Communities of practice with teaching supervisors: A discussion of community members' experiences

This paper presents the results of a study of interviews (N = 17) conducted with members of a community of practice (CP) comprised of school principals, vice principals, and department heads responsible for teacher supervision in their respective schools. This CP met once a month over the course of 2 years to work on adapting the New Brunswick Department of Education's Francophone Teacher Evaluation Program. Using Wenger's (Communities of practice: Learning, meaning and identity. Cambridge University Press, New York, 1998) CP theoretical framework centered on four main concepts, namely meaning, practice, community, and identity, our study reveals that participants acquired knowledge by sharing their teacher supervision experiences. The participants learned new knowledge from others, enriched their supervision practices, and also gained indispensable practical skills with regard to the supervisory process. Furthermore, their fruitful discussions resulted in the creation of friendships and a sense of collegiality as they became agents for change.