Threshold Concepts – Silence and Voice

Shifting relations with the more-than-human: Six threshold concepts for transformative sustainability learning – An Article Summary

After some time traveling for work, having done a lot of reading along the way, I am finally pausing enough to share some of what I learned via a #5Papers strategy:

1/ I read Barrett, Harmin, Maracle, Patterson, Thomson, Flowers, & Bors (2016)…

2/ …Shifting relations with the more-than-human: six threshold concepts for transformative sustainability learning

3/ http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2015.1121378 via #5Papers Continue reading “Shifting relations with the more-than-human: Six threshold concepts for transformative sustainability learning – An Article Summary“

What is my #rhizo15 Learning Subjective?

While I recently posted about Why I am engaging in #rhizo15 and Learning Liminality I have still somehow avoided discussing my Learning Subjectives (as learning objectives are not readily possible when we do not know where we are going).

Perhaps this is because I so often avoid personal learning objectives.

I frequently retreat into researcher mode. Specifically as a qualitative researcher, where I always want to ask questions such as, “Why?, “Tell me what you mean by that?,” and “How did you…?” I often avoid making declarative comments, statements, or proclamations as, more often than not, I am wrong in some way. I hate being wrong, and find it easier to commit to the extent I can speak to, while avoiding presenting myself or my ideas narrowly that I somehow exclude other possibilities.

This all begs the question, what are my learning subjectives for #rhizo15?

Wow, I really do not know.

It is easy to say, “To build my network,” but that somehow seems to be a bit selfish, as if Continue reading “What is my #rhizo15 Learning Subjective?“

Video of My Research Seminar

I am happy to share the video of my recent Research Seminar presentation, where I discussed my doctoral thesis research in progress.

If you ever want to get feedback and suggestions about your own research I cannot recommend this sort of opportunity highly enough. In many ways, this came at just the right time, as it forced me to try to make sense of all my work in a way that is understandable by a larger audience (outside of my supervisors and immediate colleagues). Wonderful opportunity, especially while writing up, to help clarify the thoughts as this was the first time I have publicly discussed my work from beginning to end.

Besides looking like Mr. Potato Head in the video (which I fully expected), I am happy with the results.

Threshold Concepts Conference 2012 Paper Accepted

I am happy to share that a paper I co-authored for the 4th Biennial Threshold Concepts Conference was just accepted for presentation during the conference in Dublin, Ireland. My co-author, again Gale Parchoma, and I have it tentatively titled The Experience of Interdisciplinarity in Doctoral Research: Threshold Journeys.

This will be an especially exciting conference, as many of the researchers working in the area of Threshold Concepts will be in attendance AND many of their works have been very important in my own doctoral thesis research.

Anybody else planning to attend this?

Doctoral Thesis Data Collection, Status #1

I want to share my progress with my doctoral thesis data collection that I started in my posting on July 28 where I outlined my research and began to request participants.

I have been absolutely blown away by the support and interest I have felt from so many people who have so kindly offered to assist or otherwise help promote participation in my work. Having already completed 7 interviews lasting between 60 and 90 minutes each, I feel I am indeed learning more about the liminal experiences that occur during doctoral studies related to learning leaps, aha! moments, and passing through conceptual thresholds.

I have learned that I really do not know what sorts of initial findings I can draw from this work until I begin transcribing and analyzing the transcripts, but I have already noticed that some of my questions and frames have developed the more I learn about how current and former doctoral researchers experience and make sense of their in-between periods of meaning-making while on the path to their degrees. Each person I speak with is so different from one another, and this opportunity to hear about what at times involves personal experiences en route to the degree often leaves me in awe.

I so value how generous many people are with their time, and I look forward to engaging with the other participants I have scheduled to interview through the end of the month (when I now hope to conclude my data collection for my research).