Type of Document	Dissertation
Author	Siudzinski, Robert Andrew
URN	etd-05232007-163221
Title	Not All Who Wander are Lost: An Ethnographic Study of Individual Knowledge Construction within a Community of Practice
Degree	PhD
Department	Department of Learning Sciences and Technology
Advisory Committee	Advisor Name Title Doolittle, Peter Committee Co-Chair Hicks, David Committee Co-Chair Burton, John Committee Member Uysal, Muzaffer Committee Member
Keywords	knowledge construction communities of practice informal learning reflective practices situated learning hikers Appalachian Trail
Date of Defense	2007-05-08
Availability	restricted
Abstract This focused ethnography of Appalachian Trail (AT) long-distance hikers explored the situated and informal nature of individual knowledge construction as mediated through a community of practice. Unlike place-based or cyber-bound communities, the ever-changing membership and location dynamics of AT hikers offered a unique and researchable community for study. The complex and understudied sensemaking trajectories of individuals moving through this mobile community were investigated over three years through in-depth interviews and participant observations. Inductive analysis of expert and novice stories illuminated experiential patterns and collective traditions that comprise the AT learning culture. In contrast to traditional approaches to knowledge and skill acquisition, this study found socio-reflective exchanges, nested in hiking pods, to be critical sites for cognitive modeling and informal scaffolding between experts and novices. The situated encounters and developmental support of these nomadic pods were found to facilitate individuals’ construction of community-based knowledge.
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