Michael is a Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative. He leads the Initiative’s work on education. He is a cognitive psychologist with a background in literacy research, educational assessment and psychometrics.
Prior to his time at the Initiative, he was the Associate Dean (Academic) of the Faculty of Education at Victoria University of Wellington. Between 2005 and 2011, he worked at the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA), where he developed a new, more reliable, marking system for NCEA examinations. In 2024, Michael chaired a Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG) for Education Minister Erica Stanford. The MAG advised on the development of a knowledge-rich curriculum for English and mathematics. Following that work, Michael is currently a member of the Curriculum Coherence group, which advises on the development of knowledge-rich curricula across all school subjects. Michael is also a member of a technical advisory group to NZQA on assessment for NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship.
In his time at The New Zealand Initiative, Michael has published reports on Modern Learning Environments, systems reform in education, teacher education, the use of AI in education, and pathways for industry training and apprenticeships.
Phone: 044990790
The name ‘Einstein’ is synonymous with intelligence. More than 70 years after the physicist’s death, if someone is called an Einstein, everyone knows they are incredibly smart. Read more
In 2013, Scottish teacher Tom Bennett realised that his training had not well prepared him for the classroom. He had not even been taught basic classroom management skills. Read more
In this episode, Michael talks to Oliver Hartwich about his new satirical novella The Martian Audit, in which two alien auditors arrive in New Zealand to assess it for invasion, only to find themselves defeated not by weapons but by the country's regulation and bureaucracy. There are no villains, just a country full of friendly people trapped in systems that don't work, from leaky homes and hospital waiting rooms to view shafts you can't legally stop to admire. Read more
In this episode, Michael and James talk with Sarah McLaughlin from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. They discuss attacks on free speech internationally, with governments from Washington to Beijing using deportation powers, financial leverage, and anti-terror laws to silence critics. Read more
Is it better to be a policy analyst or a plumber? In the minds of many New Zealanders, university degrees carry greater status than industry qualifications. Read more
Each year, more than a quarter of New Zealand’s school leavers enrol at university. But around one in five new university students leave within their first year of study, without completing a degree. Read more
Dr Michael Johnston talked to Heather du Plessis-Allan on Newstalk ZB about the Initiative's report calling for vocational and industry-led subjects to be part of the new post-NCEA qualification from 2029, directing more students towards apprenticeships and the trades rather than defaulting to university. Dr Johnston said schools will need to partner with tertiary institutions and employers to deliver these subjects, and suggested that trade skills may prove more durable than many white-collar professions as AI reshapes the workforce. Read more
A heavy diesel mechanic earns roughly the same as a policy analyst, qualifies in the same time and graduates with little or no debt. Yet most New Zealanders still regard university as superior to industry training and our school qualifications system has quietly reinforced that bias for decades. Read more
Newstalk ZB's news bulletin reported on the Initiative's report questioning why New Zealand still treats university as the gold standard when a tradie can earn as much as a policy analyst. Dr Michael Johnston said industry-led subjects must be designed with schools and students in mind, not just the industry, and that schools will need additional resources to teach them well. Read more
Wellington (Tuesday, 28 April 2026) - A heavy diesel mechanic earns roughly the same as a policy analyst, qualifies in the same time and graduates with little or no debt. Yet most New Zealanders still regard university as superior to industry training and our school qualifications system has quietly reinforced that bias for decades. Read more
New Zealand’s university leaders seem restless. In recent months, Massey, Victoria, Canterbury and Auckland Universities have all advertised for new Vice Chancellors (VCs). Read more
In this episode, Michael speaks with Professor Elizabeth Rata about the history of New Zealand's school system. The conversation challenges the contemporary narrative of 19th-century schools as authoritarian and oppressive. Read more
In 2007, then Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced a ‘digital education revolution.’ His government allocated A$2.4 billion (A$3.9 billion in today’s money) to the project. A large chunk of that went to providing a laptop to every senior secondary student. Read more
In this episode, Michael talks to Lynda Knight, principal of Glenview School in Porirua, about how understanding the neuroscience of stress and trauma transformed her school's approach to dysregulated behaviour. They discuss why a felt sense of safety, strong relational connections and teacher self-regulation are essential foundations for learning, and what schools and policymakers can do to better support children experiencing stress and trauma. Read more
In this episode, Michael speaks with Oliver Hartwich about his new research note "Who Runs the Country?", examining the friction between New Zealand's elected government and its permanent public service. They explore how the appointment of chief executives can undermine ministerial control, and why Germany's model of political appointments with institutional safeguards offers a promising alternative. Read more