Lifespan of a community of practice
A community of practice for educators typically has a finite life span, and moves through a series of overlapping phases:
Identifying questions or issues, Creating shared learning, Implementing changes or actions, Reflecting on and assessing impact, and Disseminating results.
Within each phase, different activities help participants build knowledge, achieve goals, and move into the next phase. The following list illustrates a variety of activities that communities may use to develop their practice.
- Problem solving: How can rethinking the role of ... support a more inclusive approach?
- Requests for information: Where can I find an example of ... ?
- Seeking experiences: Has anyone had a similar experience?
- Reusing assets: I have information from a similar session I facilitated. You are welcome to use these materials as a starting point.
- Coordination and synergy: Can we combine our ... to achieve ... ?
- Discussing developments: What do you think of ... ?
- Documentation projects: We have set up something like this before. Let's record the steps.
- Visits: Can we come and visit your ... ?
- Mapping knowledge and identifying gaps: Who knows what? Who knows what we are missing?