Discuss: Community of Practice

I am working with a group that has the potential to become a community of practice (CoP). We have a shared vision, but we have not yet reached the level of communication and collaboration that seems to be central to a CoP. I think if we were able to meet face-to-face we would be able to sustain our relationship more easily, but we can only to meet online. Does anyone have any ideas about how to cultivate or facilitate an online CoP?

Tracey,

We've just begun using social networking tools such as Twitter and Facebook. I expect we may find that simply by being in a location where people "live" rather than being on a website that they have to remember to go to that we may get more interest and interaction. Folks also get updates sent to them even more regularly than the monthly newsletters that pull them to our website. We still have to do a lot of recruiting of people with individual invitations to the group site and also behind-the-scenes emails to welcome them. And we'll probably need to do a lot of individual emails to engage people in discussions and interacting with one another. SpecialQuest has only been on Facebook about a week, so time will tell.

We've been on Twitter longer, but folks are just beginning to discover Twitter and understand how it works and the benefits it offers. (Incidentally, our first Twitter follower is someone from outside the SpecialQuest community who was looking for resources for her Early Childhood courses. I will be meeting her and another Twitter acquaintance informally in Oklahoma later this month. I would never had any connection to either of them without the social networking resources.)

Have others ventured into the social networking world to support their professional CoPs? If so, do you have any hints or tips for us?

Susan Stewart
SpecialQuest Birth-Five

(sorry for the "anonymous" posting...I've lost my password...again!)

Here's the link to the SpecialQuest Birth-Five Facebook group page http://groups.to/specialquestbirth-five and the SpecialQuest Birth-Five Twitter page http://www.twitter.com/specialquest

Susan

P.S. We started out on a regular "friends" page in Facebook and it was way too complicated though some of the networking tools are better. Also, it required people to be logged into Facebook. The group page is leaner and cleaner. We have also gotten a URL that allows people to view the group page without having a Facebook account or logging into Facebook, though you have to hunt for the link a bit.

Hi Susan, Thank you for the thoughtful comments and suggestions. Your comment about being "where people live" is a point well taken. As busy as we all are, having to check a shared website to find out if anyone has left a message or posted new information can become one more item on a to-do list. We are looking at a feature that will let participants know (it will send them a short email message) when someone has replied to a query or added new information, I think this may make online collaboration easier, more motivating (and more fun) and may help to facilitate the type of exchange needed to form a community.

 I will definitely check out twitter and your Facebook page, thank you for sharing. I hadn't realized it was possible to have a group page that did not require people to sign up for Facebook (something I have been resisting!).

I've recently been invited to join two other CoP's which are using face-book but I struggled with it.Had to "join" facebook and set up my "page" and invite friends...... Just didn't seem to be what I thought these two professional Cops were about so I haven't gone back. And now I am getting facebook messages from friends who have found me but are not in the CoP...
I'm not convinced this solves the face to face real time issue.

The social networking sites are fascinating...with all the features they offer; it's easy to network, but hard to "work"; Facebook still lacks many work group tools. Google Groups started with the premise of doing work and has the tools, but they lack the social aspects (e.g. profiles, alerts, etc.) Linked-In is a great professional networking site, and has the ability to create "groups". It has elements of Facebook and Google Groups. I've just started trying to move a long-standing CoP that I am a member to there. But there is resistance to learning whole new communication paradigm. Genuine interest, very little time.

Johnathan you hit it with the time issue- How many different "groups" be they CoP's (I'm in 4- no 5 of those) for "work" related topics and 3 social networking type sites plus other things that all send email alerts to comment or respond. They are all different in formate and use which take time to really master then the time to actually participate. Like this, I have several things I could say about the importance of a cop and face to face vs live and real work to keeps CoP's alive and well but that takes time to type and write and craft thoughts. I'm a much faster thinker, discuss- er in live conversation. Its very difficult to spend time writing (even invited like this today) to participate in something not on my agenda for the day or week. I wonder when people reach "critical mass" of participation in on-line communities, chats, work groups and they just shut down to all except to be lurkers to glean something occasionally useful..??? I think I am almost to that point!

Linda, I'm totally with you on the concept "I can't devote any time unless it is really useful in an immediate way/helps me solve a problem." Are you part of any online CoPs that meet that criteria?
The other issue about online CoPs that is hard for me is the lack of visual or auditory clues that someone is responding or initiating contact. When there is a mechanism that sends an alert about a new message or response, that helps me get engaged. If there are online CoPs that engage you, what features do they have?

Alright Pam
now I have to get serious. Actually this helps on yours to have the email prompt that someone has responded to something you have posted. My other three do not so I have to initiate checking. I have posted things and no one acknowledges it was posted or responds. So maybe this is a helpful feature. I have found some activity when a smaller group is focused on WORK/or a common interest they want to explore- a real task- and there is a sub-work group set up to do something,But then I want a common work space that needs to have a way to store documents, share things to read (not just links to go find...), have a dialogue space, a workspace to edit and work on things, and regular meeting times to do the work together. I want a combination of OneNOTES, webinar, a virtual file cabinet, net meeting and features to let you know someone is working has posted, edited etc. I don't think its out there in one technology that is easy to access but that is what I need if a CoP is to do more than post something and hope someone responds.

Lynda, These are great concrete ideas for online group work of all sorts. Takes me back to Jonathan's comments about the differences between CoP and other kinds of groups. Do you agree with some of the distinctions he has made? Would you call the 4-5 CoPs with whom you are involved workgroups or CoPs? If they all had the technological capabilities you describe above, would that make a difference in how they functioned currently and overtime? I keep wondering if CoP is one of these buzzwords that can mean anything and everything related to groups doing work together, or is it an identifiable approach with essential characteristics that set it apart in ways we can all agree upon?

Yes, yes, yes! As we all become more mobile and "plugged" in, the notion of alerts (e.g., in email, on a phone) becomes more and more important doesn't it. Alerts so help me filter and do triage. The weird thing I see emerging though, is one line conversations taking the place of discourse, socialization and exchange. Anecdote is, I see my niece do 100+ text message a day using "how r u", but she cannot have a meaningful conversation in room with her own peers. These new communication formats seem are really good for heightening/extending pgm awareness, quickly getting to know folks and keeping folks current and "plugged in". Be neat to see if eventually we go this format for rapid knowledge creation amongst professionals. Either way, I'm looking for you a twitter now! Thanks, Susan.

Susan, I just visited the SQ facebook presence and that led me to your online discussion area which I wanted to visit anyway, so the "multiple paths" for bringing people together aspect of the facebook presence worked in that regard. Once at the discussion area, I was able to find the conversation about competencies that was of interest. I am really excited about learning from others on that topic, and the discussion area holds promise for that happening.
Here is my question related to CoPs: Has anyone experienced an online discussion group leading to the emergence of an actual CoP (using the checklist of indicators as a definition of a CoP - See a copy in discussion starters)?
Thanks for any examples or ideas on that...or how would one facilitate that happening.

I've been doing community development work (online and face-to-face) for over twenty years and have just recently started re-exploring the notion of CoP. Very interesting! It really is it's own group/organization type and has practicality to many situations, but not all. Looking at the worksheet above, the main things I think set CoPs apart from other org/group types are diversity of membership, an output and outcomes orientation and that the joint outcome is often applied knowledge, new knowledge created for common/shared goals. Two other major facets are CoPs power is diffuse and applied issues are usually addressed within a specific time frame. Those are the major difference I see between CoPs and other group types like professional learning communities (PLCs), knowledge communities (KCs), work groups and work teams.

In PLCs and KCs, memberships is usally less diverse (e.g., confined to like professionals) and while knowledge outcomes can result in professional standards and techniques, the real motivation for participation is what individuals can learn and takeway; customize to their own work environment (not so much a shared outcome). Work groups and teams differ from CoPs in that power and time is usually more focused on solving a smaller set of issues; and, while membership can be diverse, membership is typically limited, provided the needed perspectives are present (as opposed to communities of practice where networks of perspectives are nurtured overtime and welcome at any stage).

I'm interested to hear if any others see org/group approaches to work this way. Or, does Early Childhood Field see CoP as a "the" org type for all work?

Hello. We are writing to share our experiences in facilitating CoPs to support the implementation of the Recognition and Response research project in 16 early childhood classrooms throughout Miami-Dade County. This project is a collaboration between the Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade/Monroe, the Early Childhood Initiative Foundation, and Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute and funded by the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation.

Three consultants supported geographical clusters of classrooms. Each consultant organized biweekly CoP meetings during the fall of 2008. The CoP meetings followed an agenda that was adapted from V. Buysse, K. Sparkman, & P. Wesley (2003). Communities of Practice: Connecting What We Know With What We Do. Exceptional Children, 69 (3), 263-277. The meetings all followed this basic structure consisting of: 1)Free Write, 2)Air Time, 3)Focus Group, 4)Action Agenda, and 5)Reporting Out. We provided different sets of questions related to each stage of the project as free writing prompts.

The CoP format was initially unfamiliar to the teachers but their comfort increased as the format became more familiar. Teachers became more engaged and appeared more comfortable participating in discussions. Teachers shared reactions, observations, and particular challenges related to the implementation of the research project and interventions. We found that teachers were able to provide support to one another and were eager to participate in collaborative problem solving to address questions and challenges raised during Air Time. Some groups rotated meetings in each other’s classrooms. These groups found it beneficial to see the teaching environments of their peers. Participants also seemed to appreciate that the meetings transcended boundaries, promoting communication between groups that otherwise did not have a dialogue such as Head Start teachers and teachers of private preschools. One specific benefit of these meetings is that teachers were able to share and learn about embedded teaching strategies to address learning goals of children.

Thanks Miriam and Sandra for sharing this great example. From your description it sounds like your CoP reflects many of the indicators on the CoP checklist (e.g., joint enterprise, diverse membership, participatory framework, sense of community, sharing and exchanging knowledge, reflection and so on). It sounds like the structure for an agenda from Virginia's article was very helpful. Do you have others tips you might share with others for how to develop, facilitate and sustain a CoP? Thanks

Our CoPs did reflect the majority of indicators on the checklist. Joint enterprise and the sharing of knowledge were key factors. The structure was helpful and encouraged equal participation. Some practical considerations for sustaining face to face CoP meetings that we implemented include offering travel stipends to participants as well as covering the cost of substitutes for the time the teachers attended the meetings.

Excellent suggestions for supporting participation. Thanks so much. Were these grant-related funds? Is the CoP still going? Have you attempted to move to an online format?

 Hello to my friends, Miriam and Sandra, who neglected to mention that they did an outstanding job leading the CoP meetings in their communities in conjunction with the first implementation of R&R. One of the byproducts of the CoP, aside from many rich discussions and ideas that were reflected on children's intervention plans, was a very nice list of embedded learning activities generated by the teachers themselves. The research team at FPG is planning to build on this teacher-generated knowledge by incorporating ideas for embedding learning in early childhood classrooms in a revised version of the R&R Implementation Guide. I'm hoping that Miriam and Sandra are willing to help us with this effort.

Really good article reference you shared.

FYI, I just checked and the article is available to CEC members at:
http://www.cec.sped.org/[…]/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=1545

And for folks with ebscohost access at:
http://search.ebscohost.com[…]9323706&site=ehost-live

In conversations with early childhood colleagues throughout the country, they've shared examples of how well face-to-face Communities of Practice (CoPs) are going. At the same time, colleagues who are trying to facilitate online CoPs speak of the difficulty of keeping members engaged. They seem to agree that strong facilitation is a very important component. What strategies or advice do others have for keeping an online CoP vital and participatory?

To me these postings show two things. First how diverse Communities of Practices can be and second how complicated. It seems that those of us who are in the role of facilitating communities need to make sure that what we are proposing/structuring will really be a support to those who are involved. I have had similar experiences as Lynda with Face Book. Here we have a good example of a process or vehicle that became so complicated it may have strayed from its original intent.