Communities of Practice

I just summarized my thoughts about and experiences with communities of practice using visible thinking for one of my assignment. I would like to share it.

My choice of color, orange, represents the aspiration from others. Symbol of sun represent the new beginning and hope which community of practice provides for all the members. Image of ocean sunrise, blinding sun rays and their reflection from sea represent the enlightenment by knowledge shared.

Benefits of communities of practices are numerous. Collaborative learning, finding Optimal solution and problem solving are few to name. Communities of practice provide the opportunity to learn from the experiences of others. Whenever, there is a question asked then people who have faced similar problems share their experiences which helps to formulate the optimal solution for that problem. It enables collective thinking which is a powerful tool to enhance learning and teaching.

There are some challenges faced while being part of those communities. One of those is conflict among the member which can be avoided and resolved if all the members display openness and respect to other people. Rules and regulations for participation should be defined and communicated to all members. Moderators should be assigned with the responsibility to implement the rules and regulations of the forum/community.

Another challenge is making sure that authenticated knowledge is shared on the forum and academic honesty is preached and followed among all the members. Some of the groups are not active and not all the members are actively engaged. There should be tools and techniques implemented to make the forum active, ignite the meaningful discussions and make it beneficial for all the participants. With the culture of online communities becoming a norm, it is becoming challenging to find out the best community for your area of interest.

Work Cited:

· · Image used is from my picture gallery.

· Symbol is from the Microsoft office.

· Etienne and Beverly Wenger-Trayner. “Introduction to Communities of Practice.” Wenger, 2015, wenger-trayner.com/introduction-to-communities-of-practice/.

· Color, Symbol, Image. Harvard Project Zero, Visible Thinking Toolkit, pz.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/Color%20Symbol%20Image_1.pdf.