News feed for: Driestar Educatief - English

Internationalization, hype or duty?

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 14:10:35 +0100

"Though Christian schools may disappear, the Christian teacher can continue to exist." Colleagues, schools, teachers and students are being prepared in many ways to be able to function in Europe, or "life in the world" rather. Beside broadening of the horizon and formation of identity internationalization contributes to good qualitative education. Internationalization is enrichment for everyone. We therefore view internationalization and the activities connected to it as a means to achieve educational targets, research or contributions to society.

During an induction for our teacher training students about different internationalization routes, I asked them what would be the added value they would gain from experience abroad. ‘To meet other Christians’, was the first reply in several of the groups.

It truly is enrichment to experience that there are Christians worldwide. It shows us something of the greatness of His church and reflects something of the future. It makes us aware of the significance of Christian education and also grateful to have Christian education. In last year’s International Class there was a discussion about the value of Christian education and Christian schools.

Indra Rinaldi, a student from Indonesia, pointed out to us the significance of Christian teachers. “Though Christian schools may disappear, the Christian teacher can continue to exist.” Internationalization therefore offers us the opportunity to be examples to each other as Christian schools and Christian teachers, to support and encourage each other. Then internationalization is no longer a hype, but a Christian duty.

E.L. (Lydia) Bor

New international programme - Short Course: 'The Challenge of Improving Quality Education'

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 15:25:28 +0100

Driestar Educatief will start in November 2012 with a new short course: The Challenge of Improving Quality Education. This course, a ten day programme, will focus on curriculum development. Teachers and educators are welcome to apply.

Participants in this course will acquire knowledge and skills to improve quality education and/or teacher education. In a cross cultural setting they will develop a vision on curriculum development.

The university offers a cross-cultural learning environment in which the course-members work on their own project. Lectures will be given by experts and a personal tutor will guide the learning process.

Course date

19 November till 30 November 2012

Enrolment

Only 10 places are available! 1 MAY is our closing date for application. For more information and application visit our website.

More information

We would like to keep you up to date. If you are interested and would like to have more information about our short course, don’t hesitate to be in contact.

We look forward to welcome you in our new course!

Driestar Educatief received Erasmus University Charter

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:45:13 +0100

In December 2011 we, Driestar Educatief, received the Erasmus University Charter from the European Commission.

A new opportunity and inspiration to go abroad and meet each other and learn from each other. In February 2012 Driestar Educatief signed bilateral agreements with:
- Partium Christian University in Oradea (Romania);
- Gáspár Károli University in Nagykőrös (Hungary).
If you are searching for a partner in the Netherlands, please let us know. The Erasmus ID code of our university is: NL GOUDA03.

End of lectorate and beginning of new lectorate

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 14:06:44 +0100

The lectorate 'Education and Identity' came to an end on 31st December.

The results of the research will be published in seven printed volumes that can be ordered in the ‘webshop’ of Driestar Educatief (from 3^rd April). Two of the report volumes are in English.

Dr. Bram de Muynck has been appointed to the new position of Lector ‘Christian Teaching’. New research within different domains will be planned in the coming months. The project will be carried out by four new research fellows: Willemieke Reinoudt MA, Drs. Henk Vermeulen, Dr. Ewald Mackay en Laura de Bruin MSc. The new lectorate proposes to contribute to courses and seminars for teachers from abroad. The team will co-operate with partners from other institutions abroad.

More information about the research of the lectorate Christian Teaching will be soon available on our website!

Contact: Dr. A. (Bram) de Muynck

Second International Class at Driestar Hogeschool was once more a success!

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 09:32:33 +0100

From September to November Driestar Hogeschool, University for Teacher Education in the Netherlands again offered a minor on Christian Education at bachelor's level.

"I am very thankful that I had this opportunity; I learned a lot about Christian education and the way how to be a Christian teacher."

The problem of how to shape a Christian curriculum was discussed from a historical, a theoretical and a practical perspective. Apart from working on the regular program the international students also worked on solutions for a problem in their home-situation. Says Dr. Bram de Muynck, program leader: ‘Two students worked about how to educate in overcrowded classes in developing countries (think about 80-100 students!). Another student worked on improving a Christian community in the classroom, and a third on motivating students for learning English. Exploring those varying practical topics, with the students, fully confirmed me on the importance of worldview-reflection in education’.

Ms. Lydia Bor (international office of Driestar Hogeschool) reports that the evaluation with the students made clear that this opportunity had been a great experience for students. One student says “I learned a lot by observing. I saw much attention from teachers to their students and pupils which is an example of Christian teaching”. This year students came from Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, China, Nicaragua and Romania. The international students lived together in a Dutch village, near Gouda, but also enjoyed the contacts with their Dutch classmates who practiced their hospitality.

The participants of the International Class

Students can apply now for next year’s International Class!

Next year, from September until November 2012, there will be another International Class!
Students are welcome in this international setting in the Netherlands. Lecturers of colleges/universities of teacher training are kindly requested to inform students teachers who want to learn more about Christian education and what it means to be a Christian teacher.

Students are welcome to apply, whether or not their university has an exchange agreement with Driestar Hogeschool. For more information: www.driestar-educatief.nl , or contact the International Office of Driestar Hogeschool, Ms. E.L. (Lydia) Bor e.l.bor@driestar-educatief.nl (Driestar Hogeschool is part of Driestar Educatief).

Arjen de Korte and Johan van Wijk visit Literature Conference at Partium University

Tue, 20 Sep 2011 16:37:15 +0200

From September 14th till 17th September Arjen de Korte and Johan van Wijk attended Partium University in Oradea , Rumenia for a two-day conference on literature. The ELLE (English Language and Literatures in English) conference is held every other year and attracts participants and visitors from all over the world. Lectures are given in the fields of ethnic studies, gender studies, culture studies, postcolonial studies, British and American Literatures, Translation studies and Literary Theory and Criticism.

Both Arjen and Johan were invited to hold a 45-minute key-note speech. After an introductory speech by the rector Arjen presented his lecture called “Literature and Language Acquisition; a perfect match!” In his presentation Arjen emphasized the fact that often too little attention is paid to the strong potential reading has for language acquisition in general. He mentioned numerous examples of research that supports the need for (more) reading in class and beyond. A very lively presentation with strong interaction was the result. Not in the least because of the fact that Arjen showed several approaches to language acquisition that were novel to the majority of his listeners! After coffee time Johan presented “Chaim Potok; a life as Zwischenmens”. He compared several main characters from Potok’s novels to present day Christian students and adolescents and also to any given minority facing a domineering majority. After the session many questions were put forward as to what our right responses should be in such situations. The rest of the conference was dedicated to workshops in the respective fields.

The conference also proved an excellent opportunity to meet other guests and lecturers. An ideal situation for networking activities! In sum, we look back on an extremely worthwhile visit!

International class: an encounter between different cultures

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 14:05:25 +0200

The International Class has started once again. From this week onwards, our fourth year students form a cultural group, together with students from Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, China, Romania and Nicaragua. And that produces fascinating experiences!

The opening seminar on 30th August provided a first introduction to each other, students between themselves, the team and the school. In his first lecture, Bram de Muynck, lector of the Education and Identity lectorate, made the students think. What does Christian education actually mean? Answers such as ‘spreading the Gospel’ and ‘helping the community’ pointed to the different contexts the students come from. For our students Christian education is a matter-of-course, but for a country such as China it has a completely different dimension.

True to tradition, the opening of the year took place with all the students of the university in the St. Janskerk. Our guests were welcome too; it was a fascinating experience for them to be together with hundreds of other students. We ended our first day with an introduction game, by which the students learned to know each other in a fun way.

On the second day there was the official opening with the introduction to the different modules and further introduction to the countries through several presentations. A quiz, music, presentation: each one in his own way.

The students closed the day with intercultural training, in which cultural differences were brought forward and discussed. Some of the quotes:
“It’s is really interesting to talk with so many students from so many cultures.” “It is great to meet Christians from all over the world.”
“I am amazed by the different cultures we have, our contexts, ways of life, but I know that this class will bring us together.”

Students and lecturers look forward to continuing to speak about Christian pedagogics for the next twelve weeks.

A week of international cooperation

Tue, 31 May 2011 14:46:19 +0200

During the week of the seminar we have been working with the three South African, colleagues and the colleagues from Hungary and Slovakia on three articles.

Details of the research we have done in cooperation with the Nort West University, Campus Potchefstroom and Gàspar Karoly University will be presented in international journals. The first article will be a theoretical paper about inspiration. Our theoretical professors Hannes van der Walt and Ferdinand colleagues have been working on this article, while the other members of the team have worked on an empirical article and a comparative article. At Thursday the international team visited the port of Rotterdam with a Spido tour (thanks to our International office, Lydia Bor!)

Presentation IAPCHE proceedings Bridging the gap

Tue, 31 May 2011 14:43:12 +0200

The lectorate 'Education and Identity' has been participating in the preparations of the IAPCHE conference 'Bridging the gap', held in April 2009, Biezenmortel, The Netherlands.

During the Teacher Training Seminar (Gouda, May 11th 2011) the Proceedings of this conferences IAPCHE have been presented. The president of the editorial committee Bram de Muynck expressed his gratitude to the IAPCHE-board that they had not only facilitated the conference, but also had made it possible to make the content sustainable by a printed book in cooperation with Dordt Press. He also thanked Henk Jochemsen (the genius behind the conference!) for his efforts during and after the conference in Biezenmortel. Henk on his turn thanked the editors for their work and thanked the hosting institutions for their readiness to reserve the rest of the conference budget for the printing cost of this volume. The first copies of the book were handed over to Henk Jochemsen (former chair of the conference committee), Sarolta Nagy (former European member of the IAPCHE-board, (Dana Hanesova), IAPCHE-board member, Johan Hegeman and Pieter Vos (editors) and to Rens Rottier as a representative of the hosting institutions.

Looking back on an inspiring seminar 'Inspiration, Religion and Teacher Training'

Tue, 31 May 2011 09:30:58 +0200

On May 11th 2011 the lectorate held an international seminar on the subject of Inspiration, Religion and Teacher Training in Gouda. In this contribution I would like to give an impression of the day.

Cooperation with NWU and GK

This seminar was actually the conclusion of one of the projects of our lectorate ‘Education and Identity’. It was really a great pleasure to have all the colleagues of the research team here. The project has been completed in cooperation with colleagues from South Africa (North West University) and Hungary (Gàspàr Kàroly University). Driestar University already co-operated with and had existing contacts with these institutions. When we started the new projects in 2007, we were discussing with the colleagues in Budapest and Potchefstroom about a cooperative research project. We wanted to know by what sources student teachers in our training centres nowadays are inspired. As our three teacher training centers are based on a Christian inspiration, we are especially interested in how spiritual, biblical or more general religious sources are influencing students. How does this affect the personal spiritual and professional life? We did a lot of desktop research about concepts like inspiration, spirituality, professional identity and so on and constructed quantitative and qualitative research instruments . We have been able to meet several times, but most of the communication occurred by e-mail. And though this is not the ideal way of having dialogue, we were able to work rather successfully. Final thanks to the efforts of all the members of the team, this part of the research project has nearly come to an end. The character of this seminar was like a party in which we could celebrate the results. What have we done?

Problem of the seminar

At the beginning of the day we formulated the following problem:

1. How nowadays do religious sources function in the developing of professional attitude of students? Is it only preparing them for teaching RE or is it also shaping their spiritual life and professional attitude?

2. How could we present religious sources in teacher training in such a way that learning about religion, diversity, identity and worldview will be a sustaining process of teachers (which is important in our changing societies). Taking into account:

Different cultures, religious traditionsAge/life stage of students – and influences of different life-spheres
The possibilities of universities with respect to National standards/ International standards
The competences, attitude and spirituality of the teacher educators in our institutions.

Content of the day

After a welcoming introduction by the board of Dreistar University prof. Sarolta Nagy (Sarospatak, Hungary) led a devotional ceremony. Since our shared interest is about the inspirational function of religion, we express this day our gratitude to God. Sarolta Nagy gave a wonderful explanation of psalm 29 and added inspiring words to it. We prayed together and sang Psalm 84 in three languages. During the rest of the day we had five lectures from a series of scholars and four contributions from colleagues of the research group of Driestar Educatief.

Overview of the contributions

Lectures

Towards an integrated theory of some core-concepts of philosophy in education: education, spirituality, quality of life, well-being and happiness,social capital , social justice, morality, human rights. inspiration, spirituality (Prof. Ferdinand Potgieter – Drs. Valenkamp, Prof. Hannes Van der Walt, Prof. Charl Wolhuter).
‘What kind of sources are inspiring for future teachers? A report of quantitative and qualitative research’ (Dr. Bram de Muynck, Elsbeth Visser MSc, Evert Roeleveld MSc).
Tradition as opposing and inspiring voice. on the role of religious narratives in (trainee) teachers’ developing professionalism ( Dr. Ina ter Avest).
Intersection of Education and Theology: Challenges in University Education in Slovakia (Prof. Dana Hanesova).
Inspiration as a thought-provoking concept for future teachers (Dr. Theo van der Zee).

Lightning talks about other research projects of the lectorate.

Inspiring effect of counselling (Drs. Petronelle Baarda).
Influence of student guidance (Annemarie Van Vreeswijk MSc and Lennart Visser MSc).
The effect of reading Sources, e.g. Augustine (Drs. Jan Proos).
How to implement worldview in Developmental Directed Education (Drs. Willemieke de Jong).

Summary of the results of the empirical research

The results of an international research into the influence of sources on the professional identity of student teachers revealed that the influence of religious sources like Christian family life, Bible reading, Youth group, Praying and Church attendance have more impact on South African students than on Hungarian and South African students. Teaching practice is experienced as most influential by Dutch students. During the day reflections have been given by scholars from South Africa, Hungary, Slovakia, Belgium and the Netherlands. Depending on the cultural context (post-apartheid, post-communist, post-secularist society) every teacher training institute struggles with respect to the articulation of Christian worldview in the training. Qualitative research in the Netherlands revealed that the Teacher Trainers are having the most impact on professional identity of student teachers, when they are able to combine challenging and sometimes provoking assignments in their lessons with a very practical approach.

Some Issues discussed

During this long day a lot of ideas were shared. After the theoretical lecture held by Ferdinand Potgieter the discussion came up whether an integrative theory about inspiration, spirituality and quality of life is desirable. Although eduation is a global issue, practices are so diverse that a general theory is probably not useful. Another item discussed was whether it is possible to have spirituality as a core element of education ánd as a prerequisite of education. After the presentation of the empirical research findings, several explanation were given for the fact that students of the most religious institution (Driestar) do not experience religious sources as very important for their identity. One explanation is that students observe these sources as quite an obvious part or their life. They are probably not conscious about the influence of these sources because they have not yet been able to mirror with other situations. Dana Hanasova told us about education in a post-communist university. Ideology has changed but behavior of teachers is still according to the old patterns. Her question for help in finding a new paradigm was a challenging one. Ina ter Avests statement was that non-christian students nowadays need to hear old (Biblical) stories, because they have not yet the language for their own religious narrative and yet they have to teach at school of a Christian origin. Hans van Crombrugge reacted to this contribution with his observation that Christian teacher training is too little involved with translating the specific Christian Narrative to Education. In confrontation with Islam, he experienced this narrative to be quite unique and specific. Teacher Training centres working from Christian inspiration should work out what are the most inspiring and challenging ideas from the gospel to bring to Education.

Forthcoming publication

These are just a few issues that have been discussed during the day. A full report of the day, including the texts of the presentations will be edited during the summer period. Participants of the seminar will receive a hard copy of this book. More copies can be ordered via the webshop of Driestar Educatief from September 2011.

Conclusion

I love the metaphor of the harvest: we have been collecting the fruits of research work of the four year period. I am really grateful that so many colleagues have given their response in wonderful lectures, challenging comments, discussions and new ideas. l hope this day has been a fruitful soil for new plans and new cooperation.

Bram de Muynck