Learning In Communities Of Practice Research Articles

Designing for Dialogue and Digitality in Higher and Continuing Education

This study investigates and contrasts three scenarios of further education; presence lessons and two types of blended learning. It addresses the conceptual challenge of creating learning designs for online learning communities of practice (COPs) with a focus on 'collaborative digital dialogue as the curriculum' (CDDC). The aim of the study is to identify the mechanisms that spawn and maintain collaboration and dialogue in digital/online discussions. Emphasis is put on locating the essential pedagogic-didactic elements giving rise to peer-to-peer dialogue, collaborative knowledge building (CKB) and reflection. As a basis for exploring, identifying, assessing and discussing pertinent elements in pedagogic design of online learning in COPs, we apply as the analytical optic a framework of Critical Realism (CR). In exploring the notion ‘nexus of cognition' (NOC) and the emergence of an ‘open source learning stream' (OSLS) in digital dialogue (DD), unfolding in virtual learning environments (VLEs), the paper further investigates the appropriateness in this respect of diverse scaffolding mechanisms, reaching from phatic teacher comments to academic, scaffolding video-clips. The empirical basis for studying these design aspects is constituted by learning designs from, both a University context and a University College context. The findings and discussion resulting from the analysis suggest that a meta-communicative learning-to-learn (L2L) approach to dialogue in the pedagogic aspects of the learning design may be fruitful in highlighting and promoting the establishment and maintenance of a collaborative digital dialogue that is conducive to deep learning in digital CoPs unfolding in VLEs. Consequently, we suggest development of hybrid designs that synthesise the dialogical advantages of online dialogue, the convenience of teacher-produced videos and the intensity of being together in actual reality.We acknowledge the deleuzean point that the virtual is just as real as the actual and in this context the virtual is even more real than the actual. The online dialogue becomes 'a pure place' while the conversation in the presence lesson becomes 'polluted'. The online dialogue achieves a virtual purity of 'one discourse' whereas the presence lesson contains multiple discourse of which some are relevant to the learning process and other have a more private character. We promote a hybrid design that put the students in the centre of the dialogue, which means that only when they engage in the dialogue will they be engaged in learning.

Amateur paleontological societies and fossil clubs, interactions with professional paleontologists, and social paleontology in the United States

Considerable interest exists among lifelong learners in the USA about fossils and the science of paleontology. Unlike some other science-related groups, e.g., astronomy and ornithology, interest in fossils among amateur paleontologists is primarily focused within local clubs and societies with little national coordination. This paper presents the results of formative evaluation of the FOSSIL project, conducted after the project “Kickoff” meeting held at the NAPC (North American Paleontological Convention) in 2014. FOSSIL is developing a national networked community of practice that includes amateur and professional paleontologists. Our research indicates that more than 60 amateur fossil clubs and societies exist in the USA, of which almost 40 have elected to be part of the FOSSIL network. Overarching goals of this program include enhanced collaborations between amateurs and professionals, knowledge-building about paleontology, access to resources for lifelong learning, and development a viable learning community of practice focused on topics of common and societal interest, such as collections (including digitization), evolution, climate change, and K-12 outreach. In addition to more traditional means such as list-serves and newsletters, FOSSIL is developing an online community (myFOSSIL) and using social media (Facebook and Twitter) to foster communication and interactions among stakeholders, and thus promoting the concept of “social paleontology”. Bruce J. MacFadden. Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611 USA, bmacfadd@flmnh.ufl.edu Lisa Lundgren. School of Teaching and Learning, College of Education, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611 USA, lisa.lundgren@ufl.edu Kent Crippen. School of Teaching and Learning, College of Education, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611 USA, kcrippen@coe.ufl.edu Betty A. Dunckel. Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611 USA, bdunckel@flmnh.ufl.edu Shari Ellis. Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611 USA, sellis@ufl.edu

Collaborative Institutional Agency: How Peer Learning in Communities of Practice Enables and Inhibits Micro-Institutional Change

Research on micro-institutional change typically characterizes agents as being involved in social conflicts to defend the institutional status quo or to mobilize against it. However, agency inside organizations can be precipitated by the need to resolve practice dilemmas in uncertain and ambiguous institutional contexts. The findings from a comparative case study of two public schools in the United States undergoing state-mandated reform demonstrate that, when agency is born of uncertainty and ambiguity rather than political conflict and struggle, micro-institutional change depends on the dynamics of agents’ peer learning in communities of practice. In some cases, agents’ communities are organized to effectively seed new ideas and generate social pressures needed to encourage the uptake of new ideas. In other cases, the pattern of agents’ interactions in communities results in persistent cognitive and social disorganization so that newly seeded ideas cannot take root or spread. I refer to the particular dynamics by which peer learning in communities of practice results in micro-institutional persistence or change as collaborative institutional agency.

GPaedia: A Web 2.0 technology enhanced digital habitat to support the general practice learning community

Introduction: In the past decade, we have witnessed the rapid growth of Web 2.0 technologies. While Web 2.0 tools have been recognised for their potential to enhance and enrich learning practice, very little research has been done to examine the level of acceptance of these tools among medical educators and learners. The project described in this paper aimed to explore the capacities of Web 2.0 technologies to foster a community of learning in general practice (GP) education, through the piloting of a digital habitat model, which we called “GPaedia”. Methods: The mixed-method study involved 150 participants, representing various general practice roles, from 15 Australian education institutions. Firstly, a questionnaire, semi- structured interviews and focus groups were conducted to investigate the participants’ views and adoption of Web 2.0 tools. These data were used to inform the development of “GPaedia”. A second questionnaire was then used to evaluate this pilot digital habitat. Results: Participants showed a high level of interest in Web 2.0 technologies but a relatively low level of engagement. Age and roles in the learning community were two influential factors on their views and engagement. “GPaedia” was perceived to be effective in its ability to facilitate communication and collaboration, maintain confidentiality and enhance the quality of GP education. Conclusion: The project demonstrated the potential of Web 2.0 technologies and a resource-rich digital habitat in GP education. The integration of Web 2.0 tools and quality resources enhanced “GPaedia’s” ability to support the professional development of GP learners. Relevant training and ongoing moderation were identified as critical factors in its future implementation.

Building on the Evaluation of STARS: Using Online Repositories to Support the General Practice Learning Community

This article reports on the development and evaluation of an online repository for sharing general practice (GP) educational resources. GP supervisors and medical educators need quality resources to facilitate learning and teaching. Developing or finding resources from scratch is time-consuming and duplicates effort when teachers and learners are geographically dispersed. In response to this challenge, a curated repository, Self-directed Training and Resource System (STARS) was developed in 2009 for sharing educational and clinical resources within the Australian GP learning community. However, a low engagement by users was observed. This research began by an examination of enablers and barriers for resource sharing and the existing online repository: STARS. Data collection methods included questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Findings contributed to the development of a new pilot repository that was embedded in a collaborative online learning space, also known as a ‘digital habitat’. This space focused on engagement with resources and other users. It incorporated Web 2.0 tools and followed recent trends in user-created content and ranking of usefulness. Overall findings revealed that ease of use and effective management are paramount in ensuring ongoing viability and value of an online repository.

What does US$1.1 billion buy? An investment in the future.

Journal of Comparative Effectiveness ResearchVol. 3, No. 6 OpinionWhat does US$1.1 billion buy? An investment in the futureLisa A SimpsonLisa A SimpsonE-mail Address: Lisa.Simpson@academyhealth.orgAcademyHealth, 1150 17th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20036, USASearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:12 Dec 2014https://doi.org/10.2217/cer.14.74AboutSectionsView ArticleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail View articleKeywords: academicCERfundingimpactincentivespolicyresearch infrastructureworkforceReferences1 National Academies of Science. Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future. National Academy Press, Washington, DC, USA (2007).Google Scholar2 Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering. 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The author has no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.PDF download

Social Capital Appeared Process of Formation Community of Practice Learning

평생학습이 ‘실천’보다는 ‘학습’에 관심을 보인 것이 일반적이었으나 평생교육을 통해 생성된 학습동아리의 활동이 점점 활발해지면서 최근에는 ‘실천력’이 있는 학습동아리가 주목을 받고 있다. 실천에 대한 관심은 마을 단위에서도 나타나고 있다. 주민들이 마을의 문제를 학습으로 해결해보려는 의지, 즉 마을 발전을 위해 공동 과제를 설정하고, 학습을 통해 개인 간, 조직 간에 서로 협력하며 과제를 해결하려는 의지가 분출하고 있는 과정에서 실천학습공동체의 속성과 사회적 자본이 내재되어 있음을 기대하게 되었다. 이에 평범한 마을모임이 학습을 통해 실천학습공동체로 형성되어 가는 과정을 탐색하고, 실천학습공동체 형성 과정에 나타난 사회적 자본을 분석하는데 주안점을 두었다. 연구 목적을 달성하기 위해 C시의 꿈나래 배움터를 운영하고 있는 실천학습공동체 구성원 6명과 학습자 1명을 대상으로 사례연구를 실시하였다. 연구 결과 첫째, 평범한 ‘마을 모임’이 ‘실천학습공동체’로 형성되는데 토대 요인, 매개하는 학습 요인, 촉진 요인이 발견되었다. 둘째, 마을 모임이 실천학습공동체로 형성되어 가는 과정에서 신뢰, 한마음, 네트워크 형성을 통해 사회적 자본화가 이루어지고 있는 것으로 나타났다.

Transforming marginalised adult learners’ views of themselves: Access to Higher Education courses in England

Adult learners on Access to Higher Education courses struggled with institutional and social structures to attend their courses, but transformed their identities as learners through them. Although asymmetrical power relationships dominated the intentional learning communities of their courses, their work was facilitated by collaborative cultures and supportive tutors, and students gained the confidence to construct their own emergent communities of practice for learning. The students attended seven further education colleges in the East Midlands of England. Data were collected by mixed methods within a social constructivist framework from students and their tutors.

GEDIFO: A Cross-Organizational Approach to Learning in Communities of Practice

In today’s globalized economy, organizations face international competition; the need for technology-driven innovation; inefficiencies due to hierarchical structures; cost-cutting; and frequently a deterioration in working conditions as a result thereof. The current paper focusses on the situation of works councils who are challenged to support the interests of employees on the one hand and to act as co-managers on the other. GEDIFO, an initiative by the Vienna Chamber of Labor and the educational body of the Austrian Trade Union, seeks to advance cross-organizational learning among works councils in communities of practice (CoP).

Situated Learning in Young Romanian Roma Successful Learning Biographies

European Roma are often associated with social problems and conflicts due to poverty and low formal education. Nevertheless, Roma communities traditionally develop expertise in ethnically specific domains, probably by alternative, informal ways, such as situated learning in communities of practice. Although predictable, empirical evidence of Romani situated learning practice and its socio-cognitive effects is scarce. This qualitative study with quantitative components outlines knowledge domains, social contexts, and the initiation and evolution of situated learning, along with their occurring frequencies, in eighteen biographies of young Romanian Roma students, from which four cases are presented in detail. The study suggests that situated learning is omnipresent in successful Roma learning biographies, and has positive, cognitive and social effects, such as expertise and social skills, which may prevent social exclusion and stigma. The conclusions are relevant for educational research, and for educators and policy makers involved in social work with Roma ethnics.

Learning in the Surgical Community of Practice

Although apprenticeship has been at the centre of surgical education, contemporary circumstances have downgraded its role as an educational process. Situated learning theory describes how learners built their identities through active participation in a community of practice (CoP), giving a new dimension to the apprenticeship model of training. Surgical education takes place in an environment of various interacting CoPs. In order for a trainee to gain legitimate entry into a CoP, his role and potential contribution to the community’s common goal, which is patient care, has to be recognised by the other established members of the community. Influenced by the various role models in the CoP and by interaction with the members and artefacts in the community, the learner will learn how to talk and behave like a professional, establishing his professional identity. Identities in a CoP are dynamic and change as a result of conflict between the different individual members of CoP. In order to avoid conflict and successfully progress in a CoP, the surgical trainee must learn to respect and negotiate with the various rules and roles of the community. By using the enhanced power of apprenticeship, through the theory of situated learning, we can create more controlled learning environments where the benefits of participating in a CoP are still utilised. Situated learning and activity theory can help us understand the relationships between the individual members and roles in the healthcare community and help us improve training and provision of patient care.

Enacting principal leadership: exploiting situated possibilities to build school capacity for change

This paper attempts to identify leadership practices of school principals as they engaged in exploring and exploiting possibilities in and around the school contexts to develop school capacity for change. Based on interview data of school principals, this paper shows that the capabilities of school leaders to perceive and exploit situated possibilities to build school capacity are one of the key factors differentiating different levels of implementation efforts. Three school capacity-building practices are found to constitute efficacious principal leadership in contexts of educational change, namely fostering teacher learning in communities of practice and teacher participation in decision-making; promoting school–community connections to facilitate student learning through participation; and aligning external demands and schools’ internal circumstances. Implications for developing efficacious principal leadership in school capacity building are discussed.

The role of learning in sustainable communities of practice

This paper adds to the literature on skills for sustainable communities by examining the role and processes of learning in “communities of practice” that exist within a “grassroots association”. Interviews were conducted with participants in the communities of practice of a student group called Green Action, which engages with environmental issues in practical ways. The findings demonstrate how learning occurred in the communities of practice, how participants gained skills and knowledge for sustainable consumption, and how learning in the communities of practice appeared to help Green Action to sustain itself in the long-term. This paper could serve as a useful demonstration to others as to how to apply the theories and concepts from the literature on communities of practice when researching skills and knowledge for sustainable communities. It also has some value for grassroots associations themselves in understanding their own activities.

Hybridization of Sociocultural Factors’ Theory: Conditions for Learning in an Academic Community of Practice

This paper set out to explore the conditions required for learning in an Academic Community of Practice (ACOP) with French-speaking students as stakeholders. English language acquisition was pivotal, among the other sociocultural factors they had to negotiate for academic learning to evolve. Utilising a single case study approach, semistructured interviews, focus group interviews, observation and narrative inquiry, it was found that three major sociocultural factors were determinants of academic learning in an academic community of practice comprising French-speaking students and other stakeholders. The language of learning and teaching (LoLT), academic acculturation and academic identity were instrumental to academic learning with constant redress among the sociocultural factors as French-speaking students progressed to full participation. The private tertiary education institution falls directly under the categorization of an academic community of practice, drawing on Otten (2009). Depending on redress among the three sociocultural factors, hybrids emerged as indices of learning trajectories of French-speaking students. When these three factors are in a state of redress, there is an emergent learning, depending on the extent of hybridization between the sociocultural factors. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n1p205

Situated Learning in Young Romanian Roma Successful Learning Biographies

European Roma are often associated with social problems and conflicts due to poverty and low formal education. Nevertheless, Roma communities traditionally develop expertise in ethnically specific domains, probably by alternative, informal ways, such as situated learning in communities of practice. Although predictable, empirical evidence of Romani situated learning practice and its socio-cognitive effects is scarce. This qualitative study with quantitative components outlines knowledge domains, social contexts, and the initiation and evolution of situated learning, along with their occurring frequencies, in eighteen biographies of young Romanian Roma students, from which four cases are presented in detail. The study suggests that situated learning is omnipresent in successful Roma learning biographies, and has positive, cognitive and social effects, such as expertise and social skills, which may prevent social exclusion and stigma. The conclusions are relevant for educational research, and for educators and policy makers involved in social work with Roma ethnics.

‘I'm Not Much of an Expert, Myself’: Situated Learning in an Informal Online Community of Practice

This article represents an attempt to more fully understand the interactions of individuals in a specific community of practice on the World Wide Web. It attempts to answer questions about whether norms of participation and learning developed over time have been established in this virtual community of practice. It also explores how the perceived identities of individual members relate to degrees of expertise and status within the community. Over the last 20 years, there has been much written about the concepts of communities of practice and legitimate peripheral participation. The results of the study have proven very interesting. Through an understanding of the established norms of participation and learning, it has brought to light many different facets of the functioning of this particular community. In this case, members join and quickly become familiar with the community's unspoken standards of modesty and humility. They work to develop a standing as an expert, while attempting to not be seen as possessing any pride in their abilities. Further research might follow these same themes into communities of practice based in other settings such as work, social class or community activism.

Examination of Literacy, Knowledge, and Learning in an Online Community of Practice

The value of using technology in teaching and learning is a recurrent theme with proficiency in using Information Communication Technology (ICT) explicitly recognised by the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) and the Queensland College of Teachers (QCT). The purpose of this study was to examine the online communication that pre-service teachers engaged in on a social networking site as part of a curriculum and planning unit at an Australian University. The social networking site was an extension of the Learning Management System (LMS) Blackboard used at the university. Pre-service teachers were required to complete four literacy learning tasks and to engage in shared communication throughout the semester. Information on the quality and frequency of communicative contributions uploaded on the site was gathered and analysed. Results showed pre-service teachers engaged extensively with the social network in a manner that provided support for their literacy learning in curriculum and planning. The ease of use and familiarity with social networks as a method of shared communication was regarded as a primary benefit for learning. Insights gained on the nature and extent of the communicative contributions uploaded suggested the approach undertaken by pre-service teachers in initiating a communication impacted on the number and quality of responses received. Pre-service teachers who adopted a socialisation style of communication elicited more meaningful responses from others which in turn extended the quality and depth of communicative exchanges. However, the findings fell short of drawing a generalised conclusion there had been learning across each of the knowledge process areas.

Virtual Communities of Practice in Web-Based Second Language Learning: Fiction or Reality?

The work of Lave and Wenger on learning in 'communities of practice' has evoked a considerable response in e-learning environments through-out the world including Denmark in the last few decades. Within the development of web-based second language learning, the ideas of learning in communities of practice and of situated and collaborative learning have deeply inspired educators and teachers and, to a certain degree, become the theoretical and practical framework for developing web-based learning platforms, while findings from this research indicate that students perceive e-learning as a far more individual process. The aim of this paper is to investigate aspects of the Danish development of elearning platforms and, especially students’ and teachers’ very differing perceptions of e-learning and the concepts behind it. The analysis is based on student and teacher interviews, research on language interaction and case studies of e-learning language platforms within the area of teaching Danish as a second language for adult foreigners. The concepts of communities of practice are also discussed and developed.

Building an open academic environment – a new approach to empowering students in their learning of anatomy through ‘Shadow Modules’

Teaching and learning in anatomy is undertaken by a variety of methodologies, yet all of these pedagogies benefit from students discussing and reflecting upon their learning activities. An approach of particular potency is peer-mediated learning, through either peer-teaching or collaborative peer-learning. Collaborative, peer-mediated, learning activities help promote deep learning approaches and foster communities of practice in learning. Students generally flourish in collaborative learning settings but there are limitations to the benefits of collaborative learning undertaken solely within the confines of modular curricula. We describe the development of peer-mediated learning through student-focused and student-led study groups we have termed 'Shadow Modules'. The 'Shadow Module' takes place parallel to the formal academically taught module and facilitates collaboration between students to support their learning for that module. In 'Shadow Module' activities, students collaborate towards curating existing online open resources as well as developing learning resources of their own to support their study. Through the use of communication technologies and Web 2.0 tools these resources are able to be shared with their peers, thus enhancing the learning experience of all students following the module. The Shadow Module activities have the potential to lead to participants feeling a greater sense of engagement with the subject material, as well as improving their study and group-working skills and developing digital literacy. The outputs from Shadow Module collaborative work are open-source and may be utilised by subsequent student cohorts, thus building up a repository of learning resources designed by and for students. Shadow Module activities would benefit all pedagogies in the study of anatomy, and support students moving from being passive consumers to active participants in learning.

Indigenous Research and Sustainable Learning

In this paper the researcher demonstrates how participatory, indigenous research capitalises on the community of learners, their teachers and parents' community cultural wealth to improve the quality and sustainability of learning. To achieve this aim, the above mentioned stakeholders organise themselves into learning communities of practice to draw and implement strategies aimed at improving the quality of learning at their respective schools. Data is collected from all activities in implementing the plan. The findings reveal that when all support one another, using their tacit knowledge on how best to solve their real life problems, they succeed. Even parents with little school education emerge informed and empowered.