Presented primarily in the context of graduate education in design, this paper argues that apprentice-master pedagogical models of learning and the development of exclusively tacit knowledge are inadequate resources for preparing the next generation of high level design practitioners or teachers. Today's design context requires more than formal aesthetic or technical skills--it requires the ability to operate critically in an ever-growing information environment, the global economy and within inter- and multi-disciplinary teams. While all three of the just mentioned facets are important, this paper focuses on the information environment through discussion of design literacy, discourse and communities of practice. (Contains 2 tables.)