Clark contends that “leaders are needed to define the environment, keep it safe, give it purpose, identity and keep it growing”. He gives a set of mantras for teacher/leaders in any online community:
- all you need is love
- control the environment, not the group
- lead by example
- let lurkers lurk
- short leading questions get conversations going
- be personally congratulatory and inquisitive
- route information in all directions
- care about the people in the community; this cannot be faked
- understand consensus and how to build it, and sense when it's been built and just not recognised, and when you have to make a decision despite all the talking.
He cites confirmation that “personal narrative is vital to online learning communities. Personal stories and experiences add closeness, and provide identity, thus strengthening online communities.”
