Lindfield Learning Village principal Stephanie McConnell apologises over Black Lives Matter art

The principal of a progressive public school condemned for displaying student Black Lives Matters-inspired artwork decrying the police has apologised.

The principal of a progressive public school condemned for displaying student Black Lives Matters-inspired artwork decrying the police has apologised for any “offence” and pledged to ensure that such an incident does not happen again.

In a letter to families on Wednesday, Lindfield Learning Village principal Stephanie

A poster at Lindfield Learning Village.

McConnell said the posters — which featured messages including “Stop killer cops” and “Pigs out of the country” and were displayed in classrooms — were developed as part of a “pre-learning activity” aimed at identifying what the Year 5 and 6 students knew before launching into a study of contemporary Aboriginal history.

“As part of their critical thinking, students were asked to write down all the issues they have heard from the mainstream news, other information sources or commentary,” she said.

“The comments on the posters were not taught to students.

“On reflection the pre-learning exercise should have been handled differently. I am sorry for the offence this poster has caused people.

“We will be working with the Department to make sure something like this does not happen again.”

The $40m school on Sydney’s north shore, which was opened amid great fanfare in 2019 due to its non-conventional approach that shuns classrooms, subjects, year levels and grades in favour of student-directed project-based learning, is subject to a departmental review as a result of the controversy.

Both the NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell and Police Minister David Elliott were scathing of the posters.

The posters have been removed from the school.

“Any teacher found to be politicising a classroom will face disciplinary action,” Ms Mitchell said. “Political activism has no place in a school.”

Critics of the school have seized upon the controversy to call for an overhaul of its entire model.

NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham, who heads the Legislative Council’s education portfolio committee, said taxpayers should not be required to fund public schools that deviate from evidence-informed best practices for teaching and learning.

“We can say now that this is a failed experiment,” said Mr Latham.

“We don’t need a review, we just need to abandon the experiment.

“We don’t need ... these commune-like education experiments out of the 1960s. And we certainly don’t need posters like these ones.”

Ms McConnell said the materials had been removed from the school.

She said students at the school, which serves a predominantly advantaged, English-speaking catchment, had a positive relationship with the police.

“Students at this school are not taught to fear or distrust police,” she said.

The $40m school on Sydney’s north shore opened amid great fanfare in 2019 due to its non-conventional approach that shuns classrooms, subjects, year levels and grades in favour of student-directed project-based learning. Picture: Tim Hunter.