Communities of Practice

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Author(s): Susan Gebhard (University of North Carolina at Pembroke, USA)
Copyright: 2008
Pages: 7
Source title: Encyclopedia of Information Technology Curriculum Integration
Source Author(s)/Editor(s): Lawrence A. Tomei (Robert Morris University, USA)
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-59904-881-9.ch020

Keywords: Education / Educational Technologies / Information Science Reference / Instructional Design

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Abstract

Basic social-learning theory presupposes that students and instructors function within community; they share common context, goals, and expectations and, thus, actively work to help one another learn. Instructional environments that reflect this understanding that all participants contribute to the learning process exemplify what is generally called a “community of practice” or a “community of learners” (Ormrod, 2004). Communities of practice involve situations in which teachers structure realistic problems or tasks and then facilitate learners to activate previous understandings, to interact collegially with others, and to apply combined knowledge to work towards a process-based solution. It is important to recognize that communities of practice can extend beyond traditional educational settings (such as school) into family dynamics, corporations, or any other social context.

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