Using the CAMEL Model to Build a Community of Practice
Background
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'Getting to know someone else quite closely you're more likely to be inspired by them'
CAMEL was originally short for Collaborative Approaches to the Management of E-Learning. CAMEL was a project funded by the HEFCE Leadership, Governance and Management programme. It set out to explore how institutions who were making good use of e-learning and who were collaborating in regional lifelong learning partnerships might be able to learn from each other in a Community of Practice based around study visits to each of the partners' institutions.
A short report available from JISC infoNet (Publications Page) highlights some of the things CAMEL participants found out about e-learning and about each other. One of the most interesting aspects of the project was, however, the model itself. We believe the CAMEL model could have widespread application for many types of people wanting to share experience and learn from one another. This resource provides a Do-It-Yourself guide to setting up a Community of Practice using the CAMEL model.
Although CAMEL started out as an acronym we found the name summed up certain things about what we were doing. Camels are versatile animals and can operate in the harshest of conditions, surviving on the poorest vegetation. They produce milk for nutrition and dung for fuel as well as providing transport. There are a lot of parallels with the versatility of e-learning in making learning happen in places where it wouldn't otherwise be possible and we saw some examples of this in the project. There is also a resonance with the nomadic element of the project and the benefits gained from visiting different locations.
We hope this guide will inspire others to try out the CAMEL model and we welcome feedback on your experiences to jiscinfonet@northumbria.ac.uk
The development of a Community of Practice (CoP)
A CoP:
- takes time to develop - longer than the 12 months we had for the pilot although we made a surprising amount of progress
- requires trust which requires time; however social elements and face-to-face meetings can speed up the process
- requires a shared passion
- requires commitment by all parties
- can stimulate and inspire to give confidence to instigate changes in practice
A CoP takes time to develop to the level where the group becomes the point of reference for a member and such a community needs a 'raison d'être', some common interest or passion. The trust element is very important and only develops fully over time; the sharing of food and drink, with the socialising that this brings, is central to the development of this trust. Ideas on how to encourage this trust to develop are part of the CAMEL model.
The telling of stories and problem solving are essential elements of a CoP to share news and information, build new knowledge and express an identity. The CAMEL model facilitates the development of these elements.
'Getting to know someone else quite closely you're more likely to be inspired by them'. Inspiration frequently leads to (confidence in) changes in practice and this quote from a participant in the CAMEL pilot illustrates that this did happen within the pilot.