Setting Up and Running Online Communities of Practice (CoPs) for Veterinary Educators
Publication: Journal of Veterinary Medical Education
Advance Access
Abstract
Communities of practice (CoPs) are social systems consisting of individuals who come together to share knowledge and solve problems around a common interest. For educators, membership of a CoP can facilitate access to expertise and professional development activities and generate new collaborations. This teaching tip focuses on online CoPs and provides tips for setting up and running such communities. The initial planning phase involves establishing the purpose of the CoP, recruiting an administrative team, designing the structure of the online environment, and choosing a platform. Once the online platform is launched, running the CoP involves building the membership, encouraging engagement (primarily in discussion forums), finding ways to create and share useful resources, and sustaining the community as an active and effective CoP. We also describe a specific example of an online CoP for veterinary educators involved in clinical skills teaching. The membership has grown to represent an international community who engage in a range of activities including sharing knowledge, tips and ideas, asking questions, discussing challenges, and promoting collaborative activities.
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Journal of Veterinary Medical Education
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© American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), 2024. For their own personal use, users may read, download, print, search, or link to the full text. Manuscripts published in the Journal of Veterinary Medical Education are copyrighted to the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges. Requests for permission to reproduce this article should be made to the University of Toronto Press using the Permission Request Form: https://www.utpjournals.press/about/permissions or by email: [email protected].
History
Received: 8 March 2023
Accepted: 20 November 2023
Published online: 25 January 2024
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The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
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