Dag 1 4 Feb 2008: Introductie

The first day of the international class; what to expect? I was really curious about the other students: how is their English, will I be able to understand them?
Off course I was also very anxious to meet the people I had contact with through e-mail, such as Mrs. van der Leer-Veth and Mrs. Verloop.

The question ‘What do you expect from this class?’ was the main question this day. I think it’s very useful to think about this. When it comes to me, I want to ask myself some extra questions: ‘What do I expect from myself? What do I want to learn while I’m here? What do I want to discover and visit?’
I’m going to give an answer to each question underneath.

• What do you expect from this class?
I would really like to get 6 things out of this class: get to know my mother’s country better, develop my English and Dutch, work on my social skills, discover new ways of working with pupils, develop my personality and independence and become a better teacher.
I think I could achieve all these things. When I look at the reader and at the programme, I think I have got enough opportunities to discover new ways of working with pupils (during placements); I have to speak English to my fellow-students and lectors; etc.
• What do I expect from myself?
Before I left for Rotterdam, I was living at home for two years again. Being used to people around me, food on the table at fixed hours (not prepared by me!) and being able to just call someone at any time and meet; it was very hard for me to take the leap of living ‘op kamers’ again (I also lived in Ghent for 2 years). I expect I can cope with the distance (although it’s just a one hour drive away) and with the loneliness. At the moment I’m typing this, I’m having great difficulties with this. I couldn’t imagine how much I would miss my family and boyfriend, I even miss my annoying and loud little brother! I hope I can deal with it better once I’m settled.
I also expect to become a person with a broadened mind. Rotterdam has so many different cultures living under one ‘roof’; I think this is a big plus for a city when all those cultures can live together in harmony.
To broaden my mind, I also can’t wait to visit the museums of Rotterdam such as Boijmans van Beuningen and the Photo Museum. I think art is very important to broaden your view onto the world. It gives you the opportunity to experience the world through different views and through discussion.
I also expect to become a better teacher and a better person in overall. The different visits to different schools should do something for the first and this entire experience must have its effects on my personality.
• What do I want to learn while I’m here?
I would love to learn about the Dutch culture. Although the border is just 20 minutes away from my front door, I really feel that the people in the Netherlands are rather different than Belgians. Off course I have the ‘privilege’ to have a mother from Zeeuws-Vlaanderen (Koewacht) who has 2 brothers who live near Breda; so I already know a bit about the Dutchmen but this isn’t enough to know what the Dutch culture and identity is about.
I’d also like to learn about the different methods used in schools. In Belgium we don’t really get this opportunity, which is a pity. I feel that the ‘normal’ school system can benefit from ‘werkvormen’ in e.g. Montessori schools. I want to discover new ‘werkvormen’ which can help me to help my pupils and to entertain them.
• What do I want to discover and visit?
As I already said, I would like to visit a lot of museums because of the implements art has on me and my personal development.
I would like to visit Amsterdam to get to know the capital of this country and especially to pay a visit to the house of Anne Frank. Every single summer I read her diary and now I want to see with my own two eyes where she lived while she was writing in her diary.
I would like to discover special places, things I won’t ever forget, funny shops and interesting museums I didn’t know off.

Today I already learned that some Dutch people only think about solutions when problems occur, they don’t think ahead. If I could play chess, I think this would be an advantage for me. Now, it’s really annoying me.
Thank God there are also a lot of Dutchmen who are really helpful. It was the first time I had to take the tram and the man from the RET helped me very good and explained everything to me. I was thinking by myself: “Well, he should. I just paid € 2,40 for a drive to school!” That’s something else I discovered: while I thought the public transport in Belgium was expensive, it seems it’s quite cheap compared with the fares which are used over here. I have to figure something out to save money on transport. A bike is a great solution but I haven’t found a good place to park it in my neighbourhood. I will visit a RET-office tomorrow to get some information.