FvD school strives for ‘a wake-free learning environment’ – also in Amsterdam
If it is up to Forum for Democracy, the party will open a handful of primary schools after the summer. Amsterdam is also in the picture for ‘a awake-free learning environment’.
Mathematics, learning the other subjects, the other subjects ‘from a curious reading, less soaked in the latest awake insights’. For example, Ralf Dekker outlines the educational concept of the schools that Forum for Democracy wants to set up – if possible, also in Amsterdam.
The 65-year-old Dekker – a resident of Amsterdam, former top executive of Rabobank and a member of the Provincial Council in North Holland since 2019 – is chairman of the scientific bureau of Forum for Democracy (FvD), the Renaissance Institute† With a separate foundation, that institute has laid the foundation for what should culminate in an educational branch with ‘Renaissance schools’. That is based on the grassroots, draws from an existing existence among some 60,000 party members. “There were 9,000 positive reactions. That is quite a lot.”
Teachers and parents
In the meantime, the planning is a further, a special website follow and become courses and parents. It should lead to the first Forum schools seeing the light of day in a handful of places after the summer holidays. In the first proceedings, consideration is given to places where the party scores well, such as Almere. Dekker: “There is a lot of interest there. You can also think of Amsterdam, where, given the size of the population, you can quickly fill a school. And places like Rotterdam and Schiedam.”
They should be private schools, not run by the government. That makes the establishment a lot. The Education Inspectorate, which has to check whether all legal requirements are met, only comes into play when the schools have started.
parental contribution
Of the more than 6,500 primary schools in the Netherlands, only 78 are private. Those schools also have a number of students, albeit in recent years. A problem is often financing. It requires a substantial parental contribution. According to the organization Private Education Netherlands is between 13,800 euros and 19,000 per year. Former banker Dekker believes that it can be done for much less: 200 to 300 euros per month.
“We aim for small-scale schools, with fifteen players in the first fifteen, whereby the contribution is supplemented with donations. You have to think of parents who are also teachers. And sympathizers who make existing space available. We are really not going to use large buildings that you have to meet all kinds of strong fire safety requirements.”
Dekker thinks that the national teacher shortage has no harm. “During the first inventory, almost ten documents were reported that would be delighted if they no longer had to work in regular education. We are now in contact with about twenty teachers.”
Black Pete is welcome
When asked about the individual differences with public education, Dekker, the corona rules and mouth caps. “To the extent legally permitted, we will start with that as freely as possible.” Furthermore, the classic Zwarte Piet is welcome on December 5, there is no room for iPads and mobile phones in the classroom: “Just old-fashioned notebooks.” Dekker also thinks of the influences of Montessori education and the free schools when ‘acquainting yourself with nature in a way that is less permeated by the latest vigil insights.’ “And we’re not going to offer multigender stories to eight-year-olds in sex education.”
The wilkker that nature is based on only stories being allowed to drive more.’ “We strive for a climate.”
Dekker finds it a pity, but inevitable that the schools are ending up in party political waters. Yet that is not the intention, he swears. “I come from a socialist background and I can imagine that there are old-fashioned PvdA members who want to have their children educated at the Renaissance schools.”