Share Paper: Considering Online Communities of Practice as Effective Tools for Pre-Service School Librarian Professional Development

  1. Mellissa Sanchez, University of North Texas, United States
Tuesday, March 19 1:45 PM-2:05 PM Melrose 1

Abstract: Communities of practice (CoP) have been identified as social learning structures that allow participants to gain specific knowledge through meaningful interactions with other members of the CoP. Research has been conducted to explore the elements of communities of practice and the types of activities present in CoPs specific to various settings. This article reviews the social learning framework of CoPs and discusses the use of this framework in multiple industries to highlight the essential elements for successful CoPs. A critique of this learning model explores the strengths and weaknesses of using communities of practice for fostering knowledge construction. Ultimately, suggestions ...