Micro-Communities of Practice

• In Event: Facilitating Professional Growth for Teachers in Professional Development Schools

Abstract

This paper reports on a qualitative case study investigating a multi-year, co-teaching professional development as a form of community of practice (CoP). Data were collected over four years and included pre-post surveys, field notes, and archival data. Findings suggest a refinement of the existing CoP framework to include the existence of micro-communities of practice (MCoP). MCoP can exist as areas of specialization within a larger, complex CoP. We describe two such micro-communities and propose the phenomenon needs further research.

Authors

• Steven Drouin, Stanislaus State University

• Lara E. Ervin-Kassab, San Jose State University