The model of pedagogic frailty adds cohesion to consideration of the factors that impinge upon teaching at university and which may inhibit innovation. The model was developed through the examination of expert knowledge structures using concept maps. In this editorial, we summarise the pedagogic frailty model and explain its relationship to the concept mapping tool. We emphasise the need to use excellent concept maps (succinct maps with high explanatory power) for the development of theory and the exploration of the ‘yet-to-be-known’. We introduce the papers in this special issue that each consider pedagogic frailty and/or concept mapping from different perspectives. This illustrates the utility of the frailty model and how it connects to a variety of well-established bodies of research that influence activities within universities at all levels.
