Activity 3: Contribution of Teacher Inquiry Topics to my Communities of Practice (Week 19)

What is a community of practice?

While learning about Community of Practice this week, it has become clear that Communities of Practice (COP) are essential for formulating and framing learning.  Wegner suggests that learning equals social participation, and he claims that it is central to our human identity. He sees individuals as active participants in the practices of social communities, and in the construction of their identity through these communities (Wenger et al. 2002).

Your COP is your sounding board where you can collect your thoughts, bounce them off someone else, get their input and formulate a new level of understanding.

In his video Knox (2009) suggest that in your COP “You foster communities of practice, you don’t create them” so, therefore, it is an agile process, constantly changing to meet the needs of the group. I could relate to his analogy of ploughing the soil so that it is ready for things to grow, rather than determining what will grow.

An interesting spin-off to being part of a community practice is that you become very secure in your own professional knowledge.  It helps you stand firm in your beliefs knowing that others have contributed to your knowledge construction.  

The two potentially and inspiring digital and/or collaborative learning related teacher inquiry topics that I have decided would contribute to me Communities of Practice are:-

1. How can digital technologies and collaboration successfully support and promote learning in students with literacy acquisition delays?

If reflecting on this inquiry topic in relation to Wegner’s Model (2000)  My Domain (Joint enterprise) would be the discussion around how digital technologies and collaboration can enhance literacy acquisition.

My Community (mutual engagement) is my trusted colleagues that have a similar interest and passion for this subject.  This will include my Mindlab, Google plus and facebook community of colleagues and professionals that are interested in this inquiry topic.

There are several different communities of practice that would benefit from this inquiry topic. Within my role as a specialist teacher, I am often looking for ways to enhance and support literacy acquisition of students with special needs.  Also within my classroom practice, I am constantly trying to shift students that are sitting long-term at level 1 of the curriculum. I have chosen to select literacy for my focus because it is the backbone of all other learning.

Within the New Plymouth Mindlab group, we meet once a week to discuss issues relating to the Mindlab course.  Within the discussions, I have found that several of my colleagues also are interested in addressing this issue.

Within my wider community of teaching professionals, this inquiry topic is often a hot topic for debate.  We are always looking for new and alluring ways to deliver literacy education.  

My Practice (shared repertoire) will change based on the outcome of the inquiry.  I will be sharing my passions, discoveries with my student, parents and colleagues, with the hopeful and intended outcome of increasing literacy acquisition.

2. How can blended learning/FLIP learning enhance learning opportunities for students in the classroom?

In my base school that is made up of 85% Māori students, I am constantly looking for ways to lift Māori achievement in the classroom.  FLIP/Blended learning is a better aligned to how education was delivered traditionally within Māori communities.  Also in my role as a specialist teacher, FLIP learning is a way of front loading students, to ensure that their learning is adapted so they can be included in mainstream education.  Within my Mindlab community, this subject has created a resonance of interest with our group.

The communities for this inquiry question would be identical to those mentioned in inquiry question one.

References

Wenger, E.(2000). Communities of practice and social learning systems. Organization,7(2), 225-246.

Wenger, E., McDermott, R., & Snyder, W. (2002). Cultivating Communities of Practice: A Guide to Managing Knowledge. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School Press.

Knox, B.(2009, December 4). Cultivating Communities of Practice: Making Them Grow.[video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhMPRZnRFkk