A Dusting of Frustrations and Serendipities
When reading about threshold concepts, the song “Toyland” began playing in my head. “Toyland, toyland little girl and boy land. While you dwell within it you are ever happy there.”[1] It is not a song that has been part of my repertoire. Several times I tried to push it aside not really wanting to be distracted. But the song would not leave. I was frustrated because each time I read the assigned books this week, the song reappeared. If I am learning anything, it is to yield to what God may be trying to show me. So, I set about trying to find a primary source to get the lyrics for a song that was first written in 1903 by Victor Herbert.[2] Regardless of the many ways I worded the queries in Chat GPT, the George Fox library and even google, there was nothing that seemed to meet the standard I was seeking. I was almost ready to give up on this cycle of dead ends when I saw a local public library while driving and took a detour. Once inside I met with a reference librarian who was excited to talk with me. She opened doors to new sites that are available using all the city branches and digital resources. It was a serendipitous encounter.
Trying to find resources that offered a different approach to learning did not yield anything that seemed significant to my reading. However, I am becoming aware how the lessons and value of the readings are not limited to academia.
If my memory is not too faded, I recall that when we were in Oxford, Jason talked about learning with our whole self and needing to jump into learning feet first. One of the concepts that stuck with me was how can learning be about death and resurrection? [3] In a number of ways, I need to let go of the ways I have learned in the past. I obviously learn by watching others do things and listening to their experiences. But during my bachelor and master’s studies, there were facts to digest and theories to learn. Education was about learning to pass national exams. The process we are in now is quite different and a shock to my system. If this is about death and resurrection, it has to be in concert with God each step of the way. I need to be willing to stretch outside of my comfort zone and to die from old ways of learning and thinking.
This may not appear to connect to our reading, but threshold concepts are about learning things that change us. Death and resurrection are about change and new life. To participate in that, I need to stay the course and trust God’s presence with me. Each week brings something new, and while I have a long way to go, the journey itself is an education.
When I finally got all the words of the song “Toyland” I smiled. The last verse of the song made the connection. “Childhood’s joy land, mystical merry toyland. Once you pass its borders, you can never return again.”[4] When threshold concepts are learned, we cannot go back.[5]
Another serendipity occurred at work. I work as a CEO of a mid-large nonprofit organization that serves people living with developmental differences. The State of Florida only pays a portion of the cost to provide care. Consequently, we raise a lot of money. Our goal for this year is over $1,000,000.00.
Several years ago, I embarked on a journey to help us decrease dependency on State and donated dollars by opening a thrift store. That became a reality on November 30, 2023, when the store finally opened. The store manager and his two employees all have retail experience, which I do not. However, none of them ever worked with volunteers. No matter how I explained how and why to work with the volunteers, they would resist. This week at a committee meeting, the store manager told the group that he wants to learn more about having volunteers partner with the store. I thought, he gets it! Then I remembered reading that repeating words to an instructor could be a first step to learning but it also could be a barrier to real learning. I knew I would need to pay attention to his actions more than just words. Interestingly, a parent volunteer was working in the store with one of our program participants. They were chatting, laughing, and hanging clothing. I brought the store manager back to watch the interaction. A light went off and he was excited. He needed to see volunteerism in action. Different approaches are needed for different learning outcomes and learners.
I need to press on with doctoral level research. I feel as though I am standing in a threshold and cautious about moving through. Caution can become a barrier to learning unless I let go of my fear that when I polish my final draft, I polish my summary notes in a way that, unknowingly reverts back to be too close to an original text, thus plagiarism. As I practice this, I will keep citing and rereading text. It is not an insurmountable mountain but definitely a steep climb.
Two final thoughts, I appreciate being able to see how the things I am reading in this program can help me be a better leader in my current situation. Finally, the only way to jump in feet first and succeed is to cling to God’s presence and grace.
[1] Herbert, Victor, comp., “Toyland” BBC Music Magazine, Nov. 17, 2022, David Rose Publishing Co.
[2] Traubner. Richard. “Herbert: Songs.” American Record Guide Vol.75, Issue 5, September-October 2012, pp. 124+. Accessed Jan. 23, 2024, Gale OneFile: Fine Arts, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A338417108/PPFA?u=fjp_jvpl&sid=bookmark-PPFA&xid=7026b49c.
[3] Jason Clark, “Plenary Session,” lecture, DLGP Oxford Advance, Oxford, UK, September 20, 2023.
[4] Herbert, “Toyland.”
[5] Meyer, Jan H.F., and Ray Land, eds. Overcoming Barriers to Student Understanding: Threshold concepts and troublesome knowledge. Oxon OX. Routledge, 2006.
About the Author
Diane Tuttle
16 responses to “A Dusting of Frustrations and Serendipities”
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Wonderful post Diane! Its so great the way you were able to put into action the threshold concept this week and its brilliant that you showed your team mate at the store instead of sharing information for them to digest.
I’m curious about where you picked up this concern and caution about plagiarism and how finding its root might help you move over the threshold, leaving that fear behind?
Thanks for your curiosity, Ryan. I think it came from hearing everyone talking about plagiarism and the many warnings and consequences related to it since joining this program. Having micro-soft give me error messages when I run the check for similarities doesn’t help either. Reading and summarizing concepts is coming but I also love to write and then go back to something several days later and edit. It is in the editing that I wonder if my changes might unwittingly put the essay back into a version that could be closer to verbatim of an original source. One thing I think might help is to actually mark a page wherever the original source is located so that I could check text quickly after my edits. It’s more work now but I think as I learn to trust my writing the need to double check will diminish.
Diane, I love how you brought so many elements into the blog post this week. It was a gift to read it.
I appreciate the recognition that we all need to die to old ways of learning so that we can embrace whatever new things God has for us. What has been the hardest “old way” that you’ve had to die to? What new life has sprung up in its place? Again, thanks for this brilliant post!
Thanks Graham for the question. I think right now it is letting go of remembering all the facts that I read and read for the meaning behind and the value of the facts. I think this will help me throughout, but I am sure there will be others that haven’t emerged yet that will be just as important. Peace
Hi Diane, your post is engaging and interesting.
I enjoyed reading the success of your thrift store. During our conversation in Oxford, I saw your excitement as you shared about the thrift store, and the energy you had invested in this endeavor.
The incorporation of the song “Toyland” as a metaphor adds a creative and engaging dimension to your post. Your personal journey in seeking the song’s lyrics and the serendipitous encounter at the local public library effectively illustrates the unpredictable yet transformative nature of learning experiences.
I thoroughly appreciate how you expressed the connection between the concept of death and resurrection in learning and the challenges you face in adapting to a new learning process.
I have not worked in a non-profit organization. I am curious, how have the principles of threshold concepts specifically influenced and manifested in your leadership approach within the nonprofit organization and in the process of establishing a thrift store?
Hi Shela, Frequently there are difficult decisions that I need to make at work. It could be tempting to stay in the liminal space, weigh pros and cons, particularly risks. Yet, I firmly believe that a leader needs to have courage to make those decisions, to take a bold step and risk possible failure. These steps are not meant to be careless, but after analyzing the aspects and if the moving forward benefits outweigh the risks, then to not do it could limit someone’s ability to be a true leader. Sometimes it means dying to the desire to be safe all the time. Life isn’t safe, and leadership definitely isn’t. But, leadership can be exciting, empowering, and even lifegiving.
Hi Diane, thanks for your insight and courage in the way you are leading and learning. In your exploration of threshold concepts and the connections you’ve made, it’s evident that learning extends beyond academia. The metaphor of “Toyland” and its connection to threshold concepts, where once learned, there’s no return, raises intriguing questions.
How do you see this irreversible transformation influencing your approach to leadership in a nonprofit organisation?
As you navigate the steep climb of doctoral research, how might the concept of “death and resurrection” apply, not just to learning, but to the development of your leadership style?
How do you balance caution and courage in moving through the threshold of doctoral-level research?
Thanks
Hi Glyn, These are good questions. I tend to be a person who doesn’t like to stay stuck. In business, I weigh the options and take calculated risks. My organization would not have been able to grow if I wasn’t willing to do that. In this program I have to approach it in a similar way. But in this case, I am probably adding extra steps in my writing, just to be careful. I do believe with the benefit of time and experience that will continue to lessen. Not doing it, is not at option if I am going to be true to the fact that I believe God has led me to this program. It is up to me in concert with God to work through the threshold times. On my leadership style, I think my age and longevity with my organization is more indicative of a death and rebirth. My project in this program is leadership transition. How to do it well and all that goes into it. I believe this work will help the organization I serve to thrive and readily accept a new leader while I will be able to help other nonprofits navigate the waters of transition as well. Pretty exciting really. Thanks again for the questions. I anticipate the answers will continue to morph.
Diane,
I enjoyed your post and how “Toyland” would not leave you alone. I, too, had an experience with thoughts that kept popping up while trying to read these texts. I relate to you with the challenges of citations, avoiding plagiarism, and learning a new way of writing (at least for me, this is my first time using Turabian). It feels like we are in the liminal stages in this area. What stood out to you in the readings that can give you hope and courage as you continue to muddle through this transition period?
Hi Kari, There were nuggets in the reading and in Coven’s talk, (especially at the end where he actually showed that he was practicing moving through a threshold to his students) but more than the readings, I think it is truly sensing that I am on a journey that God invited me to travel. It prompts me whenever I am frustrated. Thanks for asking.
Diane,
As I was reading your post, one word kept coming to me—unlearning. Interestingly, this morning, I picked up a book I just purchased for some fun reading, “The Boy, the mole, the fox and the horse,” by Charlie Mackesy. On one page he has an illustration of the little boy sitting face-to-face with the mole and he says, “I wonder if there is a school of unlearning.”
If I’m honest, can’t we all benefit from a little unlearning?
You later mentioned being cautious. What parts of your past academic journey do you need to unlearn in order to let go of caution and step boldly into your doctoral research? What is holding you back?
Hi Nancy, I think what I mentioned to Ryan is the gist of it. I do think I have a workable solution that needs to be lived out so that as I continue to practice what I am doing I will also learn to trust it. Thanks for asking.
Hi Diane! I have a great appreciation for your correlation of Death and Resurrection as a threshold concept. Honestly as we journey in this doctoral experience I am dying daily in my thoughts, approach and revisiting my understanding of lifelong things. As you speak of unlearning, how spot on. We have a saying in our community. “If the church is ever to become the God’s church we must be willing to become unchurched.”
Hi Daren, I like that. A couple of years ago I was asked to give a message at a church during the advent season on hope. The interesting piece of that was that the service was held at a Micro Brewery on a Sunday morning. The congregation thought that it was important to once a month bring the church to the community rather than always expecting the people to come to them. It was definitely an outside the box concept for me, but the service was no less reverent.
Diane, it is evident from your post that your understanding of threshold concepts and liminality is in “real-time” as you progress on this doctoral journey. I share your perspective on this journey. I am curious, based on your experience, what you would tell someone else considering this doctoral journey, based on your experience of this threshold concept so far? In what ways is this changing you that could help prepare others?
Hi Chad, I think we are still early in the journey, but if someone is considering this program, I would recommend that the person pray, talk to trusted advisors and family and ask themselves if they are really interested in learning. I crave learning things.
I think learning how to read is important but I would also go back to our first week with Jason and my lesson to myself was to not jump to conclusions or panic about workload until I really know what is expected. So the message to someone else would be to repeat what we heard early on, “Trust the process.”