What is a Community of Practice?
A community of practice is defined by the National Council of Nonprofits as “a group of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly.” A community of practice expands and formalizes conversations and relationships beyond LinkedIn or the proverbial “water cooler.” The “community” is a self-selected network of individuals who share a passion for deepening their understanding of some aspect of their work. They join with others to advance their understanding and “build bridges” so that others understand their perspectives. In a community of practice, participants come together to intentionally learn from and share practices and ideas. Communities of practice are useful for “systems change” and well-suited to bring together nonprofits with different perspectives and missions that can benefit from deeper collaboration. The peer-to-peer interaction within communities of practice builds trusted connections that foster many knowledge-sharing opportunities.
Alignment of the Community of Practice with MECLP’s Mission
MECLP believes that developing and supporting strong leaders equipped to lead innovation and change in early childhood systems, policies, and legislation will catalyze positive change and significantly improve school readiness and related outcomes for early learners, particularly disadvantaged and vulnerable children and their families.
As a strategy to support fellows’ leadership development, skills, and networking capacity, MECLP launched a Community of Practice (CoP) for fellows following completion of SHER 601. The CoP creates a self-selected network of individuals who share a passion for deepening their knowledge of their work, equipping them with content knowledge and a drive for change in early childhood. They join with others to advance their understanding and “build bridges” so that others understand their perspectives and to intentionally learn from and share practices and ideas with each other. The CoP provides fellows with opportunities to formalize, articulate, and advocate for their capstone projects by interacting with Maryland and national speakers on problems of practice germane to early childhood and their specific interests. Additionally, the CoP creates a leadership hub to further develop fellows‘ leadership skills as they drive for change in their areas of interest, creating a network of early childhood professionals.MECLP’s CoP offers fellows opportunities to participate in five complimentary components designed to expand their capacity as they pursue their leadership journey. A mentoring program connects mentors and course completers (mentees) in a partnership that supports the fruition of capstone projects and illuminates problems of practice. Leadership in Action Conversations provide a vehicle for fellows to join their colleagues and experienced early childhood experts to explore current events affecting the ECE field. The MECLP webinar series serves the dual purposes of (1) developing the fellows into strong and competent early childhood education leaders and (2) promoting the mission and actions of MECLP in the state and beyond. An annual Leadership Institute features national speakers/panelists to highlight current research in the ECE field and next steps toward building a world-class early childhood system to meet the needs of all young children, their families, and their communities. Finally, field experiences, as part of our future initiatives, offer fellows opportunities to engage with high-quality, ideal learning environments that could be integrated into instructional programs.