EduTECH - Ian Jukes on the Education in the Age of Disruptive Innovation


Change and what it means about you personally and professionally.

He wants to talk about change.

Disruptive innovation changes the we way see things and the way we do things.

Economy and our education - in Australia (and the West) there has been nearly a complete disappearance of the factory worker and the factory mindset. It is cheaper to make things elsewhere which has meant a vast loss of manufacturing jobs. This is a stealth trend. This is disruptive innovation. Blue collar jobs are location dependent. White collar jobs are not. They can be outsourced. Routine cognitive work can and will be outsourced to cheaper countries. ODesk coordinates these workers from around the world. ODesk takes screen shots every 5 minutes and keystrokes reporting on productivity from across the globe. This is the work market our young people are entering into. We are now seeing the company of one, the work goes to the worker. Part time and temporary work had become the new normal. Whether you are comfortable with it or not this is the new global workspace. Work can not only be outsourced it can be automated. Legal software, tax preparation is an example of automated software replacing a person and a job. If we look at current trends, people who need to be managed constantly will be unemployable. 

The new illiterates are those who are technologically illiterate. It is a disability. 

Learning and earning is from the neck up. Everything from the neck down is minimum wage - Bob Hughes 

The agricultural workforce is declining, the industrial workforce is declining. The non-location dependent service workforce is increasing, as is the creative workforce. Since personal computers have the trend has changed, the service workforce is decreasing, the creative workforce are still increasing.  This is because service class jobs are replaced by technology. Creative class jobs are facilitated by technology. 

We have a fundamental problem - our schools were designed for agricultural and manufacturing jobs and these jobs are disappearing. Traditional practices are still prevalent in schools but those students will not go into traditional jobs. Our students are still preparing students for the Industrial Age. 

I agree heartily. In fact this echoes much of what I shared in my talk about Realising the Future of NZ Education. Admittedly this is not a coincident as I have read and enjoyed much of his work and research. 


We live in an 'Hunger Games economy' - everyone for themselves. Our educational approach has to change to prepare our students for this world. Our students won't have 4-7 but 10-17 careers by the time they are 38. We need learners who will curate their own portfolios in preparation for curating their own careers and futures. 

Disruptive innovation had made a new division of labour. Those who succeed are those that can adapt swiftly. We all need to be lifelong learners so they won't be blindsided by disruptive innovation. 

Short life skills such as memorisation is not the key to success. Long life skills such as creativity, interpersonal skills, critical thinking and problem solving will be the key to success. 

If we are truly going to prepare the students for their future we need to change education. We have to prepare for them future and not just our past. We have to make fundamental change and we have to make the changes now. 

When the rate of change outside of the organisation is faster than the rate of change inside the organisation, the end is in sight.  - Jack Welch 

We can't just pretend that we need to make incremental change, it's time to redesign the education system from the ground up. This makes me particularly proud to be at Hobsonville Point Secondary School as I believe we are doing this.

1) Connectivity is transforming knowledge. We live in the age of infowhelm. 
2) Students are now our clients. They have many options for learning. 
3) Adaptive technology can replace much of what teachers do. Apps can't place good teachers.
4) Our students learn differently than we do.
5) For the digital generation the world is one great big social network.
6) Mobile devices will transform learning experience. 
7) Big data is here to stay. Radical personalisation of learning is on the way. 
8) The older generation don't get teaching and learning. 

Are we preparing them for their future or our past. 

The default future will happen regardless, you have a choice as to whether you will prepare your students for it. 

Are you will willing to make the necessary changes? Are we going to victims or survivors, or more importantly are we going to let our learners be victims or survivors. 

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