Alice MacGillivray

Communities of Practice at Lakehead University

Last year, Dr. Bob Payne, the director of the School of Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism at Lakehead University, invited me and other guests to speak to graduate students in the school’s 2-year Master of Environmental Studies in Nature-Based Recreation and Tourism, which began in September 2003.  Bob had recently initiated conversations amongst several researchers interested in the social and human aspects of parks, outdoor recreation, and our relationships with natural environments.  Members of this network were conducting research through Canadian universities, but were also very interested in how theory could inform practice (and vice versa).

Bob knows that I am very interested in communities of practice.  In essence, a community of practice is made up of individuals who care very much about a particular topic or practice (such as outdoor recreation research, or the planning and delivery of outdoor recreation opportunities), and who communicate regularly in order to learn from each other.  This learning frequently happens across traditional organizations or boundaries, such as universities, provincial governments, or different divisions within a company.  Although this “informal” learning may seem more casual or less rigorous than formal training, it can be extremely powerful.  Learning happens exactly when it needs to happen, in a relevant context, and amongst trusted individuals who can help each other problem-solve and refine ideas.

Etienne Wenger’s theoretical work on learning provides a foundation for work with communities of practice, and he continues to lead thinking about theory and practical application in this field.  

ProQuest now lists over 325 theses and dissertations related to communities of practice (CoPs), and that number is growing rapidly.   One of the questions I was asked was what type of research methodology would be used to study them, and my response was than many could be used, although I would expect to see qualitative methods used more frequently.  A few hypothetical examples related to nature-based outdoor recreation follow:

• Action research to explore whether a CoP of environmental educators working with inner-city school children can support those educators’ learning;
• Evaluation research following on the project above, to see if the children’s appreciation of natural environments has increased;
• Phenomenological research: how do mountaineers perceive the experience of climbing Everest?

The trip to Lakehead University was very enjoyable, and had the added benefit of my being able to meet several of the eclectic group of faculty members, who bring interests from many disciplines.  They clearly showed respect for their students and colleaguesin many ways, including Dr. Harvey Lemelin’s comment that he sees himself as a “facilitator of knowledge”.  Come to think of it, that’s one way to describe leadership in a community of practice. 

welcome to

4KM.net

Alice MacGillivray
·
Helping groups build common contexts