Cultivating belonging: Living leadership in communities of learning

Abstract

Learning Communities are an important element of the Royal Roads University (RRU) Learning and Teaching Model. Cohort members in Royal Roads University’s Master’s of Arts in Leadership (MAL) program remain connected and continue to support one another’s career development years after they have graduated. In this chapter, we explore the intentional design in MAL that serves to build multiple opportunities for belonging, giving rise to these long-standing relationships. After a brief review of the adult learning literature and the concept of Learning Communities, we present several examples of students accomplishing their learning needs through their cohort. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the implications of these activities for the student, the cohort, and for faculty and staff members. We identify activities that support the cohort as a learning community and offer examples of learner-focused approaches.