Teacher Learning in a Community of Practice: A Case Study of ...

Wenger emphasises (1998) that although the term 'community' usually has positive
connotations ofpeaceful coexistence, mutual support or interpersonal allegiance, these
are not assumed, though they may exist in certain cases. Communities ofpractice can be
characterised by conflicts, disagreements and tensions among participants. These are
'normal' forms ofparticipation. A shared practice thus connects participants to each other
in ways that are diverse and complex.
3.3.2.3.2 How is 'joint enterprise' a characteristic of practice as a source of
community coherence?
The negotiation ofa joint enterprise that keeps a keeps a community ofpractice together
is based on three premises (Wenger 1998). Firstly, the enterprise is a result ofa collective
process ofnegotiation that reflects the full complexity ofmutual engagement; secondly,
the enterprise is defined by the participants in the very process ofpursuing the enterprise;
and thirdly, the enterprise creates among participants relations ofmutual accountability
that become an integral part ofthe practice.
The enterprises reflected in practice are as complex as the participants. l This enterprise
therefore includes the instrumental, personal and interpersonal aspects ofparticipants'
lives. A community ofpractice reflects its attempt to create a context in which
participants can proceed with their working lives. A participant's working life includes
making money, being an adult, becoming proficient at one's job, feeling good, dealing
with boredom, keeping one's job and thinking about the future.
Communities ofpractice are 'not self-contained' entities, but develop in larger historical,
social, and institutional contexts, with specific resources and constraints (Wenger 1998).
Although the practice ofthe community may be influenced by conditions outside the
control ofits members (time, resources etc) the practice is still produced by the
participants within the resources and constraints oftheir situations and is therefore their
response to their conditions. Participants are, however, certainly located within a broader
I In the TEMS project, the enterprise would be personal and professional development.
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