Equity Buddies: Building Communities of Practice to Support the Transition and Retention of Students Through Their First Year at University

2016 ◽  
pp. 373-394
Author(s):  
Katina Zammit ◽  
Margaret Vickers ◽  
Evelyn Hibbert ◽  
Clare Power
Keyword(s):  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
First Year

scholarly journals Work in Progress: Initial Interviews to Understand the Formation of Engineering Communities of Practice and Identity during the First Year

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soundouss Sassi ◽  
Abigail Clark ◽  
Jane Petrie ◽  
Rachel Kajfez ◽  
Mahnas Mohammadi-Aragh
Keyword(s):  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
First Year ◽  
Work In Progress ◽  
Initial Interviews

scholarly journals Developing Faculty Communities of Practice to Expand the Use of Effective Pedagogical Techniques

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Hoyert ◽  
Cynthia O'Dell
Keyword(s):  
Student Success ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
First Year ◽  
Scholarship Of Teaching ◽  
Pedagogical Techniques ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Faculty Group

The scholarship of teaching and learning literature is replete with examples of pedagogical techniques that have been demonstrated to be effective in improving learning, motivation, and student success. The extension of these techniques beyond the original context has tended to be slow, difficult, and incomplete. The following paper examines an intervention designed to encourage the exploration and use of a variety of pedagogical techniques by faculty in a traditional, four-year college faculty within the context of the AASCU Re-imagining the First Year Initiative. Small groups of six to eight faculty, joined and created communities of practice. The groups were known as Pedagogical Interest Groups, or PIGs for short. The faculty read about and analyzed a series of pedagogical techniques and committed to introducing at least one technique into their courses to further explore the techniques. When the techniques were successful, the faculty members redesigned entire classes to expand the impact. The communities of practice were successful in encouraging faculty to explore a wide variety of techniques. The average faculty group explored eight different pedagogical techniques. Faculty were able to use the opportunity to experiment with techniques with the support from their colleagues in their PIG. A dozen techniques were explored across the PIGs and dozens of class sections have been completely redesigned. To date, over 2000 students have experienced redesigned courses. Measures of student success, satisfaction, and interest in those sections have increased. The effort has been accompanied by a robust increase in the campus-wide retention rates. ​

Mentoring Teacher Assistants to Use Online Tools

2020 ◽  
pp. 701-715
Author(s):  
Grisel M. Garcia Perez
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Teaching Assistants ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
First Year ◽  
Reflective Inquiry ◽  
Teacher Assistants ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Online Tools ◽  
Reflection On Action

This chapter indicates how a group of Teaching Assistants (TAs) was trained in the use of technology to help students enrolled in large first year Spanish classes excel in learning of Spanish as a foreign language. Framed by the Communities of Practice theory proposed by Wenger (1998), this study supports the theory that by examining their practices, trainees may become more effective in what they learn. Six TAs participated in the study and their reflection-on-action logs were examined and compared to the trainer's personal observations. Interpretation of the results was then carried out by comparing parallel and dissimilar ideas which were then used as focus for discussion. Outcomes support the theory that communities of practice and reflective inquiry are valuable teacher training tools.

Mentoring Teacher Assistants to Use Online Tools

2017 ◽  
pp. 245-260
Author(s):  
Grisel M. Garcia Perez
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Teaching Assistants ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
First Year ◽  
Reflective Inquiry ◽  
Teacher Assistants ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Online Tools ◽  
Reflection On Action

This chapter indicates how a group of Teaching Assistants (TAs) was trained in the use of technology to help students enrolled in large first year Spanish classes excel in learning of Spanish as a foreign language. Framed by the Communities of Practice theory proposed by Wenger (1998), this study supports the theory that by examining their practices, trainees may become more effective in what they learn. Six TAs participated in the study and their reflection-on-action logs were examined and compared to the trainer's personal observations. Interpretation of the results was then carried out by comparing parallel and dissimilar ideas which were then used as focus for discussion. Outcomes support the theory that communities of practice and reflective inquiry are valuable teacher training tools.

scholarly journals Communities of practice for international students: An exploration of the role of Peer Assisted Study Sessions in supporting transition and learning in higher education

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy Chilvers
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
International Students ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Independent Study ◽  
First Year ◽  
Legitimate Peripheral Participation ◽  
Community Practice ◽  
Mutual Engagement ◽  
University Life

There is growing interest in understanding how international students can best be enabled to adjust to, participate in and learn within Higher Education (HE). This paper explores literature and examines findings from exploratory interviews in a UK institution in order to investigate the contribution the Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) scheme makes to this process.Interviews with international students were analysed using Lave and Wenger’s (1991) social-learning model, Communities of Practice (CoP), for exploring the role of PASS in supporting international students’ transition and learning in HE. Using themes of community, practice and participation, findings illuminated the role of PASS in providing international students with an intermediary CoP, providing transition support into the CoP on their course and university life. PASS facilitated their social integration with students of other nationalities, developing relationships with peers and PASS leaders, contributing to an increased sense of belonging to a community. Through the mutual engagement of attendees and leaders, students developed shared language, values and practices relating to their discipline and studying in UK HE. Established PASS leaders shared first year experiences with ‘newcomer’ international students, supporting their transition into UK HE culture and enabling their legitimate peripheral participation to develop further. Participation in PASS fostered students’ engagement with learning activities and independent study habits. Limitations to the study and suggestions for further research are discussed.

scholarly journals 9. Using Communities of Practice to Foster Faculty Development in Higher Education

2011 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Teeter ◽  
Nancy Fenton ◽  
Karen Nicholson ◽  
Terry Flynn ◽  
Joseph Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Staff Development ◽  
Faculty Development ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
First Year Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Academic Communities ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
Faculty And Staff Development

Communities of practice are becoming more widespread within higher education, yet little research has explored how these social learning networks can enhance faculty development. The focus of this paper is to describe the first-year experience of a community of practice initiative at McMaster University that was designed to engage groups of faculty, staff, and students to share ideas and foster learning. Four communities were initiated: Teaching with Technology, Teaching Professors, Pedagogy, and First Year Instructors, all of which provided a forum of safety and support, encouraging new ideas and risk taking that in turn contributed to individual and collective learning. Though in its early days, we consider communities of practice an innovative way to regenerate current learning and surface teaching practices that can build dynamic academic communities to foster faculty and staff development. Communities of practice have enabled us to reach beyond formal structures (e.g., classrooms) to create connections amongst people from different disciplinary boundaries that generate learning and foster development.

scholarly journals Students’ Identities and its Relationships with their Engagement in an Online Learning Community

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (05) ◽  
pp. 4
Author(s):  
Fariza Khalid
Keyword(s):  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Social Learning Theory ◽  
Online Community ◽  
First Year ◽  
Online Learning Community ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Higher Education System ◽  
Personal Skills

Abstract—Communities of practice’ approaches have been proven to be effective in enhancing students’ learning as well as helping them to cultivate inter-personal skills, especially within the higher education system. An important development in relation to participation in communities of practice is members’ identities. This study was conducted with the aim of understanding students’ identities in relation to their participation in an online community and how the dimensions of their identities correlated to each other. The research par-ticipants were 123 first-year students who were involved in collaborative sharing activities via an online community, using Weebly. Data was collected using a set of questionnaires that discussed four main dimen-sions of identities: personal, professional, as learners, and as members of communities. Data was analysed using SPSS version 22. The overall findings offer a detailed description of students’ identities. A high posi-tive correlation was found between students’ prior knowledge and their motivation, commitment and beliefs with regard to the benefits of online communities. The only dimension of students’ identities that lacked cor-relation with other dimensions was students’ openness. The findings highlight the importance of understand-ing different aspects of identities and how this helps to enhance engagement in online communities. The findings are significant in terms of establishing a deeper understanding on learning process within a social learning theory.

Reflections on the first year of dental teaching

1971 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-24
Author(s):  
JW Lowe
Keyword(s):  
First Year

Changes in role perceptions by first-year dental students

1977 ◽  
Vol 41 (8) ◽  
pp. 507-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
AC Rosen ◽  
M Marcus ◽  
N Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Dental Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
Role Perceptions
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