Why Communities of Practice?
A community of practice (CoP) is a group of practitioners who share a common concern, a set of problems, or an interest in a topic and who come together to share resources and ideas, build connections, solve problems, and create collective knowledge that directly impacts their practice.
There are four basic types of communities:
- Helping Communities - provide a forum for community members to help each other with everyday work needs.
- Best Practice Communities - develop and disseminate best practices, guidelines, and strategies for their members’ use.
- Knowledge Stewarding Communities - organize, manage, and steward a body of knowledge from which community members can draw.
- Innovation Communities - create breakthrough ideas, new knowledge, and new practices.
Unlike committees or working groups, communities of practice are faculty-driven development opportunities that create a space for instructors to engage in meaningful and productive reflection on their teaching and classroom experience. Members co-create a collegial and supportive environment with shared ownership for the purpose, value, and outcomes they hope to achieve.
This guide is adapted from Creating Communities of Practice by the Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium (ERLC) and used under CC BY-NC-SA