Abstract
A Community of Practice (CoP) is an entity in which people are involved in ongoing interactions with others while they learn and engage in their activities. Studies indicate that a CoP is useful as a learning venue for coaches, but the inherently complex environment surrounding coaching makes CoPs difficult to sustain. The purpose of this presentation is to describe, from the perspective of two coaching leaders within a figure skating club, how a CoP was created and sustained. Four in-depth interviews were conducted with both the director of skating and the director of the learn-to-skate program at a figure skating club (eight interviews in total). A content analysis was performed on the interviews to code information pertaining to learning through social experiences with other club coaches. Results indicated that a CoP was formed due to a unique environment where multiple coaches worked with one athlete, so that it was necessary that coaches shared information. The coaches sustained the CoP as they came together on a regular basis by constructing a collaborative culture of ongoing communication focused on athlete progression. Conflicts inevitably arose; however, the shared objective of producing good athletic performance allowed the coaches to respect, trust, and support each other. This case study paves the way to understanding that a CoP can be developed and sustained by coaches when they are in an environment where collaborative coaching and learning is the norm and where it is expected by coaches entering into the system.
