Activity 4: Your professional community

My Community of Practice



Domain: Learning needs of a particular target group or learning focus.

Community: Interested and involved groups of people working together to achieve a common goal.

Practice: Practitioners who interact, communicate, assess, and plan for the needs of the Domain.

Critically analyse your professional community of practice:

1. What are the current issues in your community of practice? How would you or your community of practice address them?
A current issue is trying to close the gap in the assessment results for writing. Results are showing a large number of students are underachieving in this area, however, this could also be a result of assessment methods and interpretations of marking schedules being different. The community is looking at how each individual school within the Rotorua Central Cluster Community of Learning Schools assesses, plans, and delivers writing and then trying to find a more consistent way for the 5 schools in the Cluster to deliver and assess this part of the curriculum. The good thing about the community is there are a mixture of expertise involved and also a mixture of schools (Primary, Intermediate and High School).

2. What is the purpose and function of your practice? In what ways do you cater for the community of your practice?

I am a classroom teacher of the senior class (year 4-8). My part is to feedback to the community a number of crucial data including target groups, target areas, numbers below, at and above (National Standards), reflections about where issues lie, and what could be possible interventions. Some other things that I look at are my own practices and how I am delivering the writing program, where the students have come from if they are new to the school, learning disabilities, and home life. By sharing my data and experiences, I am working collaboratively with the other schools within my Community of Practice and vice versa, and other groups in the community are aware of what is going on in class as well. Parents are able to take it upon themselves to help their children more at home as they kept informed.

3. What are the challenges that you face in your practice? How would you or your community of practice address them?

At the moment my biggest challenge is the fact that I started at the school in term 3 2015. This means that I have only had 2 terms with most of my students and I have still had to be accountable for their achievement and report to my Community of Practice. When asked where the gaps are or what are the issues, it is really hard to reply as I could only go by assessment data and behaviour. This year, however, I know my input will be more valuable and my reporting will be more critical. 
I think being a part of a Community of Practice is very important for professionals. It is the same as being a reflective practitioner - sharing and working collaboratively by reflecting on your own practice and then sharing your experience or seeking advice and help from others is vital to the learning outcomes of your students.


Link to Wenger's concept of community of practice.


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