Notes on:
Cousin, G. (2010) 'Neither teacher centred
nor student centred: threshold concepts and
research partnerships'. Journal of
Learning Development in Higher Education 2:
1-9.
Dave Harris
Threshold concepts offer a new way of thinking
about research collaboration with students and
others, focusing on encouraging partnerships
stressing the difficulty of the subject rather
than general educational theory.
[Meyer and Land are summarised 1--3, with an
emphasis on the contested nature of threshold
concepts, which provide only 'provisional
stability for teaching, learning and assessment
purposes' (3).
Liminality is an unstable space, where oscillation
between understandings may take place.
Learners strive to attain mastery. There can
be a dialogue with students about their struggles
[with some examples of conversation with students
of linguistics: students say they forget things as
soon as they leave class, and they can't apply
what they've learned; they felt lost. This
is the sort of oscillation that Cousin refers to,
and she notes that learning is often
recursive. There is a 'strong emotional
dimension as well'(4), when students her problems
identifying with subjects and their own perception
of their abilities. Or cultural studies
teacher says that some get engaged, but more
remain in a state of anxiety, especially in the
first year, while others discover 'a utilitarian
route' through the material.
Ways of overcoming liminality include 'quasi
plagiarism, plagiarism or mimicry. Some just
give up and leave university altogether'.
Having dialogues with them 'dramatically reduces
these possibilities, particularly of the teacher
gives them for permission to flounder, flail and
forget'. More examples of what students say
include realizing that theoretical work has some
deeper significance; that it can be relevant to
professional practice; that perhaps it is not
necessary to achieve complete mastery. And
with students of economics, struggling with the
concept of elasticity, problems included knowing
how to apply it: one student reported that
suddenly everything seemed different after
mastery. This is not exactly the same as
phenomenographic approaches, which have tended to
stress student experience rather than the academic
teacher, and can look excessively student-centred
to many academics.
Educational developers have certainly experienced
reactions 'from indifference to hostility' from
academics who fear excessive student-centred
approaches. Developers can see academics as
requiring leadership toward student centred
approaches - but there may be some point in
academic resistance. The '"teacherly self"
may be threatened (5). For example many
educationalists have nothing but disdain for
lectures, but this can irritate academics because
it seems to ignore 'the lecturers symbolic, ritual
content', their larger role rather than their
immediate effectiveness [enter Bourdieu here
-this' the professional ideology of 'proper
knowledge', and it is socially supported as
something clearly demonstrating the autonomy of
universities from economic dominance].
Lectures permit students as well as teachers to
'feel part of the university' (6). The
lecture theatre can be a sacred space where
academics exercise their freedom, advancing
contentious ideas. Of course, lecturing can
be improved or sometimes replaced. It is the
opposition between student-centred and
teacher-centred approaches which is not helpful,
like many binaries. Academics need to have
their dignity restored as full partners in any
discussion of educational practices.
Academics should not be expected 'to become
amateur educationalists' either. Most developers
know that asking academics to reflect as in Kolb
can look like being asked to become amateurs in
another discipline.
Threshold concepts offer a way out, emphasizing
subject expertise for students and teachers not
general education. Academics seem a more
enthusiastic about discussing them, and they are
more willing to engage in dialogue. There is
a better response than asking to focus on learning
outcomes.
Phenomenography has displayed learner variations,
and provided data to be analysed by researchers,
which introduces a level of interpretation and
representation. Threshold concept research
can run the risk of this as well, but there is a
new trend addressing 'this kind of interpretive
predicament' (7). Research becomes a shared
inquiry with academics and students: 'it is
student focused but not student-centred in ways
that remove the academic from the stage'.
It is the potential to open discussion that is
important, leading to transactional curriculum
inquiry (see Barradell)
. The method is not to invite academics to
learn pedagogic discipline, but to investigate
their own specialism more deeply. This will
lead to a more adequate partnership between
developers, students and specialists.
back to education
studies page
|
|