We've grown up in a world with "up" and "down". Teachers at the top, and students at the bottom of class. Freshman (or "noobs") at the front, and Seniors ("experts") at the back. Certifications, Diplomas, Degrees at the 'end' of a course of study. Even the word "course" suggests direction, plan, timeframe. But now learning is moving faster than light and directions, beginnings and ends are becoming meaningless. Join me for some conversation about what this will mean for us, for the people we hire and work with or for - and how to create our own focus and be the caption of our own learning journey. With thanks for Ca Technologies for sponsoring TFT14 slides. For a free trial of Nimsoft go to bit.ly/1df6jY7

1. Sean McClean
Crushing the Compass

2. CRUSHING THE
COMPASS:
LEARNING IN THE
WORLD, WITHOUT
DIRECTION
What’s happening with learning and training today?

3. DISRUPTION: WE INTERRUPT
THIS INTERRUPTION TO SHAKE
THINGS UP…
• Disruption very “hip” today because it creates new
markets and opportunities
• The “Space Between” as described by Johansson
(Medici Effect) and Kim & Mauborgne (Blue Ocean
Strategy)
Opport
unity
Disrupti
on
Discipl
ine A
Biology
Discipli
ne B
Architec
ture

4. WAS LEARNING ALL THAT DIRECTED
ANYWAY?
• Not to argue semantics, but, well…
• Head / Top / Bottom of the class
• Matriculation / Graduation
• What is a “course” if not a route to follow?
• Objectives
• Certificates, degrees – objective tests…
• Values and competencies harder to
gauge
• There’s a path to a peak – but what
about the space in between?

5. TECHNOLOGY IS STRIPPING AWAY
THE DIRECTION FROM LEARNING
• Recordings and blogs starting to strip beginning and
end of traditional “course”
• Collaborative tools and social media strip the top
and bottom
• Search technologies and big data strip
process and context
HTTP://WWW.TED.COM/TALKS/ABHA_DAWESAR_LIFE_IN_THE
_DIGITAL_NOW.HTML

6. THE NOW MENTALITY STRIPS THE
RUDDERS AND SAILS
• Modern and global economy is FAST
• Learning is often obsolete upon completion
• The path to profit is much less“Chartable”
• Demand is outstripping our ability to steer
• Jet planes with steering wheels…
• Failure is not only acceptable, it’s desirable (in small
doses)
HTTP://REIDHOFFMAN.ORG/DISRUPTING-THE-DIPLOMA/

7. SO WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE
US?
• From the Silk Road… To the Frontier!
• Competencies and Values Based Rubrics over
Objectives
• Mistakes and “UNLearning”
• IEPs over degrees
• No such thing as “Finished”, “Graduated”, or
“Done”
• Explorers, pioneers, and cartographers wanted!

8. NEW FRONTIERS
• Mistakes are what exploring is all about?
• UnLearning
• Mistakes are the new right path
http://www.ted.com/talks/kathryn_schulz_on_bein
g_wrong.html

9. NEW FRONTIERS
• What if Objectives became less important than
competencies?
• We’ve learned to refine and refine and refine our
directives
• Olympics and the Need for Speed
• Enter the Competency and the Value Based Rubric…

10. NEW FRONTIERS
• IEPs (Individual Learning Plans) over
Degrees
• No “one” path anymore
• Training and Education needs to be
redefined as an ongoing, and neverending process

11. NEW FRONTIERS
• What are the Skillsets of the Pioneer?
• Independence and willingness to fail
• Cartography and Documentation

12. FINAL THOUGHTS
http://bitstrips.com/r/5WWVW

13. With thanks to our slides
sponsor, CA Technologies
Try Nimsoft for free at
ca.com/NSD-trial