Pathways, the Toastmasters education program, is designed to help members build public speaking, communication, and leadership skills. Members access educational materials digitally through Base Camp, the online system where Pathways lives.

Toastmasters is dedicated to continually improving the Pathways learning experience. Our teams have thoroughly reviewed member feedback and are applying that feedback to create an improved experience. As we create plans for system updates and new materials, they will be posted here, along with any planned Base Camp outages.

The goal of this page is to share what is being worked on and ensure you can plan your personal education or trainings around enhancements and outages on Base Camp. Below, you will find current or future Pathways updates.

Upcoming

2024 - Base Camp Outage

As previously announced (see below) a new Base Camp user experience is coming in 2024 to support members in a smooth and seamless experience accessing Pathways education content.

To ensure a smooth transition to the new system, there are a few important things for you to know. There will be a period of time when Base Camp is unavailable while we upgrade to the new system. During this time, no member education achievements can be submitted on Base Camp or in Club Central. This will ensure that member education progress is transferred correctly to the new system. This page will be updated with the specific timeframe a few weeks before the outage.

Members

• Base Camp Completions and Approvals
  • If you are a member of more than one club, make sure you submit your levels or paths for completion with the club that you wish to receive the Distinguished Club Program credit.
  • If you've completed any projects that are not showing as complete on Base Camp, mark them complete.
  • If you've completed any levels or paths that have not been submitted on Base Camp, submit them for approval now and ensure your Vice President Education knows they're ready to be approved.
  • If you have any pending approvals on Base Camp, talk with your Vice President Education and ensure that they approve them as soon as possible and submit them in Club Central.
• Club Central Submissions
  • Confirm that all level and path completions you've achieved are recorded in Club Central by checking your Education Awards in the Achievement Board section of My Home.
  • If you've completed a level or path that is not showing in your Education Awards, talk with your Vice President Education and ensure they submit them in Club Central.
• If a project, level, or path completion is recorded only outside of Base Camp and Club Central, Toastmasters International is not aware of the completion. This means it won't be transferred into the new LMS and the completion will be lost.

Club Officers

In preparation for this Base Camp outage, club officers must ensure that all education achievements submitted by members are verified and approved on both Base Camp and Club Central. If a level or path has been marked complete on Base Camp but has not been submitted in Club Central at the time of the LMS data transition, the item will not be marked complete in the new Base Camp. If a level or path is submitted on Club Central but has not been marked complete on Base Camp, the item will be marked complete in the new Base Camp.

To ensure that member credit is reflected accurately in the new Base Camp and clubs receive correct DCP credit, take the following steps now:

• Check Base Camp for any pending approvals. If the member completed requirements for the level or path, approve the completion on Base Camp and additionally submit to Club Central now. If the member belongs to more than one club, you must confirm which club they would like to receive DCP credit for the completion.
• Review your records and confirm that all level and path completions have been approved on Base Camp and submitted in Club Central.
  • Sometimes, club officers will record a level completion in one of these places and forget to ensure it is tracked in the other. After the transition to the new LMS, you will only need to do this in one place—on Base Camp! In the meantime, it's important to ensure all member completions are in both Base Camp and Club Central for a successful transition.
• If your club has done any tracking outside of Base Camp (on platforms such as EasySpeak), make sure that members complete all projects on Base Camp and that level and path completions are recorded on Base Camp and Club Central.
  • If a project, level, or path completion is recorded only outside of Base Camp and Club Central, Toastmasters International is not aware of the completion. This means it won't be transferred into the new LMS, and the completion will be lost.
• Between now and the Base Camp outage early next year, review and approve level and path completions as soon as they are submitted by members.

2024 - New Base Camp User Experience

In 2024, Toastmasters will launch a new learning management system (LMS), the online portal where members access and engage with Pathways content. Since Pathways first launched , members have shared that while the educational content is exemplary, the online platform where content is accessed presents many challenges and frustrations. To best address member concerns and feedback, Toastmasters is migrating Base Camp to a new LMS provider. The new LMS platform will improve your experience and include enhancements:

• You will have an easier time navigating the system, launching your path, and working through projects.
• You will be able to access Pathways on your mobile phone, with a mobile app to follow in the future.
• When your completed path is approved, it will automatically be submitted for recognition in Club Central.
• Pathways will be accessible to members who are Visually Impaired.
• You will be able to share your accomplishments across social media platforms, including LinkedIn.
• The World Headquarters team will be able to provide you with updates to content more frequently.

Overall, projects in the new LMS will have an updated look and navigational feel and will include minor content updates to stay up to date.

The new LMS will launch with six paths:

• Dynamic Leadership
• Engaging Humor
• Motivational Strategies
• Presentation Mastery
• Persuasive Influence
• Visionary Communication

If a member has already purchased one of these paths, they will automatically get the updated Level 1 content when the platform transitions to the new LMS.

Any member already working in a different path before the launch of the new LMS will still be able to access their educational content, complete projects, and submit for level and path completions directly from the new LMS. Project content and navigational functionality simply won't be updated like the rest of Pathways. Instead, when members in these paths login to the new LMS and access their path, the projects will have the same look and feel we're familiar with from our current system.

Following the launch of the new LMS, there will also be a completely new learning experience offering, called explorations, to give you more flexibility in what and how you learn. These explorations will each consist of a small collection of projects that provide targeted focus on a specific topic. Look for more information about explorations after the launch of the new LMS!

The new LMS will launch with paths available in six languages:

• English
• Spanish
• French
• Simplified Chinese
• German
• Arabic

Any member that purchases a path in a different language before the launch of the new LMS will still be able to access educational content, complete projects, and receive credit for path and level completions, the content simply won't look like updated Pathways content. Members working in these languages will use an English path to track progress. However, PDFs of all projects in their path will be available for download from the resources page on Base Camp. This aligns with the process that those working in languages supported through the District Translation Program are already using today. Reference guides will be provided to support members in accessing projects and marking their levels and paths completed.

World Headquarters will work closely with the District Translation Program for new content to be translated and available in other languages. If you would like to work with your District and World Headquarters on a volunteer basis to translate Pathways or other Toastmasters items into a language that is currently unavailable, please contact districttranslations@toastmasters.org for more information.

The Board of Directors decided which paths and languages to offer in Pathways with the new LMS launch after analyzing member feedback and engagement levels with current path and language offerings. Adjusting the number of paths offered also lays a foundation for more comprehensive content changes that are coming to the education program in the future.

You can also visit the Education Program FAQ page.