Abstract
This workshop intends to explore the concept of Communities of Practice as they apply to HE institutions. The concept of sharing practice and knowledge through the development of effective Communities of Practice (CoP) is gaining ground in the HE arena, focusing on the ability of a community to “cultivate organisational knowledge” (Puspitasari and Numao, 2012: no page cited). A growing body of evidence suggests that it is an effective mechanism to share knowledge and help support aspects of teaching and learning (McDermott, 1999, 2000, Wenger et al, 2002, Tremblay, 2007, Nugent et al, 2008, Puspitasari and Numao, 2012 and Swan et al, 2012). This project arose out of the recognition that an informal CoP already exists in the Ulster Business School, University of Ulster and elsewhere in the University, in relation to the uptake and adoption of technology facilitated learning (TFL). This session will share the experience of galvanising progress already made and the further establishment of a CoP. This CoP focuses in particular, on the development of guides, case studies and wikis on the implementation of particular aspects of TFL. Additionally, the aim is to pilot a mentoring system to help staff who may be less familiar and/or more resistant to the use of the technology, allowing them to learn more about its functionality and key benefits in order to make informed decisions about its utilisation. The session is aimed at exploring the effectiveness of such CoPs and will focus on staff reflections and evaluations of the process. It is also intended that the concept of CoPs elsewhere will be explored through discussion of best practice in relation to CoPs, where their effectiveness can be exchanged and shared through this discussion.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | Unknown Host Publication |
| Publisher | Staff and Educational Development Association |
| Number of pages | 0 |
| Publication status | Published - 2014 |
| Event | Staff and Educational Development Association (SEDA) Spring Teaching, Learning and Assessment Conference - Newcastle Duration: 1 Jan 2014 → … |
Conference
| Conference | Staff and Educational Development Association (SEDA) Spring Teaching, Learning and Assessment Conference |
|---|---|
| Period | 1/01/14 → … |
Bibliographical note
Reference text: McDermott, R. (1999) Nurturing Three Dimensional Communities of practice: How to get the most out of human networks. Knowledge Management Review. Fall Edition.McDermott, R. (2000) Knowing in Community: Ten critical success factors in building communities of practice, available from: http://www.co-i-l.com/coil/iknowledge.
Nugent, J. S., Reardon, R. M., Smith, F. G., Rhodes, J. A., Zander, M. J. and Carter, T. J. (2008) Exploring faculty learning communities: Building connections among teaching, learning and technology. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. 20 (1), 51-58.
Puspitasari , I. and Numao, M. (2012) The framework of evolutionary community of practice. Knowledge Co-Creation. 2, no pages cited.
Swan, J. Scarbrough, H. and Robertson, M. (2002) The construction of communities of practice in the management of innovation. Management Learning. 33 (4), 477-496.
Tremblay, D. (2007). Communities of Practice (CoP): Implementation challenges of e-working, The Journal of E-working, 1 (April), 69-82.
Wenger , E., McDermott, R. and Snyder, W. (2002) Cultivating Communities of practice. A Guide to Managing Knowledge. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.