Research shows that appropriate education has raised expectations that have not been fulfilled. Teachers are running up against boundaries, schools are unable to make agreements with youth care providers and it has not been possible to take care from parents. On our response platform NUjij, this outlined story was supported by various teachers and parents. They call appropriate education, among other things, a disguised austerity measure.
The Appropriate Education Act in the Netherlands has been in force since 2014. The purpose of this Act is to provide pupils who need extra attention with a place within mainstream education that matches their abilities and qualities, so that they do not have to attend special education.
“Just call it a cut”
“I have been working in secondary education for eight years and experienced the introduction of suitable education as a rookie,” the reader begins J_of_the_M. The expectations for appropriate education were not high, according to the teacher.
“None of my teaching colleagues expected that the appropriate education would achieve good results and that the expectations that politicians said they would actually come true. Can’t they just admit it was a cut, wrapped in some kind of strange positive jacket “You have to make cuts sometimes, I understand. But then just call it a cut.”
Extra busy for teachers
The five-year study commissioned by the Ministry of Education showed that teachers are running up against boundaries because little has changed in daily practice, while students’ problems have become more complex.
Teacher tamara_group recognizes the pressure of appropriate education. “As a teacher, I have regularly been awake from these distressing cases. Children who have been tiptoeing for years.
Remedial teaching (special help for students with learning difficulties, ed.) For this, remedial teaching for that. You can see that the child is becoming more and more unhappy and his or her self-image drops to a low. Despite all your efforts and care. “
Also with teacher Emmel The pressure only increases, despite the good intentions at the beginning.
“When appropriate education came, we were given a number of study afternoons to prepare ourselves. We were asked what we needed: smaller classes, more support from healthcare (support staff at our school) and more knowledge.
Now, so many years later, half of the health workers are still working and classes of 32 are the rule rather than the exception. “
“Companies benefit from unfeasible requirements’
“As a former principal in primary education, I have unfortunately seen suitable education fail”, says reader K B. He mainly saw the companies profit.
“Education agencies, support companies and method suppliers have eagerly responded to the inability of well-meaning professionals to implement the unfeasible demands of appropriate education. A lot of money is spent teaching wheelbarrows.
I have never worked anywhere where Schraalhans was as kitchen master as in primary education. And appropriate education has really played a negative role in that. “
Parents are the victims of appropriate Education
Parents also have to deal with the consequences of appropriate education. According to reader Kiki_Bro it had a negative effect on her and her two children. “Appropriate education has ensured that both children, once on special education, have taken one and three years to overcome that misery.
The bureaucracy, the many rules with all the institutions, the weekly conversations at school, working overtime with and for the children and all the stress and misery that end up on your shoulders, have led to their parents’ divorce.
Sometimes children are simply not suitable for mainstream education and one should not try to keep them there. Our children both have a large ‘fun package’ with autism, ADHD and Gilles de la Tourette. I think many people can imagine how it was for them in regular education “, she concludes.
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