Welcome back to the podcast! Today we’re joined by someone who is truly reshaping the way we think about learning and the future of education—Louka Parry.

Louka is an education futurist, learning strategist, and the CEO and Founder of The Learning Future. His mission? To transform educational systems so they can better equip learners with the essential human capabilities they need to thrive in the world ahead. His work has taken him around the globe, collaborating with organizations like the OECD, UNESCO, Microsoft, and Apple.

Appointed as a school principal at just 27 years old, Louka was named South Australian Inspirational Public Secondary Teacher of the Year in 2012. He holds two Master’s degrees in Instructional Leadership and Applied Linguistics, speaks five languages, and has studied at both Harvard and Stanford’s d.school. He also co-leads Karanga: The Global Alliance for Social Emotional Learning and Life Skills, connecting educators worldwide to champion the power of SEL.

In this episode, we’ll explore how Louka’s insights into education transformation intersect with music education—a subject that is inherently human-centered. We’ll discuss how music contributes to the development of essential capabilities in learners, how it aligns with social-emotional learning, and how it prepares students with the future skills they need to navigate a rapidly changing world.

So, whether you’re a music educator seeking new strategies or simply passionate about the role of the arts in shaping humanity’s future, this conversation is packed with insights and inspiration you won’t want to miss.

Let’s dive in.

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

Books & Authors

• “Lifelong Kindergarten” by Mitchel Resnick (MIT Media Lab)
• “Everything I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” by Robert Fulghum (referred to as “everything I learned about life I learned in kindergarten”)
• “The Disengaged Teen” research/book by Jenny Anderson & Rebecca Winthrop

 Websites / Organisations / References

• The Learning Future (Louka’s organisation – he is founder & CEO)
• Karanga – The Global Alliance for Social Emotional Learning and Life Skills (co-led by Louka)

Mentions of Thinkers / Influences

• Sir Ken Robinson (referenced in relation to diversity of human expression in education)
• Professor John Hattie (University of Melbourne; referenced about reducing curriculum volume for deep learning)

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

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