reconsidering threshold concepts (loex 2015, denver, co)

RECONSIDERING THRESHOLD CONCEPTSA critical appraisal of the ACRL Framework for

Information Literacy

LOEX 2015 – Denver, COLane Wilkinson – University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

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Where I’m not going

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Today’s sampler

What is threshold concept theory (TCT)?

Where does TCT

break down?

How does TCT limit the ACRL Framewor

k?

Where do we go from here?

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What is Threshold Concept Theory?

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Liminality

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Threshold Concept theory was inspired by the anthropological concept of liminality.

Are there liminal spaces in learning?

Threshold Concepts

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Jan H. F. (Erik) Meyer

Univ. of Queensland

Ray LandUniv. of Strathclyde

The founders of threshold concept theory

Threshold Concepts

“akin to a portal, opening up a new and previously inaccessible way of

thinking about something.”

-Meyer & Land, 2003


Threshold Concepts

“a transformed way of understanding…without which the

learner cannot progress.”

-Meyer & Land, 2003


Threshold Concepts

“how people ‘think’ in a particular discipline”

-Meyer & Land, 2003


Threshold Concepts

An analytical theory that speaks to how students gain mastery over

specific domains of knowledge (i.e. disciplines)


Threshold Concepts

Five Characteristics:

1. Transformative2. Probably irreversible3. Integrative4. Possibly often (though not

necessarily always) bounded5. Potentially troublesome

-Meyer & Land, 2003


Threshold Concepts

These are not “core concepts”

“a core concept…has to be understood but it does not

necessarily lead to a qualitatively different view of subject matter.”

-Meyer & Land, 2003


Threshold Concepts and Information Literacy

Townsend, Brunetti, & Hofer, 2011• ACRL Standards are

of limited useLibrary instruction

should be reframed in terms of “big ideas” and

“core tasks”




of limited use• Threshold concepts

can help identify “big ideas”

“information literacy instructors…expose

students to the threshold concepts of librarians’ discipline–

information science–and help students to cross

them.” CC BY-NC-ND https://www.flickr.com/photos/renedepaula/6014699888/



of limited use• Threshold concepts

can help identify “big ideas”

• And inform our teaching

“a way to focus and prioritize instructional content and…engaged

teaching.”


TCT & the ACRL

June 2012: ACRL Board votes to revise Standards

March 2013: Task Force foundedFeb. 20, 2014: Draft 1, Part 1Apr. 4, 2014: Draft 1, Part 2Jun. 17, 2014: Draft 2Nov. 12, 2014: Draft 3Jan 12, 2015: ACRL Board files the

Framework

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Where Threshold Concepts Break

Down

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CriticismRowbottom, 2007; O’Donnell, 2010; Walker, 2013; Wilkinson, 2014• Troublesome

knowledge is agent-relative

What’s troublesome for me may not be

troublesome for you.

TCT implies that all (or at least most) learners learn

the same way and struggle with the same

things for the same reasons

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• Disciplines are not unified

Experts disagree.

So, whose threshold concepts are we

teaching?





Experts disagree.

For example, do the thresholds in psychology

arise in behavioral psychology?

Cognitive psychology? Psychoanalysis?





Experts disagree.

Even in information literacy.

I don’t think that the scholarship is a conversation.

Does that mean I am not information literate?





Experts disagree.

Or are we asked to carve every discipline up into myriad non-overlapping

sub-disciplines?





• Reinforces siloing

Threshold concepts do not play nicely with interdisciplinarity.





• Reinforces siloing

For example, the concept of ‘information’ is

different in librarianship and engineering.

Given that TCs are irreversible, what is an engineering librarian

going to do?CC-BY-NC-SA https://www.flickr.com/photos/flysi/153021189/




• Reinforces siloing• Lack of research

TCs are informed by expert opinion.

But has anyone asked the students?

Where is the empirical research?


Threshold Concepts & The

ACRL Framework

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The Standards need to go

• Not in line with other orgs (AASL, SCONUL)

• No guidance on visual and digital literacy-ACRL IL Competency Standards Review Task Force, 2012

Not entirelyCC-BY-NC-SA https://www.flickr.com/photos/stevegarfield/7410285204/

Is the Framework the right choice?

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Rethinking the Framework1. Descriptive but not explanatory

2. No connection to Standards3. Assessment troubles

4. Problem of disciplinarity5. Lack of research6. Core concepts?

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1. The Framework is not explanatory

The Standards were prescriptive

Think of a footrace.The Standards focused on the finish line

The Framework is descriptive

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The Framework shifts our attention to the obstacles

But what’s the broader picture?

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It’s still a one-sided account of info literacy

What are the Frames gateways into?

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We need both description and prescription (explanation)

This is intentional

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2. The Framework does not connect to the Standards

“The existence of Standards undermines

the purpose of the Framework”

-Swanson, 2015

Problem: Librarians are going to try



“It is NOT counterproductive to map the IL Standards to the IL Framework”

- Dalal, 2015

Problem: The Standards are still here



“Filed by the ACRL Board February 2,

2015, as one of the constellation of

information literacy documents from the association.”

The ACRL is promoting two conflicting documents



“Filed by the ACRL Board February 2,

2015, as one of the constellation of

information literacy documents from the association.”

Like it or not, we have to assess

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3. What about assessment?

Problem: The Framework resists assessment



“flexible options for implementation, rather

than…a set of standards, learning

outcomes, or any prescriptive enumeration of

skills.”




“it’s impossible to adequately describe a

learning goal to students who haven’t yet achieved

that goal.”

-Meyer & Land, 2010



3. What about assessment?If we’re going to adopt

threshold concept theory we have to abandon

assessment.

Or, we can do the work and explain how Meyer and

Land are wrong on assessment.

So, who’s going to do that?

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4. Issues of disciplinary identity

“information literacy is a disciplinary and a transdisciplinary learning agenda”

-ACRL Framework

Problem: is information literacy a discipline?

“Think like a __________________”mathematician.



Problem: Who do we want them to think like?

Threshold Concept Theory is about the troublesome spaces that separate novices

from experts.

“Think like a __________________”chemist.





from experts.

“Think like a __________________”English professor.





from experts.

“Think like a __________________”librarian?





from experts.

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5. Lack of research

The Delphi Study?


5. Lack of research

Problem: The right methodology?

Delphi Methodology

1950s RAND CorporationForecasting the otherwise untestable

Diverse group of expertsAnonymous peer collaboration


5. Lack of research

Problem: Why this methodology?

Is student learning otherwise untestable?

Are these findings backed up by any other research? Can they be?


5. Lack of research

Problem: Whose Frames are these?

Who came up with these Frames?

Who are the experts? How diverse are they?

Do they represent your library?

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6. Where are the core concepts?

Problem: Threshold concepts are not core concepts

Recall that Meyer & Land are explicit about this.

So, what are the core concepts of information literacy?

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6. Where are the core concepts?

Problem: Threshold concepts are not core concepts

Threshold concepts are few and far between in student learning.

So what are we teaching in between?

What comes before and after the threshold?

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Bonus: Even the Threshold Concepts guy is skeptical!

• “What are these frames…entries into? Because they’re not entry into your profession.”

• “[Trying to introduce assessment]…reverts back to measuring skills and outcomes. We’re a bit wary about that.”

• Covering this in a one-shot seems “a bit of a tall order”

-Land, 2015 LILAC Conference

Where do we go from here?

The Framework is a great document

but with limited scope CC B

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It’s just one beer in the six-pack

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Lessons from the Framework

1. Pedagogy matters

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Students do have liminal experiences


1. Pedagogy matters2. Thresholds matter


Let’s explore broader roles and new

partnerships across the curriculum.



3. Integration matters


Ownership implies responsibility.

Let’s do some real research on this and make our position

airtight.




4. Research matters


Social epistemologyCritical theory

Communication theory

Speech act theory???

Librarians aren’t as theory-averse as you

might think CC BY-NC-SA https://www.flickr.com/photos/tomscott/1967268/



4. Research matters5. Theories matter

Thanks from Chattanooga!Lane Wilkinson

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

[email protected]@lnwlk

Stuff I mentionedDalal, H. (2015, Jan. 7). An open letter regarding the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.

ACRLog.org [web log]. Retrieved from http://acrlog.org/2015/01/07/an-open-letter-regarding-the-framework-for-information-literacy-for-higher-education/

Davies, P. (2006). “Threshold concepts: how can we recognize them?” in Meyer, E. & Land, R., eds. Overcoming Barriers to Student Understanding Threshold Concepts and Troublesome Knowledge. London: Routledge.

Iannuzzi, P. (2013). “Info lit 2.0 or déjà vu?” Communications in Information Literacy, 7(2), 98-107.Land, R. (2015). “There could be trouble ahead’. Threshold concepts, troublesome knowledge and information

literacy – a current debate.” Presentation at the meeting of the Librarians’ Information Literacy Annual Conference, Newcastle, UK.

Meyer, J. H. F. & Land, R. (2003). Threshold concepts and troublesome knowledge: linkages to ways of thinking and practising within the disciplines. In C. Rust (ed.), Improving Student Learning–Ten Years On. Oxford: Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development (OCSLD), 412-424.

Morgan, P. (2015). “Pausing at the threshold.” Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 15(1), 183-195.Oakleaf, M. (2014). "A roadmap for assessing student learning using the new Framework for Information Literacy for

Higher Education." Journal of Academic Librarianship, 40(5), 510-514.O’Donnell, R. (2010). A critique of the threshold concept hypothesis and its application to opportunity cost in

economics.( Working Paper No. 164). Retrieved from http://www.finance.uts.edu.au/research/wpapers/wp164.html

Rowbottom, D. P. (2007). Demystifying threshold concepts. Journal of Philosophy of Education, 41(2): 263-270.Swanson, T. (2015, Jan. 12). The IL Standards and Framework cannot coexist. [Web log]. Retrieved from

http://tametheweb.com/2015/01/12/the-il-standards-and-il-framework-cannot-co-exist-by-ttw-contributor-troy-swanson/

Townsend, L., Brunetti, K., & Hofer, A. R. (2011). Threshold concepts and information literacy. portal: Libraries and the Academy, 11(3), 853-869.

Townsend, L., Brunetti, K., & Hofer, A. R. (2012). Troublesome concepts and information literacy: investigating threshold concepts for IL instruction. portal: Libraries and the Academy, 12(4), 387-405.

Walker, G. (2013). A cognitive approach to threshold concepts. Higher Education, 65(2), 247-263.Wilkinson, L. (2014, June 19). The problem with threshold concepts. [Web log]. Retrieved from

https://senseandreference.wordpress.com/2014/06/19/the-problem-with-threshold-concepts/