I believe that this team, have evolved into a Community of Practice (CoP).
A CoP is defined as “groups of people who share a concern or a passion or about a topic, and who deepen their knowledge and expertise in this area by interaction on an ongoing basis” (Wenger, McDermott & Snyder, 2002, p.4).
I will attempt to justify my statement, using Wenger's three essential elements, also drawing bits from the descriptions on the Wenger-Trayner website.
- Joint enterprise/The Domain
- Mutual Engagement/ The Community
- Shared Repertoire/The Practice
Joint enterprise
Our joint enterprise is the welfare and learning of approximately 90 students placed in our care. We had opportunities to opt out of the team, but we chose to work together. By toughing it out together through those very difficult initial stages, we have developed an understanding of what works for us, and what does not work.
Mutual Engagement
We have come as far as we have by working together - mutual engagement. We have developed norms together and have had a few difficult conversation. We always knew that we would have to have these conversations sooner or later, so it was dealt with in a very professional manner. At this stage, I would say that our levels of respect for each other's ability and work ethic are higher than our levels of trust. We have weekly planning meetings and also meet informally to discuss urgent matters. Decisions made during these informal discussions are recorded in the following planning meeting.
Shared Repertoire
We have certainly developed a shared repertoire. Since we have started we have developed processes, and structures that facilitate us working together in a shared learning space. We have, for instance, developed our own behavioral management procedure, based on our beliefs. We have developed and reviewed our planning documents, shared timetable, as well as developed shared online resources. This year, we will also share one classroom blog as well as set up our ILE as a team.
My practice within our CoP
According to Wenger (2000), knowing is an act of belonging. In the beginning, I felt at times disconnected from my team. For example, when I did not understand a document we were developing. Luckily, I do not leave myself wondering for very long and I always catch up. I catch up by staying engaged, by reflecting on what I do not understand (imagination) and by sharing my perspective to give my colleagues the opportunity to align their practice with mine. Wenger (2000) states that 'alignment' is not a one-way communication and, looking back at my own experience, I agree with him. The times when I experienced a strong sense of belonging, were the times I shared my initiatives and noticed how my practice aligned with the practice of my colleagues, or how they have adjusted their practice to align with mine. Therefore, I would describe my role as being and active member who leads when necessary.
Reference:
Wenger, E.(2000). Communities of practice and social learning systems. Organization,7(2), 225-246.
