The troublesome nature of learning to teach critical thinking: using threshold concepts theory to support teacher education

Teaching critical thinking is fundamental for students’ academic success and helps to equip them for life after university. There are some studies which discuss teachers’ perceptions of the barriers regarding the teaching of critical thinking. However, more empirical evidence is needed about the actual challenges which educators experience when learning to teach it. Using the lens of threshold concepts theory, this small-scale collective case study examines the barriers encountered by 14 HE educators in the UK, as they experimented with teaching critical thinking in their disciplinary contexts. Educators identified the troublesome and transformative nature of learning to do so experienced through shortcomings in curricula, learning environment and ways of thinking and practising. These findings suggest that the process of learning to teach critical thinking could be a threshold concept of higher education which supports educators to think differently about how to teach this subject. It provides initial considerations for professional development programmes and resources to support educators to overcome their barriers and learn to teach criticality within their disciplines.