To play a full part in the knowledge society requires initiative and problem-solving abilities. At the same time, empowered citizens need to be civilised in their dealings with each other. They need to show respect for people with differing opinions and actively contribute towards a pleasant society. Secondary schools and higher education institutions are, of course, the places to teach this.
Schools have an increasing number of tasks: from teaching children to cycle to serving breakfast to encouraging integration. And they do this as institutions around them crumble and offer little help. It is the duty of schools to teach children what good citizenship means, but the schools cannot do this alone. It is the responsibility of us all.
The Education Council's recommendations to the Minister are:
- ensure that society cherishes education
- strengthen the socialising function of education
- make sure schools make a contribution towards integration
Ensure that society cherishes education
Ensure that society renews its acquaintance with education. People should not just talk about what they think is wrong with education, but they should actively participate in the school. Successful business people, journalists, intellectuals, artists, politicians and governors could take the lead in this. They could become mentors, or make a contribution towards work experience activities, weekend schools, holiday programmes or excursions.
There are also other ways of encouraging social responsibility. Invest more public and private money in education. Strengthen the directing role of government. Encourage debates among teachers on the content of school subjects. Look at more than just the teaching time alone: education is also about the extended school day, the extended school week, homework clubs, weekend schools, transition years, education-related child care, educational child care, music schools and summer schools. The concept of 'extended education' should be a leading principle of policy.
Involve society in the school by encouraging external parties to sit on the participation council. This could be done by introducing a 'societal delegation' alongside the parental, pupil and staff delegations. External parties would, for example, include, the neighbourhood committee, the village council, the local business association, local help-the-aged organisations, denominational organisations and recreational organisations.
Responses
The call for a renewed social acquaintance with education was well received by the Ministry, by the education community and by the media. In debates organised by the Education Council on this subject, representatives from the business community, public administration and the cultural sector were very prepared to work hard for education. But they do not always know how. The Education Council is giving consideration to a 'societal programme', linked to every school, that ordinary citizens can get involved in.
Further reading
- The State of Affairs in Dutch Education
- Sustainable educational relations
- Vigorous supervision of education
Strengthen the socialising function of education
Encourage schools to also invest money intended for education innovation in the socialising function of the school. Earmark a portion of the innovation budget. The funding currently largely goes to the qualification function (knowledge and skills) and the selection function (allocation to a place in society). It could also be used, for example, for social work placements (intended to give young people an idea of life in business), for music lessons given by the local brass band, or for the 'network school' (where some lessons are followed outside school).
The socialising function is part of the school, but schools decide for themselves which social duties they take on board. The Education Council sees three possible variants:
- the multifunctional school offers 'services' such as recreation and childcare in addition to education;
- the 'austere school' focuses on the qualification and socialising functions;
- the network school is a hybrid form in which the school takes on the responsibilities and implements them together with other parties.
Ensure schools make better use of the social networks of young people in fulfilling their socialising responsibility. This will mean they can play a stronger role in the social education of young people. Close contacts with parents will be needed, as will more attention for the composition of groups of children. The Education Council also believes that parents should be engaged more closely with the school as partners. Parents do not just have legal rights and obligations, they also form a community. Parental groups and partnerships could prevent too many child rearing issues from ending up in the classroom. The government should provide a stimulus for this.
Finally, strengthen the cultural and pedagogical responsibilities of primary education. Give all primary schools the opportunity to develop their vision on cultural education and to work together with cultural organisations.
Responses
The response to most of these recommendation was positive. Some educational stakeholder organisations were pleased with the 'realistic message' voiced by the Education Council, that schools must make their own choices in what responsibilities they should take on. The Minister also agreed with this.
The Minister subscribed to the recommendation about making more use of the social networks of young people. She remarked that she had already taken a number of measures to encourage contact between schools and parents, and to provide a stimulus for citizenship education in schools.
The Minister accepted the recommendation on cultural education. An extended financial arrangement would give all schools the opportunity to use an earmarked budget. For schools in secondary education, the Minister proposed the possibility of a cultural profile and a quality mark. Cultural organisations would receive extra funding for educational activities.
Further reading
- Steering innovative educational practices
- Parents as partners
- Social education and social networks in education
Make sure schools make a contribution towards integration
Develop guidelines for schools that include the most important elements of our culture and history. This canon should tell the 'story of the Netherlands', not just about the original inhabitants, but also about immigrants and people from the former Dutch colonies. This will help in building a cultural identity. Task a committee to decide what material the canon should include, and use it as a guideline in education.
Furthermore, tackle the emergence of 'black' or 'white' schools by introducing dispersal measures based on learning delays. Do not maintain separate waiting lists for pupils from ethnic and non-ethnic backgrounds, as such practice is illegal. Ascertain locally what measures exactly are required.
Allow schools to further develop policy for dealing with cultural and ethnic differences between pupils. Schools need to work at creating a 'we feeling'. This can be done in three ways:
- convergence: the focus is on the future, and all pupils are treated equally without reference to their background;
- the school presents itself as a melting pot of cultures; the pupils' backgrounds come first, then their futures;
- faith or ideological convictions are the central uniting factors.
Ensure schools invest in their external relationships and engage these in sports tournaments, for instance, or partnership projects. The government should provide support through research and monitoring. Schools that give extra attention to faith or ideological convictions should be able to develop as 'profile schools' and qualify for additional subsidies.
Responses
A lively discussion on the canon ensued in the media immediately following publication of these recommendations. Leading opinion makers, politicians and historians were divided on the proposal, and the response from the education community was also diverse. The Minister and parliament, however, quickly accepted the recommendations. The canonical work has now been produced and is generally accepted.
Dispersal of pupils is a sensitive topic in the Netherlands, because parents are free to choose a school that corresponds with their own faith or ideologies. The recommendation on dispersal based on learning delays therefore received a lot of attention. Political parties were positive, Christian education organisations had their doubts, and public bodies in fact wanted more radical measures, if necessary by amending existing laws. The Minister accepted the recommendations.
Similarly, the recommendation that schools need to work at creating a 'we feeling' also drew many reactions. Largely positive responses were received from the education community. The state secretary welcomed the recommendations, but did not adopt the proposal to provide schools with a stimulus to develop a profile based on faith or ideological convictions.
Further reading