Abstract:

Based on the existing theoretical body of knowledge of post-modern (constructivisms) and contextual (communities) learning paradigms and in our previous research (Afonso, 2009), this presentation pretends to discuss some ideas for the strategic management of learning contexts embodied as virtual (learning) communities, namely that:
• The creation of a (virtual learning) community is a collective exercise of imagination based upon the principles of collective construction and of collective transaction.
• The management of a community, envisioned as a learning context, involves the management of the technological, relational and pedagogical contexts of the “non-place” in which the community develops.

For that purpose, it proposes to present:
1) A brief review of the community learning paradigm in the light of three complementary perspectives: the fragmentary and imaginary character of modern identities and communities (the desconstructivist approach); the new forms, concepts and indicators of community in virtual reality (the [social]constructivist) and the concept of context as a transactional relationship (contextual approach).
2) The theoretical assumptions and considerations that translate our view about the creation of virtual learning communities.

To conclude, it will ellaborate on some general guidelines for the creation and management of virtual learning communities resulting from the observation of the phenomenon of managing online learning communities.

Keywords:

Virtual learning communities, learning contexts, community creation, managing learning contexts.