Doctoral conceptual thresholds in cellular and molecular biology

In the biological sciences, very little is known about the mechanisms by which doctoral students acquire the skills they need to become independent scientists. In the postsecondary biology education literature, identification of specific skills and effective methods for helping students to acquire t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of science education 2017-12, Vol.39 (18), p.2574-2593
Main Authors: Feldon, David F., Rates, Christopher, Sun, Chongning
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Barriers
Biological Sciences
Biologists
Biology education
Candidates
College Science
Competence
conceptual change/development
Cytology
doctoral education
Doctoral Programs
Doctoral Students
Focus Groups
Fundamental Concepts
Graduate Students
Graduate studies
higher education
Interviews
Molecular Biology
resarch training
Research Methodology
Research Skills
Science Education
Scientific Concepts
Studies
threshold concepts
Thresholds
Undergraduate Study
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Summary:In the biological sciences, very little is known about the mechanisms by which doctoral students acquire the skills they need to become independent scientists. In the postsecondary biology education literature, identification of specific skills and effective methods for helping students to acquire them are limited to undergraduate education. To establish a foundation from which to investigate the developmental trajectory of biologists' research skills, it is necessary to identify those skills which are integral to doctoral study and distinct from skills acquired earlier in students' educational pathways. In this context, the current study engages the framework of threshold concepts to identify candidate skills that are both obstacles and significant opportunities for developing proficiency in conducting research. Such threshold concepts are typically characterised as transformative, integrative, irreversible, and challenging. The results from interviews and focus groups with current and former doctoral students in cellular and molecular biology suggest two such threshold concepts relevant to their subfield: the first is an ability to effectively engage primary research literature from the biological sciences in a way that is critical without dismissing the value of its contributions. The second is the ability to conceptualise appropriate control conditions necessary to design and interpret the results of experiments in an efficient and effective manner for research in the biological sciences as a discipline. Implications for prioritising and sequencing graduate training experiences are discussed on the basis of the identified thresholds.
ISSN:0950-0693
1464-5289
DOI:10.1080/09500693.2017.1395493