Developing strategies for communities of practice
International Journal of Educational Management
ISSN: 0951-354X
Article publication date: 5 August 2014
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore strategies to develop communities of practice (CoP) to improve teaching in a school context.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional questionnaire is developed to collect data from participants in a project that aims to cultivate a CoP to improve their small class teaching skills. A total of 125 teachers from 35 primary schools participated in the survey. A structural equation model is used to explore the predictive power of the strategies on all three of the CoP elements.
Findings
Content strategy is confirmed as the predictor of all the CoP elements, while process strategy is a predictor only for joint enterprise and shared repertoire.
Practical implications
The application of these strategies to develop a CoP in schools involves designing a reflective and collaborative learning content, as well as monitoring, regulating and streamlining the learning process.
Originality/value
The study contributes an empirical framework to the research of CoP and practical guides for school leaders to facilitate knowledge sharing in CoPs.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to acknowledge the support of the Centre for Small Class Teaching of The Hong Kong Institute of Education through the Research Seed Fund.
Citation
C.K. Cheng, E. and C.K. Lee, J. (2014), "Developing strategies for communities of practice", International Journal of Educational Management, Vol. 28 No. 6, pp. 751-764. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-07-2013-0105
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited