Reflection on Wenger Ch 1 & 2 Reading for 2/14

Online Web 2.0 communities fit into Wenger's description of communities of practice. Online communities like Pligg and blogs have members that are involved in community dimensions of mutual engagement, joint enterprise, and a shared repertoire. The only caveat I can think of is that these online communities need to have a focus or goal. Online communities that exist merely for chat about any subject with no defined purpose do not meet the criteria of a community of practice. I believe that it is easy to establish a topic or set of topics for discussion in the community, but I question whether that is the same as ensuring that the community will then develop into a community of practice. I envision the establishment of online educational communities of practice since they will clearly have a purpose and also feature a monitor, likely the teacher, of the community.