The end of modern learning environments?

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has said he doesn’t believe modern learning environments introduced under the last National government have worked.

In an interview with AM, Luxon said that the government is increasingly coming to view modern learning environments (MLE) as a failed initiative.  

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“I hear from parents, teachers that it’s difficult in large teaching environments. Kids get lost in the system somehow. As we design new classrooms for the future and retrofit old ones [MLE] is something we’ll look at closely as I don’t think there’s enough evidence” 

Last week, Education Minister Erica Stanford and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon revealed a set of six education targets, details of which will be revealed over the coming weeks. 

Stanford said that the targets were part of a “fundamental change in education”. At the press conference, Stanford indicated one of those fundamental changes included looking at guidelines around MLE.  

“Some schools do it very well with doors they can close off. Others with very, very open plan – what we call barnyard classrooms – there doesn’t seem to be any evidence that that works.”