Vervago

Creating a community of practice

Learning any set of skills requires sharing our experiences, ideally with others who are also using the skills. Precision Q+A teaches sophisticated cognitive skills that grow over time and through practice. We can deliberately enhance our capabilities by participating in communities with others who are practicing as well—what cognitive anthropologists call “communities of practice.” These communities help knowledge workers in domains ranging from managers to surgeons and engineers to artists. Here are some guidelines for creating a community of practice related to Precision Q+A.

Jim Gibbons, former Dean of Engineering at Stanford University, was teaching a class in which several working professionals had to miss lectures for business travel, but they wanted to continue with their studies. Dean Gibbons videotaped the lectures, but he asked them to watch in a particular way. The students were to watch together and stop every two or three minutes to discuss what they had seen. If the students had any confusion in their conversation, they were to rewind the video and watch it again, until they were sure they understood what was being discussed. The students performed extremely well on the final exam. In fact, some research suggests that students who learn this way perform half a grade point better on average than those who physically attend lectures.1

John Seely Brown, former head of the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), relays the story about Dean Gibbons and his students to illustrate the idea that learning stems from participation in communities. People engaged in an activity together develop a shared pool of experiences, tools, stories, and techniques that they use to continue developing. The students formed what we are calling a “community of practice,” and these kinds of communities are especially important for continued learning of skills that are built through experience, like Precision Q+A.

 

HOW TO CREATE A COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE

Anthropologist Etienne Wenger defines a community of practice as a group of people who share a passion for something they do and want to learn to do it better as they interact regularly. Deep cognitive skills like asking and answering questions present a perfect opportunity for the kind of learning that is best supported in a community of practice.

Creating a community of practice that centers on Precision Q+A involves two steps:

  1. Finding opportunities to bring together people who are interested in skill development– people who have taken the Precision Q+A workshop are natural participants for a community of practice focused on intellectual skills and work, but many others may be interested in the general topics as well.
  2. Organizing activities that support continued learning – the community must practice things together in order to remain dynamic. We suggest activities below that will allow a new community to gain momentum.

Communities of practice exist in both virtual and physical forms. What is most important is designing activities so that participants feel enlivened and engaged in learning. Some general guidelines for establishing communities of practice that are lively include2:

  • Allow the community to evolve naturally around a domain of interest– We suggest some activities that will get a community started, but allow for shifts as members and interests change. Experiment with new things to keep the community evolving and to build excitement.
  • Create opportunities for dialogue and different kinds of participation– Successful communities allow for some people to be central and others to be peripherally involved, acknowledging that all kinds of participation create value.
  • Find a rhythm that fits the community – Cycles of activities and events that occur regularly will help a community thrive. Each community needs to find a pace that is engaging without becoming unwieldy.

 

ACTIVITIES THAT SUPPORT PRECISION Q+A
COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE

As communities of practice emerge, many activities help support members’ learning. Remember that the goal of the community is to foster its “own internal direction, character, and energy,”3 so these activities are only the beginning of many that the community can design on its own.

Skill-building sessions
Organize a meeting of community members to focus on one specific skill. Distribute some reading or a short assignment related to the skill in advance of the meeting. At the meeting, focus community members on performing the skill and receiving feedback.

Discussion and dialogue sessions
Organize a meeting of community members to share success stories related to a specific skill or to watch a video related to a skill and discuss it, as described above. At the meeting, focus community members through facilitated dialogue.

Practice and preparation sessions
Organize a meeting of community members to support a participant who is preparing a presentation or working on a tough problem. Ask the participant to describe the problem, give the presentation, and facilitate a discussion or problem-solving session.

We are here to help. If you would like to discuss your community of practice and how to incorporate Precision Q+A, please reach out. We wish you learning that comes alive through community!

 

THIS MONTH’S PRACTICE

A community of practice is not merely a network. A true learning community involves creating a group defined by a shared domain of interest, such as intellectual skill development, as well as common practices. Use these practice ideas to begin regular meetings of a community that will support your continued development.

PRACTICE 1: THE INITIAL MEETING
Organize a meeting of people interested in Precision Q+A and the domain of intellectual development or intellectual leadership at work. Give each of the members a copy of this Skill Sharpener and discuss the power of a community of practice. At the initial meeting, brainstorm topics of interest and activities that members would like to engage in at future meetings. Agree on a regular schedule and a pace that allows for lively participation.

PRACTICE 2: ACTIVITY SUGGESTIONS

Review each category of questions, one at a time

  • Use Vervago Skill Sharpeners as a resource for the review and practice activities. You will find a Skill Sharpener devoted to each category of questions in our archives.

Practice using Precision Q+A in email

Personal style and social intelligence

Asking better follow-up questions

  • Use the Skill Sharpener entitled The Art of the Follow-Up Question as the basis for a discussion and practice session on building lines of thinking with questions

We’re here to help. If you have questions, comments or suggestions for future topics, email us at QuestionMaster@vervago.com.

You may also join our LinkedIn group for Precision Q+A alumni by visiting us here: LinkedIn.

1 Adapted from John Seely Brown’s article The Social Life of Learning, published in Continuing Higher Education Review, Vol. 66, 2002, pg. 57-58.

2 These ideas are adapted from Wenger, McDermott, and Snyder’s Cultivating Communities of Practice (2002, Harvard Business Press), which offers many more ideas about creating and sustaining communities of practice. See also: http://hbswk.hbs.edu/archive/2855.html

3 Quoted from http://hbswk.hbs.edu/archive/2855.html

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