An online community of practice of physics educators: formation, participation and engagement

In this study, I investigate how a community of high school teachers forms as part of an innovative online Master of Physics with Teaching Emphasis (MPTE) program. The MPTE program coursework requirement entails regular interactions through participation in the problem and reading discussion boards. The design features of the course, such as instructional prompts to guide students' navigations through the course content, can influence community participation. I will discuss the participation themes that emerge as a result of the course features using the Community of Practice (CoP) theory. Application of the social network analysis to the discussion posts revealed more fluctuations in the problem discussion board activities compared to the reading discussion board.