Community as Curriculum is a core principle of Rhizomatic Learning that challenges the traditional notion that curriculum is a predetermined set of content delivered by experts. Instead, the collective knowledge, experiences, and interactions of the learning community become the primary source of learning material.
Core Concept
In traditional education, curriculum exists before learners arrive—textbooks are written, lessons are planned, and objectives are set by authorities outside the learning community. Community as Curriculum flips this relationship: the curriculum emerges from the community itself through their questions, experiences, and collaborative exploration.
Key Characteristics
Collective Expertise
Everyone in the learning community contributes knowledge rather than just consuming it. Each participant brings unique experiences, perspectives, and expertise that enrich the collective understanding.
Responsive Content
What gets explored and “taught” emerges from community needs, interests, and questions. The curriculum adapts in real-time based on what the community discovers they need to know.
Distributed Authority
No single person or resource holds all the answers. Authority and expertise are distributed across the network of participants, with different people taking leadership roles based on their knowledge and experience.
Dynamic Evolution
The “curriculum” changes as the community grows and learns together. New members bring fresh perspectives, and evolving understanding shifts the focus and direction of learning.
Connection to Digital Practices
The Community as Curriculum approach aligns with modern digital practices where knowledge is created collaboratively. Open source development projects exemplify this—the community collectively builds and maintains the “curriculum” of code and documentation. Similarly, Digital Gardens grow through community interaction and sharing, while online communities of practice create learning through participation rather than formal instruction.
This connects naturally with Emergent Learning, where learning objectives arise from community interaction rather than being imposed from outside. The two concepts reinforce each other: as the community becomes the curriculum, the directions and goals of learning emerge organically from that collective engagement.
Practical Implications
For educators, this means acting as facilitators and co-learners rather than sole authorities, creating spaces for learner-generated content and direction. For learners, it requires actively contributing knowledge and experiences while embracing the role of both teacher and student in different contexts.