Documentation:CTLT programs/CoP Overview
What is a CoP?
What is a Community of Practice?
Communities of Practice (CoPs) are groups of practitioners who “share a passion for something they know how to do and who interact regularly to learn how to do it better” (Wenger, 2006). The CTLT Community of Practice program provides a suite of services to numerous learning communities across disciplines at UBC to facilitate new knowledge development and to support the teaching and learning development of faculty. Services that CTLT provides to learning communities in order to achieve these goals include:
- Customized consultation for life-cycle community development;
- Training and general support to community facilitators; and
- Events support and logistics
Why join?
Have you ever wished you could connect with others on campus who are doing work similar to yours? Do you have a great idea or approach that you'd love to pass on to those who work in your field? Communities of practice are a great way to share with and learn from others on the UBC campus and beyond. You will share ideas and suggestions, both face-to-face and electronically, about teaching and learning topics most relevant to you.
Who can join?
Anyone with an interest in teaching and learning! We welcome undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, staff, and all others with a teaching or learning role or interest. To join a community of practice, visit the links on the left or email ctlt.copdeveloper@ubc.ca.
Communities of Practice at UBC
Active Communities of Practice
The following communities are facilitated by CTLT in partnership with units across the UBC campus, and are open to new participants:
- Course Design
- Interdisciplinary Community of Practice
- Portfolio
- Problem Based Learning Network
- Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Community of Practice
- Sustainability Across the Curriculum
- TA Training
- Teaching and Learning for the Heart and Mind
Each community of practice has a different structure and flow of events. The best way to get involved is to sign up for email updates and then attend a meeting in person. For updated contact information for each of these communities, see the CoP Facilitators list.
The following communities are facilitated by CTLT in partnership with units across the UBC campus, and are targeted specifically at various groups:
- Instructional Design is open to those who play a role supporting others to design their courses. Many participants in this community have the job title 'Instructional Design'.
- ISW (Instructional Skills Workshop) Alumni Community of Practice
- Library Outreach and Engagement
- New Faculty is open to those who have been hired as faculty at UBC within the past 24 months.
- Peer Review of Teaching is open to participants who have completed an introductory 'Peer Review of Teaching' workshop at CTLT.
- Professing English is open to instructors in the English department.
Past or Dormant Communities of Practice
The following communities were previously active on campus, but may not be currently active.
- Aboriginal Initiatives Community of Practice
- Community Service Learning
- Global Citizenship in Teaching and Learning
- International Learning Programs
- Open Education
- Qualitative Data Analysis
- Team-Based Learning
Other Communities of Practice at UBC
CTLT appreciates the work of communities of practice that are not directly affiliated with CTLT, but do excellent work connecting practitioners on campus. If you know of a community of practice related to teaching and learning that you'd like to see on this list, email ctlt.copdeveloper@ubc.ca.
- This Changed My Practice: a free online educational initiative for medical professionals from UBC Continuing Professional Development
- UBC-Okanagan Communities of Practice
- UBC-Okanagan Scholarly Writing Communities of Practice
- Connect Community of Practice
- The Flipped Lab
Want to Start a CoP?
Whenever we meet regularly to share ideas, best practices, and 'tips' with others who do work similar to ours, we are engaging in a community of practice.
CTLT hosts many communities of practice, and is open to supporting existing communities and/or helping foster the development of new communities of practice. Take a moment to browse through the materials on this site, as well as resources for community of practice facilitators.
If you are interested in initiating, starting, or revitalizing a community of practice on campus please contact ctlt.copdeveloper@ubc.ca. CTLT staff can provide support and experience with facilitation, process design, and community development expertise to help your community thrive.