International transition classes are overflowing
Since the war in Ukraine, pressure on international bridging classes has increased sharply nationwide. In combination with the teacher shortage and unstable funding, major problems arise.
image: Rob Niemantsverdriet
The international bridging class (ISK) of the Wolfert van Borselen school group is one of the few ISKs in the Netherlands to offer a wide range of subjects: Dutch, English, mathematics, geography, history, biology, drawing, drama and sports. Every student starts with this, even if they cannot yet speak Dutch. “After four months we are already using the books from regular education,” says ISK team leader Ronald van Veen. “In the second year, the subjects are supplemented with economics, physics and chemistry.”
The school now offers space for 162 ISK students. It is a relatively small ISK compared to others, also because this school group only accepts students who can progress to VMBO-T, HAVO or VWO. That makes the school unique and also popular in the Rotterdam region. Nowadays, more than a quarter of students come from Ukraine. “Normally we have room for new students for almost the entire school year, but now we have been almost full since August.”
Nowadays I no longer have a separate reception class to teach students
Admitting students from other ISKs in the interim because they appear to have a higher score than VMBO is no longer possible, says Van Veen. He sees pros and cons. “A full class is nice for the educational program. You will then not be bothered by students who join in the meantime and need additional training. But nowadays I no longer have a separate reception class to teach students. We had to sacrifice that because there were so many registrations since last summer. That's a shame, because that separate reception class was also useful for students who learn Dutch slowly. The consequence is that they continue to lag behind the pace. These students do not have the language level to keep up with education.”
That Dutch language level is a problem in this new situation. Ukrainian students assume that they will be able to return in the short term, which is why they invest little in the Dutch language. Van Veen: “You notice from some of the Ukrainian students that Dutch is of secondary importance. But they will not be able to move on after two years of ISK. There are older students who, in addition to ISK, also follow secondary education in Ukraine online. For example, if they have completed a year of ISK, they can go to higher vocational education or university at an international school. The Netherlands also offers that possibility.”
Ukrainian students often live in reception centers with only Ukrainians
Many Ukrainian students still have one foot in their home country, Van Veen sees. “The majority live with their mother, their father is at the front in Ukraine. That's special. They have a lot of contact with the home front and go to Ukraine during school holidays to visit family. In my eyes they are refugees, but they are still very different. An Afghan, for example, cannot return to his home country.” Another factor is that Ukrainian students often live in reception locations with exclusively Ukrainians. The only thing they hear at home is their own language, says Van Veen. “That is not a problem for temporary shelter, but now… In Vlaardingen, a Ukrainian village has even been built from prefab houses. That is not conducive to integration. And this was not done for the Syrians or people from the former Yugoslavia. They actually focused on integration.”
Ronald van Veen is ISK team leader at the Wolfert van Borselen School Community in Rotterdam. “Normally we have room for new students for almost the entire school year, but now we have been almost full since August.”
Van Veen talks about last school year, when a class was formed with exclusively Ukrainian top students aged sixteen to seventeen. “They formed an island within the ISK. They were very close together. As teachers, we felt like outsiders in that group. Some of them took their final exams online in Ukraine and did not do their best to learn Dutch. Their main goal was to get the diploma. Our main goal is to teach them Dutch. That's where the problem lies. In other classes, half are Ukrainian and half are from other countries. They mix well.”
Under-investing in the Dutch language now more often leads to repeat grades, says Van Veen. “Seven students started their first year again this year, even though they had already completed a year of primary education. This happens often, but now there are a lot of them. Mainly Ukrainian students. At the end of this school year, I expect that about thirty students will have to follow a third year of ISK to bring their Dutch up to standard.”
I foresee personnel problems
And then there is the staff shortage. “We are still just managing to find teachers. In the future we will have four new classrooms, which are currently being built. Then we move towards two hundred students. But I do foresee personnel problems. We cannot find anyone extra for a subject like mathematics. Two extra classes means twenty hours of Dutch. We prefer to have a second-degree qualified Dutch teacher, not an NT2 teacher. But I think we have little choice.”
Rural image
The pressure on ISKs, waiting lists and the struggle with Ukrainian students regarding the Dutch language is a national picture, confirms Hariëtte Boerboom, consultant at Lowan, an organization that supports education for newcomers. She speaks of a doubling of the number of students at the ISKs in a year and a half. “From January 2023, we suddenly saw endless waiting lists and even student stops, and we really didn't experience that in our education. Before the summer holidays, there were more than three thousand students on waiting lists at ISKs. It is very difficult for the schools. If you look at the teacher shortage, for example, you have a huge problem.” According to Boerboom, this is due to the increasing arrival of refugees from COA centers and emergency reception centers of the municipalities, not only Ukrainian refugees. “Refugees from Syria, for example, and the increased number of unaccompanied minor asylum seekers are also to blame for this.”
Due to the waiting lists, students cannot start on time
Boerboom mentions the financing of ISK education as another stumbling block. “The two biggest problems are: the waiting lists mean that students cannot start on time, and the less time, the less funding. In addition, some students keep places occupied because they are not ready to move on in two years.” The so-called Newcomer Reimbursement for Secondary Education starts on the date of arrival in the Netherlands and then lasts for two years. This is independent of the actual teaching period. For a student who can only go to school after six months, for example because the waiting lists are long, the school will only receive newcomer funding for a year and a half. “This has been going on for some time and has still not been resolved,” says Boerboom.
Moving away
The dilemma is also that refugees stay in emergency shelter for a few months and then have to move again to another region. That repeats itself. “If students are placed elsewhere, they have to go to an ISK in a new region. This also affects financing. In addition, unaccompanied minor refugees are sometimes put together in hundreds. That puts a lot of pressure on the ISKs.”
Students should be able to move on in their lives
Boerboom also hears from other schools that Ukrainian students find it more difficult to integrate. “But you also see changes. More and more Ukrainian parents and students are focusing on Dutch education. They realize that they will definitely have to stay in the Netherlands longer. Another part is still very involved in their home country, and they will have to be made clear in conversations that Dutch education is important for their child. Because students should be able to move on in their lives.”
