Encouraging Participation - Community Building
A community of practice depends on an environment of mutual respect and trust, which encourages a willingness to:
- share ideas
- expose one’s knowledge gaps
- ask difficult questions
- listen carefully
According to media scholar, Henry Jenkins, characteristics of a participatory culture include the following:
- relatively low barriers to engagement
- strong support for sharing with others
- informal mentorship
- participants believe their contributions matter
- not every participant must contribute every time, but all must feel they are free to contribute when they are ready and that what they contribute will be appropriately valued
A community of practice is about people with a shared interest connecting with each other. Encourage each other, look for new ideas, remember there are no ‘stupid questions’ and enjoy the comments of others.