| This article offers a critical evaluation of how school leaders are using web-based conferencing. It asks if it is being used effectively, and how it could be developed. It takes an evaluation of the ICT component of the Leadership Programme for Serving Heads (LPSH), and looks at planned use, actual use and the views of the participants. It then discusses other research in online conferencing with school leaders and managers, and relates this to Wenger's concept of a community of practice. The benefits of the community are discussed, and headteachers' viewpoints are compared with research in this area. It asks whether the benefits of such communities are those that were originally intended, and how future research can develop. |