectations Can explain and provide specific examples of the values of patriarchy as evident in multiple artefacts of popular culture. Can recognize and provide a specific example of the values of patriarchy as evident in one or more artefacts of popular culture. Does not recognize the values of patriarchy as evident in artefacts of popular culture.

77. Ways of thinking and practising A major issue in vocational/ professional education Consider what light threshold concepts can throw on them ...and implications for curriculum and pedagogy

78. This is the part I didn’t really get round to talking about, but in which some of your questions suggested interest, because it does get to the heart of the matter.

81. http://www.doceo.co.uk/lincoln/