Learning is Earning 2026: Blockchain for education in the information economy

By Ryan Stotesbury on May 26, 2017

While looking into blockchain technology’s applications to education, I discovered the “Learning is Earning 2026” project from a collaboration between the American College Testing (ACT) Foundation, (an American non-profit organization that is most known for creating and administering the ACT test) and the Institute for the Future (a non-profit research organization dedicated to emerging trends and foresight).

The “Learning is Earning 2026” conference developed the proposal for using blockchain technology for educational purposes, creating open access to educational resources and information in a global “Ledger” containing “edublocks” (instead of bitcoins) of information that represents a public global collective of the world’s learning and earning.  This quick video [6m41s] explains the possibilities of the technology; the first 2 minutes gives an overview of the technology and their vision, and the remaining video presents anecdotal vignettes of the possibilities the technology can offer.

Blockchain technology (see this video [2m25s] for a quick overview) affords the sharing of tamper-proof data, which the ACT Foundation & IFTF forecasts will reshape the way we share and distribute research and data about the information and education we earn in our studies and careers.  Treating learning and information as a currency that any individual can earn and share (similar to bitcoin) has big implications for the future of education, as well as the increasingly information-driven economy of the future.  They predict that by sharing the knowledge and information of educational trends (namely what people study, and how much money their knowledge earns them) can help drive future innovations and trends across industries and interests.

While they have not published a formal report, the conference resulted in the creation of this interactive map of the educational economy ecosystem that traces the key trends in education:   This map is a fantastic starting point for other future trends and opportunities connected to their vision of a connected, global information economy that is centred around education and the earning potentials that are directly connected to knowledge.

The recent explosion of blockchain currencies demonstrates a demand for this technology, and while the ACT’s initiative doesn’t really have clear projections or forecasts on the actual earning potential of their venture, this technology and applying it to knowledge ‘capital’ (education/skills/learning) instead of currency ‘capital’ represents a huge potential for future education ventures, as well as the global information economy of the future.

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13 Jan Posted on Learning is Earning 2026: Blockchain for education in the information economy

From a continuing medical education perspective, blockchain technology offers a world of possibilities. The credits physicians collect are tied to their eligibility for provincial relicensure, and the technology behind how they are collected needs to align with growing definition of how and where learning occurs. Physician learning can currently be generally categorized into three areas: group learning, self-learning and assessment (eg simulation skills), but accreditation of programs is still mainly still geared toward conference-style group learning. The costs of physically bringing people together is enormous compared to the emerging technological opportunities, and physicians also loose income by having to take time out of their practice. An emerging trend in continuing medical education are concepts such as coaching and mentoring, which doesn’t really fit into any of the above categories. With blockchain, the knowledge transfer could occur as described in the video above (called quick video [6m41s]), and passing on knowledge (‘earning credits for teaching’) would also account for all of the learning that happens throughout a physician’s day. Think how much new information emergency room care providers absorb in a single shift, and how much of that they need to pass on. The wider view of course is that blockchain concept could replace university credits. A challenge I see is qualifying the hour long knowledge blocks. How do you know, in a measurable way, when you have learned something? It will be interesting to see how this fascinating technology unfolds in education, and I will definitely return to this site to find out!

13 Jan
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JoAnna Cassie @pascha21

From a continuing medical education perspective, blockchain technology offers a world of possibilities. The credits physicians collect are tied to their eligibility for provincial relicensure, and the technology behind how they are collected needs to align with growing definition of how and where learning occurs. Physician learning can currently be generally categorized into three areas: group learning, self-learning and assessment (eg simulation skills), but accreditation of programs is still mainly still geared toward conference-style group learning. The costs of physically bringing people together is enormous compared to the emerging technological opportunities, and physicians also loose income by having to take time out of their practice. An emerging trend in continuing medical education are concepts such as coaching and mentoring, which doesn’t really fit into any of the above categories. With blockchain, the knowledge transfer could occur as described in the video above (called quick video [6m41s]), and passing on knowledge (‘earning credits for teaching’) would also account for all of the learning that happens throughout a physician’s day. Think how much new information emergency room care providers absorb in a single shift, and how much of that they need to pass on. The wider view of course is that blockchain concept could replace university credits. A challenge I see is qualifying the hour long knowledge blocks. How do you know, in a measurable way, when you have learned something? It will be interesting to see how this fascinating technology unfolds in education, and I will definitely return to this site to find out!

28 May Posted on Learning is Earning 2026: Blockchain for education in the information economy

What a great way to inspire educators to get out of the classroom and learn new things and I think I finally understand the concept of blockchains after about an hour down the rabbithole following videos links. People with a built in desire to learn about things and who love passing ideas through discussion would do very well in this type of scenario. This is what makes this such a great idea for educators and EVAs. The only part I found a little disconcerting was the fact that we are all on a "ledger" that records all our learning and taking time off to play guitar by a campfire and sit on a dock might clearly show up as time "not earning edublocks". Will this look bad on my Ledger resume? :)

28 May
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Ryan Dorey @rdorey

What a great way to inspire educators to get out of the classroom and learn new things and I think I finally understand the concept of blockchains after about an hour down the rabbithole following videos links. People with a built in desire to learn about things and who love passing ideas through discussion would do very well in this type of scenario. This is what makes this such a great idea for educators and EVAs. The only part I found a little disconcerting was the fact that we are all on a "ledger" that records all our learning and taking time off to play guitar by a campfire and sit on a dock might clearly show up as time "not earning edublocks". Will this look bad on my Ledger resume? :)

28 May Posted on Learning is Earning 2026: Blockchain for education in the information economy

The "Learning is Earning 2026" is a great initiative that garners attention to the disruptive nature of blockchain technology. The project website, located at http://www.learningisearning2026.org, is designed to attract people (players) to imagine what 2026 will be like after learning the potentials of this Ledger system. There is a starter statement about positive imagination and shadow imagination which points to the benefits and potential problems of such future. Players are then asked to play the game by responding the two statements or to the various cards (responses) by other players. From each person's response, there are four prompts to further develop the imagination which any players can participate in. This collective imagination in the form of a gaming blog results in many ideas being discussed. This site is recommended to anyone, especially educators, to spark interest in this huge potential of learning and earning in the future.

28 May
0 Thumbs Up!
Jakin Lam @jakinl

The "Learning is Earning 2026" is a great initiative that garners attention to the disruptive nature of blockchain technology. The project website, located at http://www.learningisearning2026.org, is designed to attract people (players) to imagine what 2026 will be like after learning the potentials of this Ledger system. There is a starter statement about positive imagination and shadow imagination which points to the benefits and potential problems of such future. Players are then asked to play the game by responding the two statements or to the various cards (responses) by other players. From each person's response, there are four prompts to further develop the imagination which any players can participate in. This collective imagination in the form of a gaming blog results in many ideas being discussed. This site is recommended to anyone, especially educators, to spark interest in this huge potential of learning and earning in the future.

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