The role of online communities of practice in developing blended teaching knowledge and practice during a digital transformation in higher education

Document Type

Article

Source of Publication

Teaching and Teacher Education

Publication Date

4-1-2026

Abstract

This study explored the lived experiences of eight teaching faculty as they participated in Online Communities of Practice (OCoPs) in a higher education setting whilst learning how to teach in a novel techno-pedagogical ecosystem, one based on a bespoke digital platform and a flipped, blended learning pedagogy. It highlights the types of blended teaching knowledge and practice they developed while participating in the OCoPs and how this knowledge and practice were scaffolded and developed. The findings revealed that the teachers developed knowledge and practice in four main domains of knowledge: Pedagogical knowledge, Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Technological Pedagogical Knowledge, and Contextual Pedagogical Knowledge. This knowledge was developed within the OCoPs through three main processes: Developing a sense of belonging and community, participating in dialogical activity and using critical self-reflection. Together, they constitute a tentative model of situated dialogical learning in higher education OCoPs.

ISSN

0742-051X

Publisher

Elsevier BV

Volume

172

Disciplines

Education

Keywords

Blended teaching practice, Digital transformation, Higher education, Online communities of practice, Pedagogical ecosystem

Scopus ID

105025049863

Indexed in Scopus

yes

Open Access

no

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