Learning spaces and environments

Innovative Learning Environments (ILEs), celebrated by some for the ‘transformational’ educational opportunities they may provide, raise questions whether the anticipated pedagogical value of these ‘non-traditional’ spaces is based on idealised visions of teaching and learning rather than sound evidence. Before such complex issues can be efficiently addressed, evidence of the actual ‘state of play’ of ILEs is required. This report provides results of a survey disseminated to over 6000 school principals in Australia and New Zealand (NZ). Participants were invited to provide their perceptions of (1) the types of learning spaces in their schools; (2) the types of teaching approaches observed in those spaces; (3) the degree to which teachers in those spaces utilised progressive ‘mind frames’; and (4) the degree to which students engaged in ‘deep’ as opposed to ‘surface’ learning in those spaces.