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Hi Virna Interesting topic. Probably a better way to consider the use of the Threshold Concepts Framework in relation to issues of neurodivergence amongst students is principally as an analytic lens. This might (in the most positive scenario) play a clarificatory role in establishing what are the modes of knowing, and the ways of thinking and practising that the students in question are being expected to achieve or perform in order to enter a particular disciplinary, professional or social community of practice. I would agree with James that such clarification isn’t always well established and the identification of these important points of transformation in the curriculum, and their nature, is one helpful role that teachers may play in this regard. It’s worth emphasizing also that apart from skill, knowledge and practice, such transformations very often require an ontological shift, or change in subjectivity, which can present equal if not greater challenges to the students concerned. Given the wide variability and variation in student learning in any group, this is an area which also would benefit from analysis and clarification, particularly so given the comparable variation in the nature of neurodiversity. Learning always requires content, purpose and direction. A Threshold Concepts approach, or other Curriculum Design approaches might, as analytic tools, help with the clarification of these factors. But in terms of student support, which you mention, that comes, I would suggest, not so much from theories or frameworks (which are not techniques per se) but from the teachers, or learning developers, or fellow students sometimes, who draw on these tools to figure out how to help a specific student move from where they are to where they need to be in terms of achievement in a specific subject setting. Though of course we would wish for them all to be self-directing this will remain problematic if they don’t know what direction they should be going in. James’ paper indicates many of the shortcomings in the ‘transmission’ of knowledge. But as Biesta (2014) has argued in ‘The Beautiful Risk of Education’ and other works, teachers play an important transcendental role in bringing knowledge (or practice) into view over the current (epistemological and ontological) horizons of students -- knowledge they would be unlikely to discover independently within the timescale of a degree programme. ‘Bringing into view’ is I think a more helpful notion, and probably a more expert practice, than ‘transmitting’, as it implies clarification and fuller explanation and engagement. What is brought into view may not be welcomed of course, and may, as Copernicus, Galileo, and Darwin all found, prove troublesome to the beneficiaries. But that’s where the fun starts. If nothing else it will require a range of ‘changes of mode’ in how it is brought into view. Best Ray __________________________________________ Professor Ray Land PhD FAcSS FRSA PFHEA Emeritus Professor of Higher Education|Durham University UK Emeritus Fellow|University College Durham UK [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> ________________________________ From: Online forum for SEDA, the Staff & Educational Development Association <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of James Wilkinson <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Thursday, November 7, 2019 4:30 PM To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Subject: Re: threshold concepts for learning design Hello Virna, Lesley Gourlay’s uses the term ‘threshold practices’, in her 2009 paper, which …sought to gain some theoretical purchase on the interplay between (i) the indeterminate, tacit nature of academic writing; (ii) the emotional and social dimension of the student transition; and (iii) the role of struggles around writing in identity formation. Gourlay (2009:189) Gourlay, L. (2009) Threshold practices: becoming a student through academic literacies. London Review of Education 7 (2), 181–192. See also my 2018 paper (attached) in which I refer to Gourlay in my analysis of the difficulties students have developing threshold practices, not least because these are often not made explicit, and students are not always given sufficient formative practice to develop them. Best wishes, James From: Online forum for SEDA, the Staff & Educational Development Association <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Virna Rossi Sent: 07 November 2019 16:02 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: threshold concepts for learning design Dear Lynn I read something about Threshold Concepts in Practice (also by R. Land), is that what you mean? If not, please tell me more. Kind regards Virna On Thu, 7 Nov 2019 at 15:29, Lynn Quinn <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote: Dear Virna I am not sure that everyone will agree but I think there is a distinction to be made between threshold concepts and threshold practices. Which are you most interested in? Of course, there might be a strong link between the two. Regards Lynn [Image removed by sender.]<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ru.ac.za&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608297861&sdata=BNN1bumnVz71%2BNsJbcO%2BbCqVEygtdStqlAJ%2FAMbFwEo%3D&reserved=0> Lynn Quinn Associate Professor Centre for Higher Research, Teaching and Learning Education Rhodes University t: +27 (0) 46 603 7391 cell: +27 (0) 83 292 3443 GLT Building, Lucas Avenue, Grahamstown, 6139 PO Box 94, Grahamstown, 6140, South Africa http://www.ru.ac.za/teachingandlearning/<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ru.ac.za%2Fteachingandlearning%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608307855&sdata=Jqk4TViU6VBiVbeogRFxt5iEioiHm5ZHkG59Qx%2FPYc0%3D&reserved=0> www.ru.ac.za<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ru.ac.za&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608307855&sdata=0%2FdeL%2FGizWCIJ5mJ6LGRH61z8oga%2FzjGpiWSy65NzxQ%3D&reserved=0> ORCID ID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2922-1312<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Forcid.org%2F0000-0002-2922-1312&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608317849&sdata=ge8tFAfvBnhkFfcyQJCMKgULwiWkZOYBZu6ryR4Z4Zk%3D&reserved=0> On Thu, 7 Nov 2019 at 11:52, Virna Rossi <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote: Dear colleagues I recently designed a 'learning design tool for creative courses' using 'threshold concepts' as the main theoretical underpinning. I piloted the tool on Monday and it was very successful, however, the workshop raised a few questions in my mind: Does anyone out there use threshold concepts for curriculum design, rather than the 'usual' learning outcomes approach? Is it successful? Would you say that threshold concepts overlap with Shulman's signature pedagogy ideas (habits of heart, mind and hand)? Does using threshold concepts in course design and delivery better support neurodiverse students? Any examples of this? Many thanks for your help in answering my questions. Kind regards Virna -- Virna Rossi BA (Hons), PGCert, Master of Teaching, SFHEA Course Leader Postgraduate Certificate of Education in Teaching and Learning for Creative Courses NEW! Starting soon at Ravensbourne - MA in Creative Education My usual work days are Mondays and Wednesday. On other days there will be a delay in replying to your message. I sometimes work at irregular times so if this email reaches you in the evenings please do not feel obliged to respond until normal working hours. Ravensbourne University London 6 Penrose Way Greenwich SE10 0EW E: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> W: www.ravensbourne.ac.uk<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ravensbourne.ac.uk%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608317849&sdata=grA40RwFogD9NL3qRjOvYdv0e91ybNxYbw4Dj44e9qk%3D&reserved=0> ________________________________ This email, and its attachments if any, may be confidential or legally privileged and is intended to be seen only by the person to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender immediately, delete it from your system and do not copy, disclose or otherwise act upon any part of this email or its attachments. The views expressed herein are those of the author and should not be taken as those of Ravensbourne University London, unless this is specifically stated. Ravensbourne University London is a higher education corporation under the terms of the Education Reform Act 1988 and the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. The institution is an exempt charity for the purposes of the Charities Act 2011. Ravensbourne University London’s address is 6 Penrose Way, Greenwich, London, SE10 0EW Please consider the environment before printing this email. ________________________________ To unsubscribe from the SEDA list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?SUBED1=SEDA&A=1<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.jiscmail.ac.uk%2Fcgi-bin%2Fwebadmin%3FSUBED1%3DSEDA%26A%3D1&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608327846&sdata=zdNwS6%2BDVMtMiqVw9a5kofPl58HKUqafXCZvr%2B3UYls%3D&reserved=0> -- Virna Rossi BA (Hons), PGCert, Master of Teaching, SFHEA Course Leader Postgraduate Certificate of Education in Teaching and Learning for Creative Courses NEW! Starting soon at Ravensbourne - MA in Creative Education My usual work days are Mondays and Wednesday. On other days there will be a delay in replying to your message. I sometimes work at irregular times so if this email reaches you in the evenings please do not feel obliged to respond until normal working hours. Ravensbourne University London 6 Penrose Way Greenwich SE10 0EW E: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> W: www.ravensbourne.ac.uk<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ravensbourne.ac.uk%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608327846&sdata=M85hcqTLw084nx%2BPvLNQIZodm1CrHH3YFWncRCr%2BeEo%3D&reserved=0> ________________________________ This email, and its attachments if any, may be confidential or legally privileged and is intended to be seen only by the person to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender immediately, delete it from your system and do not copy, disclose or otherwise act upon any part of this email or its attachments. The views expressed herein are those of the author and should not be taken as those of Ravensbourne University London, unless this is specifically stated. Ravensbourne University London is a higher education corporation under the terms of the Education Reform Act 1988 and the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. The institution is an exempt charity for the purposes of the Charities Act 2011. Ravensbourne University London’s address is 6 Penrose Way, Greenwich, London, SE10 0EW Please consider the environment before printing this email. ________________________________ To unsubscribe from the SEDA list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?SUBED1=SEDA&A=1<https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.jiscmail.ac.uk%2Fcgi-bin%2Fwebadmin%3FSUBED1%3DSEDA%26A%3D1&data=02%7C01%7C%7C1be82e815d2342e1dfc608d7639bea0d%7C569df091b01340e386eebd9cb9e25814%7C0%7C1%7C637087393608337835&sdata=sRqVFK4zowp3hrroJKNUXhvbGNem4dqLAW%2B9O0C73As%3D&reserved=0> ________________________________ To unsubscribe from the SEDA list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?SUBED1=SEDA&A=1 ######################################################################## To unsubscribe from the SEDA list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?SUBED1=SEDA&A=1