Book. Connectivism. An Idea Worth Spreading: The Future is Networks « emergent by de. This weekend I experienced a snowcrash; a moment where the seemingly disparate pieces of information floating in my head came together.
A synapse fired, a new connection was made, and I was brought to a new level of consciousness, a new way of seeing the world. In reading this over, it almost sounds obvious, but it took me a while to get here. Networks and Communities of Practice: What is the difference? Networks and communities of practice are often terms that are used interchangeably.
Is there a difference? Meg Wheatley and Debbie Frieze in their article, "Using Emergence to Take Social Innovations to Scale" (available below) describe how communities of practice evolve from networks. When networks form, they help people find others who are like-minded. Networks are based on self-interest (people usually network together for their own benefit and to develop their own work). The Global Brain: Your Roadmap for Innovating Faster & Smart. Paper: Living Networked On and Off Line.