Learning about e-learning: Some insights into a postgraduate learning community

Now that the educational significance of learning communities is increasingly well recognised and means are available to make interactions possible electronically, on large scales, there are growing opportunities to research, understand and enhance the functioning of such communities. However, whilst incorporation of communities is often theoretically justified, learning outcomes are seldom examined to see if such principles are actually borne out. Here, I report briefly on a special case of the use of communities within an e-learning environment, considering their worth not only as a matter of academic interest but also for student participants themselves in their distinctive circumstances. I conclude by discussing briefly some strategic and conceptual implications of this work for e-learning communities.