Faculty development and collaborative learning have become essential to delivering high‑quality teaching. This article explores how EHL is reimagining Communities of Practice (CoPs) through its innovative Teaching & Learning Exchanges (T&LXs), a new format designed to foster pedagogical innovation, encourage peer‑to‑peer learning and strengthen teaching excellence across the institution. By bringing educators together to share experiences, experiment with new tools and reflect on their classroom practices, T&LXs create a dynamic space where ideas flow, questions are welcomed and meaningful professional growth takes place. In the following sections, we unpack what CoPs truly are, how they are implemented at EHL and why they play a crucial role in building a supportive, agile and forward‑thinking academic community.
Traditionally, EHLs' CoP were used to bring subject-based faculty together in informal settings to share experiences. EHL’s new approach, however, aims to bring people together with a special focus on pedagogical innovation and faculty development. These T&LXs aim to showcase both good practices and personal experiences, including pedagogical and digital innovation. Faculty members are invited to meet at lunchtime or in the late afternoon, with the format alternating between pre-set subject areas and more open sessions to enable participants to discuss specific topics, ask questions and suggest ideas for future T&LX meetups. The initiative is designed to foster the exchange of ideas, share experiences and promote mutual learning among faculty members, thereby enhancing teaching and learning. The T&LXs help faculty members critically assess their teaching practices, while continually developing and applying new pedagogical approaches and skills that support student learning and success.
A key to our success has been a collaboration between individuals from EHL’s new Center of Teaching & Learning Excellence (CTLE) and the team of Pedagogical Peer Coaches (PPCs). PPCs are faculty members who have completed pedagogical mentoring training and support both new and existing faculty members in successfully integrating EHL’s teaching environment, continuously reflecting on and adapting teaching practices. The PPCs helped conceptualize and run the sessions and, most importantly, encouraged fellow faculty members to participate.
Think of a CoP as a group of people who care about the same thing and learn from each other—not because they have to, but because they want to. EHL faculty members seek to continuously develop their pedagogical skills and knowledge, so having an arena to share and support one another makes total sense. For instance, during recent T&LXs, the discussion centered on innovative practices such as integrating AI tutors into courses to help students study independently or experimenting with online applications to build assessment tools. Having faculty members share such discoveries and experiences has enabled others to reflect and be open to new approaches in their own classrooms. This sharing of ideas is deeply beneficial. Indeed, it enables faculty members to learn from one another and foster a true community of support and discovery.
The CoP concept was first described by Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger in the 1990s, who recognized that learning often occurs outside formal settings. It was suggested that employees could sometimes learn more from everyday conversations with peers than from formal workshops. Expanding on this view, many universities now use CoPs as faculty development tools to shift from individual to social learning. Both early-career and more experienced academics benefit from CoPs. Indeed, they help faculty members adjust to evolving work environments by facilitating interaction and the sharing of common practices and goals. This type of community-based learning is increasingly used to ensure that faculty members are equipped to practice in an evolving, technology-driven educational landscape.
At EHL, our T&LXs are structured opportunities for discussion and learning and can take many forms: focused sessions/workshops, faculty-led discussions, or demonstrations of new tools/discoveries. Somewhat outside a purist's idea of a CoP, the EHL T&LX hybrid format enables faculty members to feel supported through expert-led sessions while remaining flexible enough to accommodate facilitated open discussions. Ideas, problems and experiences are shared in order to transform—as fast as possible and as slowly as needed (as the saying goes)—a faculty member's own thinking and approach to pedagogical innovations.
CoPs support peer coaching in education by promoting shared standards, methods and language. Open communication and collaboration also help keep institutional tacit knowledge “in house”. Faculty members often feel valued for their expertise and take pride in sharing ideas and solutions with others. Overall, such social learning spaces bring many benefits to participants and organizations.
Nurturing our community and harnessing our digital capabilities, T&LXs empower faculty to achieve excellence in educational delivery, in line with EHL’s strategy. They do so by strengthening pedagogical and digital competencies, promoting innovation in teaching, advancing human-centered learning and contributing to EHL’s leadership in both education and the digital transformation of learning experiences.
Aligned with EHL’s mission of empowering human experiences and connections, the initiative further promotes connections among faculty members and the broader academic community. At times, faculty members who mainly teach within their own subject areas may feel isolated, with limited opportunities to connect and collaborate beyond their area of expertise. Our T&LX initiative offers them a platform to share ideas and connect with new colleagues while building connections across disciplines.
During the opening session, faculty members shared topics of interest for thematic sessions. The following topics were mentioned: AI in higher education (including the risks of AI and its use in teaching & learning), pedagogical innovations, student engagement, academic integrity, as well as adaptive/inclusive teaching.
Since its launch in 2024, most topics have focused on digital learning and digital tools, which align with the institution’s overarching 2030 vision for digital learning. This vision aims to empower human-centered learning through digital innovation. Supporting the vision’s pillars of “social & experiential by design with a signature EHL experience” and “future-ready knowledge & skills for the digital age”, we conducted three sessions focused on digital competencies:
This session was delivered by Dr. René-Ojas Woltering, who shared his experience piloting a personalized, round-the-clock AI learning assistant in his course. The AI assistant emphasized theoretical content and foundational quantitative problems to engage students and help them learn outside the classroom.
Functioning as a 24/7 AI smart tutor, it fulfills multiple functions: responding to course-related queries, reinforcing pedagogical strategies such as retrieval practice, and adapting to individual learning needs.
Faculty were interested in the innovation applicability as it can be designed to support learning across all class sizes and enhance independent study in both large-scale lectures and smaller, focused courses.
René shared the feedback he received from his students during the pilot. These feedback supports the benefits of AI learning assistants, such as reinforcing independent study, supporting different learning styles and encouraging deeper learning.
Great to review misunderstandings on the course material.
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Student at EHL Hospitality Business School
I am extremely happy to have had the support of the AI learning assistant combined with Professor Woltering’s great teaching style; the assistant allowed me to actively recollect topics discussed in class and dive deeper on my own time.
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Student at EHL Hospitality Business School
During this session, faculty became familiar with the mind-mapping and curriculum design project developed by Dr. Nicolas Mangin. The project encourages students to take an active role in their own learning by allowing them to make learning choices and follow a specific learning path.
Nicolas shared his project: Cartographie dynamique du parcours d’apprentissage d’un étudiant, which was accepted by the HES-SO Digital Competence Centre’s permanent digital experimentation desk.
Faculty were interested in the project’s approach, which enables students to organize their work and make decisions autonomously, thus encouraging active ownership of their own learning. To achieve this, it is important to allow students to make choices and follow a path that may differ from the linear progression initially envisioned by the teaching team.
The adaptive, interactive map (i.e., a technologically enhanced learning tool) allows students to explore course content independently. It enables them to become active participants in their autonomous learning, while being guided in a non-intrusive manner.
By becoming active agents in their learning, students are able to set goals, manage their time and evaluate their progress. As a result, they acquire lifelong skills such as problem-solving and discipline. Through these pedagogical approaches, students become creators of meaning, supported by faculty who act as facilitators.
This session was delivered by Emmanuelle Faure, who was tasked with creating an asynchronous alternative to a week of face-to-face teaching. She developed an innovative learning path featuring an immersive scenario with gamification elements, including competition and rewards. In collaboration with a learning designer, Emmanuelle created an optimal asynchronous teaching and learning experience for the students while maintaining a sufficient emotional connection to support effective learning.
In the session, Emmanuelle shared an escape room activity, and faculty members acted as students. Results have been encouraging as the exercise showed an increased active learning, enhanced motivation and the development of core skills (e.g., problem-solving, critical thinking and attention to detail).
We have identified key elements to consider when developing this type of initiative, as seen below.
As higher education evolves in the age of digitalization, teaching and learning expectations and practices are changing. Formal education has long been the cornerstone of learning. Faculty have enjoyed and continue to have the freedom to teach, research and discuss ideas with academic communities without interference. Traditional teaching focuses on knowledge transfer, while modern teaching methods emphasize understanding learners and being student-centered. Innovative teaching practices, curriculum development and technological advances have changed and will continue to change the way faculty members teach and how students learn.
The future of education is about balance: between standards and innovation, global reach and local relevance, knowledge and humanity.
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Dr. Juan F. Perellon, Chief Academic Officer, EHL
Digitalization in teaching and learning is a strategic priority at EHL, and a new Center of Teaching and Learning Excellence (CTLE) is designed to help faculty members develop pedagogical skills and enhance their digital and communication competencies. Through the development of pedagogical projects and the sharing of insights, the CTLE aims to drive excellence in teaching and learning. It will contribute to EHL’s ongoing commitment to faculty development and further the ethical use of technological innovation. The CTLE will also play a key role in setting and monitoring priorities for EHL’s digital strategy, whilst supporting EHL’s foundational pillars of hospitality education and human-centric learning.
CTLE’s educational and developmental approaches, such as experiential education and social learning, will support an overall awareness of lifelong and reflective practice in pedagogical development. CoPs and similar approaches enable faculty to take the lead in their own professional development. They provide a safe space where faculty can engage in continuous improvement while further developing a sense of purpose and belonging.
While both T&LXs and the CTLE are somewhat new initiatives at EHL, we believe the future of learning in higher education will depend on such powerful networks. Going forward, it will be critical to strike a balance between technological and pedagogical advances. Moreover, we must continue to help students to ‘learn how to learn’. Having students develop uniquely human skills, such as critical thinking, alongside hospitality and business competencies through innovative, digitally supported learning will enable graduates to adapt to whatever changes and developments they face in their future careers.
Institutions must navigate the balance between innovation and maintaining high-quality education that prepares students for the complexities of the modern world.
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Gilbert & Baxter, 2025
As formal education adapts to a changing world, faculty members will be at the forefront of innovations and have the greatest influence on what, how and where students learn. So, if you’ve ever thought about starting a CoP or a similar social learning initiative to drive change and sense-making, then do it. Begin with a conversation. You’ll be surprised where it can lead…
References
Centre francophone de recherche en informatisation des organisations. (2005). Travailler, apprendre et collaborer en réseau: guide de mise en place et d'animation de communautés de pratique intentionnelles. (Québec): CEFRIO. http://www.cefrio.qc.ca/
de Carvalho-Filho, M. A., Tio, R. A., & Steinert, Y. (2020). Twelve Tips for Implementing a Community of Practice for Faculty Development. Medical Teacher, 42(2), 143–149. https://doi: 10.1080/0142159X.2018.1552782
Gilbert, A., & Baxter, B. (2025). The Futures of Digital Learning and Teaching. In: Baxter, J., Selby-Fell, H., Gilbert, A. (eds) Creativity and Critique in Digital Learning and Teaching. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-68086-1_14
Perellon, J.-F. (2025, November). EHL’s Chief Academic Officer at the World’s Leading Hospitality Business School [Post & Video]. LinkedIn & YouTube. https://lnkd.in/e2wgsWjm
Wenger-Trayner E., & Wenger-Trayner B. (2015). Introduction to Communities of Practice: A brief overview of the concept and its uses. https://www.wenger-trayner.com/introduction-to-communities-of-practice/
Declaration on Generative AI Use
Microsoft Copilot and Grammarly were used to help generate ideas for flow and to improve clarity and fluency during the writing process
Written by
Dr. Barbara WidmerHigher Education Policy Manager at EHL Hospitality Business School |
Martha Sandoval AlvaradoFaculty Learning & Development Specialist at EHL Hospitality Business School |