Frances Deepwell

Designs for Network Learning: A Communities of Practice Perspective.

This article explores the relevance for network learning of themes developed by Wenger, initially with Lave and subsequently alone. While Wenger’s fieldwork is located in the workplace, he sees his theorisation on becoming a learner as applicable to any context, be it home, work or formal education. In unravelling the connectedness between learning identity and community, usefulness of Wenger’s ideas for the context of networked learning is exposed. First, the specific features of Wenger’s construct of community of practice are discussed; second, Wenger’s notions of participation and reification are explored; and, finally, his design perspective with respect to ‘facilities of engagement, imagination and alignment’ is presented. The exposition of Wenger’s (and Lave’s) ideas is interwoven with a discussion of their implications for the field of network learning.

Reflections on the first international iPED conference, Coventry TechnoCentre, UK, 10–11 September 2006

Through reflection on the First International iPED Conference 2006, and its overarching theme of ‘Pedagogical Research and Academic Identities’, this paper considers the achievement of the wider aims of the conference, which were to facilitate dialogue between researchers in order to explore the conference themes collaboratively, and to provide networking opportunities which would enable participants to build alliances. The abstracts for all papers mentioned are available via the conference website www.coventry.ac.uk/iped2006.