Abstracts
Abstract
Communities of Practice (CoPs) bring together practitioners who share a common interest and provide a forum for them to improve upon their practice. The Saskatoon Librarians CoP was formed in late 2019 to fulfil a professional development need among librarians across the city. Librarians from across sectors were invited to join in this multi-sectoral CoP with the intent of it being an opportunity for networking, collaborating, and sharing best practices. Multi-sectoral communities of practice are not common in the literature, with most CoPs focusing on a narrow subject area of interest or being hosted by a single institution. This study reports on the results of a survey of Saskatoon librarians, including those who became members of the CoP and those who opted not to join. The survey was intended to garner anonymous feedback on the CoP to determine its benefits and to identify potential areas for growth and improvement. While the CoP did not directly impact members’ practice, participants did identify indirect impacts, including an opportunity to share information, hear about librarianship issues from other perspectives, and socialize. Many members preferred an informal, flexible approach over more rigid, academic meeting structures. Regular communication and check-ins with members and potential members was identified as a way of handling the natural attrition that comes with CoPs and to continue to keep the CoP relevant and engaging for the librarians of Saskatoon.
Keywords:
- Community of practice,
- professional development,
- career development,
- education
Résumé
Les communautés de pratique (CdP) rassemblent des praticiens qui partagent un intérêt commun et leur offrent un forum pour améliorer leur pratique. La CdP des bibliothécaires de Saskatoon a été créée vers la fin 2019 pour répondre à un besoin de développement professionnel au sein des bibliothécaires de la ville. Des bibliothécaires de tous les secteurs ont été invités à se joindre à cette CdP multisectorielle dans le but de faire du réseautage, de collaborer et de partager les meilleures pratiques. Les communautés de pratique multisectorielles ne sont pas courantes dans la littérature, car la plupart des CdP se concentrent sur un domaine d’intérêt précis ou sont hébergées au sein d’un établissement. Cette étude présente les résultats d’une enquête menée auprès des bibliothécaires de Saskatoon, y compris ceux qui sont devenus membres de la CdP et ceux qui ont choisi de ne pas y adhérer. L’enquête visait à recueillir des commentaires anonymes sur la CdP afin d’en déterminer les avantages et d’identifier les domaines potentiels de croissance et d’amélioration. Quoique la CdP n’ait pas eu un impact direct sur la pratique des membres, les participants ont identifié des impacts indirects, y compris l’occasion de partager de l’information, d’entendre parler d’enjeux liés aux bibliothèques provenant d’autres perspectives et de socialiser. Plusieurs membres préfèraient une approche informelle et souple plutôt que des rencontres académiques plus rigides. Des communications et des contrôles réguliers avec les membres et les membres potentiels ont été identifiés comme une façon de palier à l’attrition naturelle qui survient avec les CdP et de continuer à s’assurer que la CdP demeure pertinente et engageante pour les bibliothécaires de Saskatoon.
Mots-clés :
- Communauté de pratique,
- développement professionnel,
- développement de carrière,
- éducation
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Appendices
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