Is school a waste of time? Is learning a waste of time? While for some the answer will be the same to both questions, most will agree that they are different questions and that difference is the heart of the issue that this paper seeks to confront. Over the last few years I have noted a number of things that might be called 'dead canaries'. These are things that have signalled to me the scope of the issues that need to be confronted now and in the years ahead if we are to do our best in resourcing and re-sourcing education in a connected world.