Meet the Speaker
A learning space can be beautifully designed- and still leave important learning needs unmet.
A classroom may have the right furniture, technology and layout, yet educators can still struggle with questions of participation, movement, collaboration, focus and flexibility.
The real challenge is understanding what happens when people actually begin using the space.
Who adapts to whom- the learner to the environment, or the environment to the learner?
At PULSE 2026 | Where Culture Meets Learning, Markku Lang brings a research-led perspective to this often-overlooked part of education.
Markku Lang
Finnish Learning-Environment Specialist | Doctoral Researcher | Founder, Oppimaisema
Markku works at the intersection of pedagogy, space and time, examining how learning environments can support wellbeing, inclusion and evolving approaches to teaching and learning.
He is currently completing his doctoral research at the University of Lapland, Faculty of Art and Design, exploring the spatial-temporal architecture of schooling and the transformation of everyday school practices through long-term visual and observational research.
He is also Vice-Chair of the Finnish Learning Environment Association (LEAF) and an active member of LED Nordic, connecting his work to wider Nordic learning-environment dialogue.
His Work: Making Space More Legible
One of Markku’s notable contributions is Tilalukutaito (Spatial Literacy).
Through training materials developed for the Finnish National Agency for Education, he supports educators in recognising, evaluating and using space as a pedagogical resource.
The focus is not simply on understanding a room’s layout. It is about helping educators notice what the environment enables—and where it may create limitations for everyday teaching and learning.
Markku is also developing the Spatial Competence Academy, focused on strengthening the ability of educators, designers and organisations to work confidently with space and time as active resources for learning.
From Design Intent to Everyday Reality
A drawing can show how a school is supposed to function. Observation can reveal how it actually functions.
Markku’s practice brings this distinction into focus through:
- School evaluations
- Post-occupancy studies
- Participatory design
- Competence-based co-design
- Long-term visual and observational research
Working with schools, municipalities, architects and educational organisations, he examines how environments are occupied, adapted and transformed through everyday use.
This makes his work particularly relevant when a school is planning a new environment, evaluating an existing one or adapting to new educational practices.
What Different Audiences Can Take From His Perspective
School leaders & educators
Gain a sharper way to observe how the environment supports everyday teaching, participation and learner experience.
Architects & designers
Explore the difference between intended design and lived experience, with greater attention to how spaces perform in practice.
Campus planners & education organisations
Consider how environments can remain responsive as educational needs and practices change.
Researchers & learning-environment professionals
Engage with a perspective connecting pedagogy, spatial practice, observation and time.
Why Markku at PULSE 2026?
The conversation around Where Culture Meets Learning extends beyond what happens inside a lesson.
It also asks us to consider the conditions that make learning possible.
Markku brings a valuable lens to that discussion: learning environments are not static backdrops. They are shaped by the people who use them, the practices they support and the changes that happen over time.
A Conversation to Look Forward To
For anyone shaping educational environments, Markku’s session offers an opportunity to move from looking at spaces to reading them– and from designing environments to understanding how they function in real educational life.
We are delighted to welcome Markku Lang to PULSE 2026 and look forward to the questions, insights and new ways of seeing that his work will bring to the conversation.
PULSE 2026 | Where Culture Meets Learning
5–7 October 2026 | Sheraton Grand Palace, Indore
For school leaders, educators, architects, designers, researchers, campus planners and education professionals shaping the future of learning.
Come curious. Look closer. Rethink the environment around learning.