Abstract
<P>Learning communities can emerge spontaneously when people find common learning goals and pursue projects and tasks together in pursuit of those goals. <I>Bounded</I> learning communities (BLCs) are groups that form within a structured teaching or training setting, typically a course. Unlike spontaneous communities, BLCs develop in direct response to guidance provided by an instructor, supported by a cumulative resource base. This article presents strategies that help learning communities develop within bounded frameworks, particularly online environments. Seven distinguishing features of learning communities are presented. When developing supports for BLCs, teachers should consider their developmental arc, from initial acquaintance and trust-building, through project work and skill development, and concluding with wind-down and dissolution of the community. Teachers contribute to BLCs by establishing a sense of <I>teaching presence</I>, including an atmosphere of trust and reciprocal concern. The article concludes with a discussion of assessment issues and the need for continuing research.</P> <P>A version of this paper was presented at the meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Diego, April 2004. Please send inquiries to Brent G. Wilson (brent.wilson@cudenver.edu). [Additional contact information: Brent's phone: 303-556-4363; fax 303-556-4479]</P> <P><B>Keywords:</B> learning community; instructional design; emergent systems; collaborative learning; teaching presence; sense of community</P>
Highlights
Learning communities can emerge spontaneously when people find common learning goals and pursue projects and tasks together in pursuit of those goals
In common with communities of practice, learning communities are instances of complex emergent systems wherein control is distributed among participants rather than centered in a hierarchical authority (Backroad Connections Pty Ltd, 2003)
According to LudwigHardman (2003): An online learning community is a group of people, connected via technology-mediated communication, who actively engage one another in collaborative learner-centered activities to intentionally foster the creation of knowledge, while sharing a number of values and practicesp (p. iv)
Summary
This leads to a different notion of learning community within a curriculum framework – bounded by the expectations inducing participation, and by the timeframe of a typical course. They must make an explicit effort to connect with others (by coming to school or connecting online). These parameters affect the nature of community that may or may not take shape within a formal learning context. Our use of the term bounded learning community denotes certain constraints placed on the community formation within course-based learning environments. The purpose of the present paper is to develop the idea of bounded learning communities with reference to the professional literature, and to suggest strategies for supporting learning communities within formal courses, those distributed to learners at a distance
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