{"id":30424,"date":"2023-01-25T05:58:11","date_gmt":"2023-01-25T13:58:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=30424"},"modified":"2023-01-25T05:58:11","modified_gmt":"2023-01-25T13:58:11","slug":"entering-the-learning-portal-a-reflection-about-threshold-concepts-and-barriers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/entering-the-learning-portal-a-reflection-about-threshold-concepts-and-barriers\/","title":{"rendered":"Entering the Learning Portal – a Reflection about Threshold Concepts and Barriers"},"content":{"rendered":"

When I think about threshold concepts and the idea of moving through a threshold like a portal, I imagine teleportation, you know like in Doctor Who, Back to the Future . . . not sure why.\u00a0 When I think about portals, I think about a tardis maybe?\u00a0 When my three daughters were teenagers, they loved watching Doctor Who episodes.\u00a0 My oldest even wanted a tardis in her bedroom.\u00a0 The doctor was teleported into another time and place, obtaining new knowledge and awareness of another context.\u00a0 When I imagine the process of teleportation, I see similarities to the experience of traveling through a doctoral program, <\/span>without <\/b>the easy push of a button, but <\/span>with<\/b> the Lord through the tardis of transformation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Traversing through the Process<\/b><\/p>\n

While my mind draws similarities to the teleportation of Doctor Who, I recognize that the idea of traversing through a threshold concept portal of sorts takes me from one place to another.\u00a0 I anticipate the Lord\u2019s work on my mind and heart.\u00a0 I am sure that there will be times when, like Doctor Who, I would like to enter the tardis, push a button and go from one point to the other, done.\u00a0 However, recognizing that this process will be difficult, I am incredibly grateful that I can rely on our Lord who is the pioneer and perfecter of my faith, and who has a plan and purpose for my life as I enter the portal.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Threshold Concept as Portal for Transformation<\/b><\/p>\n

As defined in the book <\/span>Overcoming Barriers to Student Understanding<\/span><\/i>, a threshold concept is a portal, opening up a new and previously inaccessible way of thinking about something (Meyer, 28).\u00a0 <\/span>The learner is going from one point in their understanding to another and it is transformational.\u00a0 Because of this process, the mastery of a threshold concept is an irreversible process. \u00a0 A transformation takes place that involves shifts in thinking, new outlooks on a topic, new eyes on a subject matter morphing into new perceptions or understandings about oneself and the world.\u00a0 <\/span>The learner cannot go back to a previous naive state.\u00a0 So here I enter the portal with expectation for transformation.\u00a0 There have been instances in the last several months when I have questioned my ability to enter this doctoral portal.\u00a0 However, the Holy Spirit gently reminds me of the bigger picture, the amazing journey to this point and the hope of what is to come.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In the Ted Talk, Dr. Robert Coven, a high school history teacher used the analogy of learning to drive. He identified the difference between the expert driver and the student who may just want to complete the task.\u00a0 At the start, the student driver considers doing multiple tasks simultaneously, becomes overwhelmed and experiences a block or barrier to their progress.\u00a0 However, in his comparison, Dr. Coven noted the intuitive control that the expert has to look ahead at the greater picture, being able to put their understanding into a context.\u00a0 When I am able to identify threshold concepts, a transformation or shift will happen in my identity as a learner and I will gain greater clarity into the bigger picture.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Threshold Concept as Portal for Interdependence<\/b><\/p>\n

Interdependence is a scary concept in our \u201cdo-it-yourself\u201d, \u201cgo-it-alone\u201d, self-reliant culture.\u00a0 In my limited years on this planet, I have come to the conclusion that I can not do life outside of community.\u00a0 I need the support of my family, my faith family, my colleagues and others.\u00a0 Living in community has many challenges, but I believe that challenges increase the quality and production of fruit in us.\u00a0 Interdependence sharpens us.\u00a0 I am more likely to experience success when I lean into the gift of community.\u00a0 In the text, <\/span>Threshold Concepts in Practice<\/span><\/i>, it stated that developing supportive academic communities of practice (Lave & Wenger, 1991) has been shown to provide ongoing sharing, support and mutual learning among communities of doctoral learners (Land, 166).\u00a0 Every day my heart is filled with gratitude for the support I have received from my peer group, my cohort friends, and the faculty\/staff.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t feel like I am going it alone, but rather have the support of others.\u00a0 I benefit from the ongoing sharing, support and mutual learning in our weekly Zoom meetings,\u00a0 blog discussions and peer group times.\u00a0 The support of this community has and will continue to help me in overcoming barriers in my understanding and be a major portion of my growth and transformation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/b><\/p>\n

As I synthesize the information that I have processed in the texts and Ted Talk, and think about threshold concepts and barriers that will surface in me I recognize that this will not be easy.\u00a0 The journey has already challenged the limits of my understanding. However, I have entered a learning portal, maybe not quite as easy as a tardis, but through this portal, through God\u2019s love and grace, and in the community provided in this program, I will be transformed.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When I think about threshold concepts and the idea of moving through a threshold like a portal, I imagine teleportation, you know like in Doctor Who, Back to the Future . . . not sure why.\u00a0 When I think about portals, I think about a tardis maybe?\u00a0 When my three daughters were teenagers, they loved […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":168,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2489,1429],"class_list":["post-30424","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dlgp02","tag-meyer","cohort-dlgp02"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30424","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30424"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30424\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30426,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30424\/revisions\/30426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30424"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30424"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30424"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}