Community of learning

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Definition

Closely related to Wenger's concept of a social learning system which is made up of a network of communities of practice.

Types of learning communities

A learning community may consist of any or all of the following types of communities:

  • Community of practice: a group of people that take part in a common activity, :talk and share information about this activity and define themselves in relation to it.
  • Community of interest: a group of people that come together to address a problem of interest to all. They may or may not be from the same community of practice.
  • Task-based community: a group of people that works together to accomplish a defined task. They may or may not be from the same CoP.
  • Knowledge-building community: a group of people that works together to produce a body of knowledge.

References

  • Marick, B. Boundary Objects, Visible Workings: Adequate Understanding of System Internals, pdf (accessed June 24, 2006)
  • Riel and Polin in SA Barab, R Kling, JH Gray. (2004). 'Introduction', Designing for Virtual Communities in the Service of Learning, Cambridge University Press pdf