Kazumitsu Yoshida, who left a major advertising agency, moved to the Netherlands, and started his own business, lives in Utrecht with his children, aged 10 (a fifth-grader) and 6 (in their final year of kindergarten).
　The Netherlands is now in its sixth week of the lockdown that began on Monday, March 16. Although the number of confirmed cases continues to rise, the number of patients developing severe symptoms is on a downward trend, and officials say the healthcare system is expected to remain manageable.

　On the evening of March 15, a sudden lockdown was announced, and at the same time, it was decided that schools would be closed. At that point, the school closures were scheduled to last until early April, but following Prime Minister Rutte’s press conference on March 31, the closures were extended nationwide until the end of a two-week holiday period—which coincides with Japan’s Golden Week.Then, on April 22, it was officially announced that schools would reopen on May 11. However, with the exception of daycare centers and special education schools, students will return to school in a staggered manner—such as having half the class attend one day and the other half the next.

　It is often said that in the Netherlands, there are as many educational approaches as there are people—100 people, 100 methods—and indeed, educational policies and methods vary widely from school to school. “This does not apply to all schools in the Netherlands. Please consider this strictly as an example of one particular school,” says Ms. Yoshida, whose child attends a public Jena Plan school that is rapidly gaining attention even in Japan.In Japan, the Jena Plan is strongly associated with the Netherlands, but it accounts for only about 5 percent of all schools, with only about 200 such schools nationwide. In the city of Utrecht,
there are 3 out of 35 schools that follow the Jena Plan. So
, how did the school respond to the closure caused by the spread of COVID-19?Schools closed on March 16, and remote learning reportedly began two days later, on the 18th. While starting just two days later might seem like a very smooth transition, “Other schools started remote learning the very next day, so parents were saying among themselves, ‘We’re running a bit behind,’” she explained.

　Although it’s called distance learning, it’s not the kind of program that involves real-time online classes or group assignments given to everyone at once. Just like in a traditional school, students use online tools to work on individual assignments—the difference is that they do this at home rather than at school. In addition, Zoom-based “Classroom” sessions are held about three days a week, each lasting about 30 minutes.These sessions are dedicated to updates on daily life, general feedback and explanations of assignments, and answering students’ questions. Of course, students can also ask the teacher questions individually. Sometimes, we even celebrate a friend’s birthday.

While the assignments include tasks such as programming, online learning seems to work well because students work on them independently and receive individualized advice from their teachers. The teachers act strictly as “coaches”; rather than simply lecturing the children, they work with them to discover what interests them and provide support tailored to those interests. This is the teachers’ typical role in their day-to-day work.
  　
The fact that there are almost no so-called “lecture-style classes” in their regular curriculum has led to this style of online learning. To begin with, there is no common schedule for everyone. Weekly goals are set for each student, subject by subject. And the “schedule”—which outlines how to achieve these goals—is determined by each student every week.
“While there are generally unified goals, since students from two different grade levels are learning together, some are ahead while others are behind. Although there are individual differences, unlike in Japan where everyone is expected to reach the same milestone at the same time, students progress at their own pace.”
  　
Normally, lessons proceed with students deciding for themselves each week, “I’ll work on this part of this subject at this time.” However, since switching to online learning, they reportedly started receiving a general outline of the schedule.
Nevertheless, the approach remains flexible. For example, three assignments are assigned in the morning, but some students reportedly start at 8:00 a.m. and finish everything by 9:30 a.m.   　
When asked about the typical class structure, I learned that about half of the time is devoted to project-based learning, while the other half is spent on assignments. Of the assignment-based learning, half consists of independent study, and the remaining half is classroom instruction.This breaks down to 50% project-based learning, 25% self-directed study, and 25% classroom instruction. Even during these “classroom” sessions—unlike in Japan, where teachers typically deliver one-way lectures—the time is spent answering students’ questions and reviewing the answers to the assignments they’ve completed. The Zoom “classroom” sessions mentioned earlier correspond to these regular “classes.”
  　
Since moving online, the task-based learning has been proceeding smoothly. Self-directed study is the norm in their daily routine, and the students have developed the habit of creating their own weekly schedules to work toward the goals set by their teachers.
As for project-based learning—which is of particular interest—it appears that, since the shift to remote education, they have not been engaging in it online.

　The tools we’re using include Zoom for classroom sessions, Google Classroom for assignment notifications, “Fakuta” (a collection of digital teaching materials), “Snapet” (a collection of digital drills), digital textbooks for language classes, and WhatsApp for communication between parents and the school. Of course, we also use paper-based teaching materials and books.We are making full use of these various tools to facilitate online learning. This is not just a temporary measure in response to the current situation. At school, each student has their own tablet, and these tools were reportedly already in regular use there.
Note: Subsequently, the use of Zoom was prohibited due to security concerns.

[sanappet
] https://dashboard.snappet.org/Account/LogOn?returnUrl=%2f#

[faqta]
https://faqta.nl/　

　However, school devices belong strictly to the school. Students do not take them home. Normally, they just bring their lunchboxes to school. That’s their daily routine. As a result, schools had to reconfigure the systems so students could study using their personal devices at home. This appears to have placed a significant burden on parents.Setting up the home environment took time, and parents reported receiving about 200 messages a day on WhatsApp—which functions similarly to Japan’s LINE—including exchanges among other parents. As a side note, there were reportedly no complaints among parents regarding the school’s response during this school closure; instead, most expressed gratitude, saying, “Thank you for your efforts during such a difficult time.”

　So, I asked Ms. Yoshida about her children’s daily schedule. “Since we’re Japanese, we make a point of sticking to the school schedule.”
  　
They finish their schoolwork in about an hour and a half, and after that, they read or study Dutch and Japanese on their own. To ensure they get enough exercise, they set aside time for outdoor play instead of physical education class, and from 8:30 a.m. to about 2:30 p.m., they follow a daily routine similar to that of a regular school.
  　
For example, here’s a sample daily schedule. The days of the week are listed on the left, and on the right are the subjects and tasks they work on, such as “Assignments, Language, Reading, Textbooks/Online Software, Review, and Zoom.”

　Overall, it seems like very little, but they say this is just part of their daily routine. Normally, project-based learning takes place outside of these scheduled times. For example, before the COVID-19 pandemic, when the theme was “flood control,” the students visited the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism—which oversees the canals—to conduct research.There are six themes throughout the year—including “Spring,” “Clouds,” “Global Warming,” and “The United Kingdom”—and students spend two months on each one. They work in groups to research, create projects, and give presentations.
“We don’t have P.E. or project-based learning right now, but everything else is just the same as usual. Still, it’s a shame we can’t play with our friends,” the children say.

　According to a survey conducted as of March 18, 88 percent of schools reported that they had almost fully implemented distance learning, 11 percent said they were still in the process of developing it, and 1 percent reported that they had not yet implemented it.“Of course, one characteristic of the Netherlands is that each school has its own unique approach, but at the same time, this school’s method is relatively mainstream—I don’t think there are many schools where teachers conduct online classes strictly according to the schedule,” said Mr. Yoshida.
He went on to point out that
this is also true of how lockdowns are handled in the Netherlands.
“Lockdowns in the Netherlands are called ‘intelligence lockdowns.’ Simply put, this means they rely on individual initiative. This principle applies to education as well; learning at school is also based on individual initiative on a daily basis.”

　It seems like an ideal learning environment, one that not only provides such highly personalized instruction but also fosters a mindset of self-directed learning. How is this evaluated?“The method of evaluation is the portfolio,” they say. From the time students enter school until they become adults, everything—including artwork—is accumulated in their personal portfolios. Of course, this includes their grades as well. They say that what is emphasized in those grades is the rate of growth compared to the previous year. Annual progress is visualized with line graphs for each subject.In addition to academic subjects, qualities such as “teamwork,” “proactiveness,” “leadership,” “presentation skills,” “planning ability,” “originality,” and “empathy” are also evaluated.It’s said that there are as many as 42 evaluation criteria. They do not use any standard deviation-based evaluations—such as “A score of 100 in math is amazing!”—and this differs significantly from Japanese report cards.The focus is on comparing the student to their past self, rather than to others. As a result, it is common for even elementary school students to be advanced a grade or held back a grade. Educational paths are not determined by standard scores either. Based on a wide range of evaluation criteria, the most suitable path for each child is decided through consultation.A portfolio reflects the child’s life experience up to that point. Because children are raised in this portfolio-based culture from an early age, they always have nearly all of their background, activities, and work readily available. They can use this directly for job hunting, and recently, some people have even started posting their portfolios on LinkedIn.

　In addition to the Jena Plan, the Netherlands has a variety of alternative schools, such as Montessori, Steiner, and Dalton, and it is said that each school incorporates the best aspects of these different philosophies into its curriculum.To reiterate, in the Netherlands, there are as many educational approaches as there are people—100 different ones for 100 people—and parents choose a school based on its educational philosophy. So, what was the deciding factor for Ms. Yoshida in choosing this particular school?
“I think Japanese schools tend to focus on teaching the ‘correct’ answer, but this school takes an approach that asks, ‘What’s your opinion? Why do you think that?’ I also thought it was great that another key feature is the emphasis on collaboration with others.”
  　
In the Netherlands, they view schools as “places that shape children’s futures,” he explains. “School is a place where children discover what they’ll enjoy as adults—whether that’s music, sports, or anything else. It would be a shame if they couldn’t find something they love or are good at in school. That’s why we want school to be a place where they can try various things and discover what brings them joy.“School must be the most enjoyable place for children,” said the principal.
In the Netherlands
, teachers are not “instructors” but “coaches.” Amid major societal changes, based on the premise that “teachers are the ones who know the least about society,” teachers act solely as professional coaches who help children discover for themselves what they enjoy and excel at.Furthermore, in the Netherlands, school operations are managed by a body equivalent to Japan’s Board of Education, which falls under the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; as a result, teachers are reportedly able to devote 100% of their time to working directly with students.

　So, with regard to the implementation of distance learning this time, what are the conditions like in each household? “The Netherlands allocates a generous budget to infrastructure development and has the most stable Wi-Fi in Europe.There’s also a lot of free Wi-Fi, so I don’t think there will be any network issues. The general public’s IT literacy is also high.” However, there are issues with devices, and emergency financial measures totaling 2.5 million euros were implemented to address device procurement.

　How does this compare to schools in Japan?
“If I were a kid, I’d definitely have more fun here,” he says with a laugh. “It’s very free. Since there are so many collaborative projects, it feels just like adults working on a project. The idea that you have to do what’s been prescribed—as is the case in Japan—simply doesn’t exist here.”
  　
In Japan, project-based learning and foundational academic skills are sometimes discussed as if they were mutually exclusive.
“Japanese students definitely have higher foundational academic skills. At first, that bothered me a bit, but it always comes back to the question: ‘What’s the point of doing that?’ Compared to Japanese companies, I feel the Netherlands is always full of new challenges and momentum. There are so many vibrant companies and startups.Above all, working here is fun. School is a microcosm of society. If you set your goals for adulthood based on the kind of life and lifestyle you have now, I think Dutch schools are a great choice. That’s why I don’t think I’d be able to join a Japanese company after growing up here.”
He also feels that, compared to other countries, the Dutch government has demonstrated strong leadership in its response to the COVID-19
pandemic.“Leadership is important, and I feel the difference is becoming apparent between people who have learned from a young age how to exercise it and those who haven’t.”
It seems that both schools and society here value autonomy and place great importance on thoroughly exploring what one wants to do and what one should do.

　Distance learning in the Netherlands is based on self-directed study using a variety of teaching materials—both digital and analog—and utilizes online platforms as spaces for coaching. No special systems or infrastructure were established specifically for this occasion.While this might seem feasible at first glance, the very habit of self-directed learning that makes it possible is the result of a long-standing tradition that cannot be built overnight.
The discussion on Dutch education offered valuable insights not only into the approach to distance learning but also toward building a system for Learning of Tomorrow for the post-COVID era.