Threshold and transformation

Abstract

This paper explores two closely-related concepts of relevance to teaching and learning in higher education and management education, in particular: threshold and transformation. Threshold concepts and transformational (or transformative) learning are defined and explained, and their relevance demonstrated, with reference to germane theoretical underpinnings and established practice. A dozen threshold concepts are identified that characterise the higher education classroom employing student-centred, experiential, and holistic education to achieve deep learning. Three are explained in detail to illustrate threshold concepts and how they work: the process is the solution, teaching for the unknowable, and the classroom as a community. Four extensive vignettes depict threshold and transformation as they emerge in the management classroom, revealing the conditions in which they might occur, the threshold moment, itself, and the transformation and its impact on individual learners and others in the class. The synthesis of threshold and transformation this paper introduces shows how the two concepts are integrally related and operate synergistically to produce remarkable learning outcomes. It is argued that conventional approaches-exemplified by eight 'unspoken rules to management education'-fall short in equipping students for an unknown and, perhaps, unknowable future. Applying the principles of threshold and transformation is a new approach to teaching and learning that better prepares students for the real world, and may revolutionalise the way students and teachers experience and exploit the classroom.

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