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Interventions for Threshold Concepts

When educators recognize that students are faced with threshold concepts they can take proactive steps to support students’ learning.

Here is what educators can do:
  1. Provide Explicit Instruction Scientist, teacher or learning students and dropper in healthcare study, medical research or future medicine study. Smile, happy men or women in science laboratory and university education professor.
    • Educators can offer clear explanations and demonstrations of the threshold concept, breaking down complex ideas into smaller, more digestible components. They can use analogies, visual aids, and real-world examples to illustrate the concept and make it more accessible to students.
  2. Encourage Exploration and Inquiry
    • Educators can create opportunities for students to explore the threshold concept through hands-on activities, inquiry-based tasks, and open-ended questions. They can encourage curiosity, experimentation, and independent investigation, allowing students to discover and construct their understanding of the concept.
  3. Foster Collaborative Learning
    • Educators can facilitate collaborative learning experiences where students can engage in discussions, share perspectives, and collaborate on problem-solving tasks related to the threshold concept. Peer interactions can provide valuable insights, promote deeper engagement, and foster a supportive learning community.
  4. Address Misconceptions
    • Educators can address common misconceptions or misunderstandings related to the threshold concept by providing corrective feedback, engaging students in dialogue, and offering opportunities for reevaluation and revision of their understanding. They can encourage students to question assumptions, challenge preconceived notions, and reconsider their perspectives.
  5. Promote Metacognitive Awareness
    • Educators can help students develop metacognitive awareness by encouraging reflection on their learning process, monitoring their understanding, and identifying areas of confusion or uncertainty.
    • They can teach students strategies for self-assessment, self-regulation, and self-correction, empowering them to take ownership of their learning journey.
  6. Offer Scaffolding and Support
    • Educators can provide scaffolding and support to help students navigate the challenges associated with the threshold concept.
    • This may involve breaking down complex tasks into manageable steps, providing guided practice and feedback, and offering additional resources or instructional assistance as needed.
  7. Create a Safe Learning Environment
    • Educators can create a safe and supportive learning environment where students feel comfortable taking risks, making mistakes, and asking questions related to the threshold concept.
    • They can foster a growth mindset by emphasizing the value of persistence, effort, and resilience in the face of challenges.
  8. Differentiate Instruction
    • Educators can differentiate instruction to meet the diverse needs of students facing the threshold concept.
    • This may involve providing additional enrichment opportunities for students who grasp the concept quickly, offering extra support for struggling students, and adapting instructional materials to accommodate various learning styles and preferences.
READING: Threshold Concepts (A Guide)

LINK TO READING: Here is a guide on Threshold Concepts from the Taylor Institute at the University of Calgary. The guide provides information on the characteristics of Threshold Concepts and applications in the disciplines. The theoretical framework of threshold concepts has become an emerging line of inquiry across all academic disciplines and areas of research, particularly in the scholarship of teaching and learning. The notion of a threshold concept arose out of research by Jan Meyer and Ray Land, who define it as a core idea that’s conceptually challenging for students, who struggle to grasp it—but once grasped, it radically transforms the students’ perception of the subject. Although this material is difficult to learn, understanding threshold concepts is essential to the mastery of any field of study.

READING: Integrating Threshold Concepts into the Curriculum

LINK TO READING: From the Office of Teaching and Learning at the University of Guelph. The Office of Teaching and Learning (OTL) is the leader in championing the University of Guelph’s pedagogical mission. The Office provides expertise in, and passionately advocates for, innovative and evidence-informed pedagogical approaches to build, maintain, and promote collaborative successes for their learners and campus community.

READING: Threshold Concepts in Medical Education: A Scoping Review

LINK TO READING: The threshold concept framework (TCF) was first described nearly 20 years ago, but its application in the field of medical education has recently seen a significant growth of interest with a diverse range of literature published on the subject. The transformative nature of threshold concepts (TCs) offers potential for the design of learning experiences and curricula across the medical education continuum. A scoping review was conducted to map the extent of the current literature regarding TCs in medical education—to describe the types of available evidence and its focus—and identify research gaps.

READING: Threshold Concepts: Informing the Curriculum (Higgs et al.)

LINK TO READING: From Emerging Issues in Higher Education, this article focuses on ways of thinking that students find difficult, particularly when they act as thresholds to further learning.