Is the Learning Mosaic a new model for L&D?

I love learning. In fact, the other day someone joked that I take so many courses that I should be called a “professional learner.”  I rather like the title, because in my youth I hated school and couldn’t wait to be rid of the place. I acted most of the time like it was a prison sentence, counting down days, weeks, and years of when it would all be over. At the end of each school year, I’d breathe a sigh of relief that another year was over, and then be hit in August by the immediate dread of another year about to commence. The memory still gives me mild nausea.

It wasn’t until my early 20s, after leaving education and wanting to improve myself, that I realised it wasn’t the learning that had been a problem, but the education system. The lack of choice I had in the subjects I had to learn, the very grey prison-like environment which even included small exclusion rooms. (Now I’m starting to really wonder if it was a prison!) And lets not forget the strict reward and punishment programmes that made you feel like a lab rat rather than a human. Learning wasn’t about curiosity – it was about compliance. 

No, it’s true to say, my love of learning didn’t come from school. It came from curiosity and a deep intrinsic desire to grow and develop my skills and knowledge as I was emerging into my early career. 

Now, I would love to say at this point that the “old school” way of learning was left in the classroom – but let’s face it. It hasn’t. Still today I see organisations replicating outdated school-style learning systems through their learning and development programmes, and it baffles me that they think this model will work. We’ve replicated outdated school learning in our organisations — and then wondered why people aren’t engaged.

Instead, I want to share an approach that is truly revolutionising the future of school, and could well be the answer to creating L&D programmes that genuinely support people in fulfilling their professional and personal development goals. (It’s a tool I even use for myself!) – the Lumiar Learning Mosaic.  

The Learning Mosaic is a digital curriculum developed by Lumiar schools, which includes the Brazilian Curriculum and other pillars of education. The 600 tiles of the mosaic are topics, skills and competencies that the school wants to expose the children to by the time they’re 17. 

The curriculum is not linear or standardised, it is customised to each learner, hence the word “mosaic”.  This youtube video is an explainer from Lumiar about how their Learning Mosaic works in practice.

To get a grasp of the innovation behind the Learning Mosaic, you have to understand its origins and purpose. 

Lumiar, the school that developed the concept of the Learning Mosaic, is a progressive school founded in Brazil by Ricardo Semler and Eduardo Chaves more than 20 years ago. And was deeply inspired by the work of Brazilian educator Paulo Freire and Unesco’s 1998 Delors report which outlined the Four Pillars of education for the 21st Century; 

Learning to know – mastering learning tools rather than the acquisition of knowledge. 

Learning to do – equipping students for the types of work needed now and in the future. 

Learning to live together – peacefully resolving conflict, discovering other people and their cultures, fostering community capability, individual competence and capacity, economic resilience, and social inclusion. 

Learning to be – education contributing to personal development, mind and body, intelligence, sensitivity, aesthetic appreciation, and spirituality. 

Ricardo and other educational pioneers wondered how they could create a school from scratch that would help children learn how to be wise. And so Lumiar was created. 

At present Lumiar is recognised by Unesco, Stanford University, and Microsoft as one of the 12 most innovative education systems in the world. At present there is only one UK Lumiar school, and 11 others around the world. 

Here is Ricardo Semler speaking about Lumiar. And yes, that’s the same Ricardo Semler who began adopting self-management in his father’s manufacturing company in the 1980s. Ricardo wanted to apply his experience and insights to education, with the aim of finding a way for students to direct their own learning, while still gaining recognised qualifications.

While the Learning Mosaic is used in a school setting, there is a vast amount we can learn from this model and adapt into organisational learning. 

One organisation who has already been inspired by the Learning Mosaic model is PTHR founded by Perry Timms.

Through a visual mosaic, PTHR has created a map of all the practice fields, capabilities, skills and specialist areas of professional and interpersonal elements of how they work, what they do for clients, and the world of work. The idea of the Learning Mosaic is that the team can see the emerging learning and development landscape for working at PTHR. People add to it constantly, showing the agility and emergence of new skills or capabilities. 

At its core, the Learning Mosaic is a metaphorical representation of the collective learning within an organisation. Like a mosaic made up of diverse and unique pieces, the Learning Mosaic comprises individual experiences, insights, and skills of each member of the organisation, coming together to form a holistic, vibrant tapestry of knowledge.

From the Learning Mosaic team members can explore their own pathways and choose what they want to learn, or where they wish to develop their expertise. They can also identify existing team members who hold those skills and connect with them to gain support or mentoring.

A key aspect of the Learning Mosaic is the empowerment of individuals. People are not just passive recipients of information; they are active contributors to the learning process. They have the autonomy to seek out learning opportunities, contribute their knowledge, and apply what they’ve learned in meaningful ways.

As Perry Timms of PTHR says about the Learning Mosaic, “it is an idea ripe for adaptation for the corporate learning and development world.”

Most organisational learning still clings to linear pathways — training modules designed around hierarchies of knowledge, management ladders and one-size-fits-all assessments. The Learning Mosaic flips this on its head. It views each learner as a co-creator of their learning experience. Instead of being told what to learn and when, learners co-construct a journey aligned with their own goals, team needs, and the evolving demands of the world.

This could inspire organisations to build dynamic L&D frameworks where people can “pull” the knowledge they need, rather than be “pushed” through static programmes.

As you will well know by now, I’m a huge champion of self-managed teams and human-first cultures. In my personal opinion the Learning Mosaic fits beautifully with these principles. It mirrors the decentralised mindset: trust people to know what they need, provide them with transparent frameworks, and create space for self-direction.

 Imagine your L&D programmes being led by curiosity, purpose, and community contribution — not just compliance or career ladders.

Whether you’re inspired by the Learning Mosaic, or another dynamic learning model, the reality is, organisational learning and development is in need of as much disruption as the education system. 

It saddens me that we have created environments where learning has become a chore, rather than an experience that enlightens. 

Learning and development doesn’t need to be dry. It doesn’t need to be dictated, and it certainly doesn’t need to be as condescending as it has presently become. 

And if this call for change hasn’t made you itch to redesign L&D in your culture, here’s what the hard data indicates about self-directed learning. 

Self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985) shows that when learners experience autonomy, competence, and relatedness, they are more motivated. 

Learners given choice and control over content or learning pace exhibit higher levels of intrinsic motivation and engagement (Patall, Cooper & Robinson, 2008).

Active involvement and ownership lead to deeper cognitive processing (Chi, 2009). Learners better remember what they discover or structure themselves.

A 2017 study (Jossberger et al.) on vocational learners found that self-directed learners showed stronger long-term retention of skills compared to those taught traditionally.

I will caveat all of this with the reminder that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to ANYTHING. 

While the Learning Mosaic may be a great starting point, as always, I encourage you to explore and work with your team to discover a framework that fits the needs of your organisation and people.  We have to stop creating these L&D pathways without people. Building them in our ivory towers (or glass boxes) and then pushing them onto people. How much evidence do we need to realise – it doesn’t work! 

In one sense, the Learning Mosaic is more than a curriculum – it’s a mindset. One that sees people as capable, curious, and creative. One that understands learning is not something that happens to us, but something we actively shape.

For those of us working to build human-first workplaces, Lumiar’s approach offers a powerful reminder: if we want people to truly grow, we must give them autonomy, trust, and a learning environment that reflects the real world — not a relic of the classroom.

As someone who once felt stifled by traditional education, discovering models like this reignites my belief in what’s possible — not just for the next generation of students, but for all of us, at every stage of our lives and careers.

So, whether you’re leading a team, shaping your company’s L&D strategy, or simply trying to reignite your own spark for learning — consider this your invitation to start building your own mosaic. Tile by tile. 

What did your own experience of learning in school or work teach you about what doesn’t work?

Where in your organisation could learning be more learner-led and less top-down?

If you mapped your own “Learning Mosaic,” what skills, topics, or experiences would be on it right now?

How could you experiment with a mosaic-style learning approach in your team over the next month?