A current trend in educational research on innovative learning environments is to focus on student-centred learning, rather than a teacher-focused classroom. This turn to learning environments comes with theoretical and conceptual challenges concerning the dynamics of the classroom context and the interactions that take place within it. The aim of this review is to map the conceptions of teaching and learning in studies focusing on innovative learning environments and how they are applied in relation to the collected data. The review shows that several studies do not relate their empirical data to theoretical concepts in a systematic way. It is also suggested that the complexity of a learning environment requires an operationalised, conceptual comprehension in order to gain a full understanding of its conditions for teaching and learning.