Darlene Quayle: European Schools Research and Explorations

Unlike other schools that were recommended to me by the ministries of education—often the highest achieving schools—the school I visited in Oss, Netherlands, tests at the average level in statewide testing. They were very welcoming and accommodating to us, and we appreciated the invitation to visit their school.

The Netherlands has three different systems that students go into after 6th grade: Vocational track (4 years), HAVO (college/trade prep, 5 years) and VWO (university prep, 6 years). Maasland College is one of three “colleges” (secondary schools) that serves students in the HAVO and VWO strands. It also boasts a strong bilingual education program: a full seventy percent of the classes in the bilingual program are taught in English. Maasland also has an IB program strand for upper school students in English in both HAVO and VWO; since it is not an international school, they are not allowed to run IB in all subject areas. At the end of their education, students must take exams: both their Netherland curriculum exams, some of which are spread out throughout the year, and the English IB exam. Most students pass the Netherlands exams; those who don’t are given the option to stay for an additional exam-prep year with courses specifically geared for helping students with the skills they need to pass the exams.

Looking at the curriculum, the textbooks that the students use are very specific and regular in format: there is an introduction either that they read or that is read or played off a CD or DVD for them, the student answers questions (the amount of expected time and whether it is a pairs or individual activity is specified in the text, although the teachers agree that they can choose to present it differently) and then shares the answers as a class. Most assignments are not turned in, so many students just write short notes in their notebooks for studying later for the exams. In viewing the classes, I found that some teachers were good about engaging the students in discussion and in supplementing their curriculum with interesting supplementary activities: videos, conversation topics, activities, assignments. Some also adjusted the curriculum to fit the skill level of the class (I saw this in PE). In other classes, especially with older students, some wrote the assignments and notes diligently and neatly in their notebooks while others just visited with their friends, ignoring the teacher completely.

The biggest challenge for teachers of the 6th, or final year, is that there are no grades (marks) and the students don’t see that their effort in class has any bearing on any potential university reference from the school or on their tests scores. Many of them see little value for their class-time activities, and without consequences beyond their 3-times-a-year test scores, there are students in each class who make teaching these classes a challenge.

In talking with the administrator, he said that around 7 years ago, the schools went from a very traditional system to one where there was more emphasis on letting the student have control of their education. Most teachers weren’t trained in this method and instead just had it thrown at them, and students were suddenly just expected to take control of their education, something they weren’t prepared for, either. As a result, there have been a lot of challenges in the classroom. They are now making an effort to bring the pendulum back and return a certain amount of the control to the teachers, and to train younger students to have the tools necessary for making solid positive choices in their education.

Discipline aside, the level of science standards was similar for comparable age groups in my district. Their second language learning was quite competent at age 16-17, and the reading level of their text materials was similar or slightly more challenging. There were a few different computer labs available for use by classes, but little or no technology in the classrooms beyond a TV and a DVD player. Unlike most other European classrooms I have visited to date, the teachers generally have their own rooms for teaching spaces, but still travel to other classrooms for some classes. Their school day is long and teachers feel pressured to fill it as much as possible to be able to get through the required curriculum. The day starts at 8:20 am and goes until well after 4:00 most days; they also have shorter time between classes—most classes are scheduled to start immediately after the previous, but students are given a few minutes’ time to get there from their previous class.

I was glad to have visited this school. So often I am sent to the highest achieving schools, the “poster” schools for the country, and I enjoyed being able to get a picture of a smaller city’s school, one that wasn’t hand-picked by the ministry of education. The train from Amsterdam was a long one twice a day to get there and back, but the opportunity was worth it.