Page 61 - TWO OF A KIND • Erik Renkema

KEY VALUES OF DUTCH COOPERATION SCHOOL AND RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
1. Introduction
The Dutch educational system is characterised by its duality: a school is either
public or a non-government school. Public schools are religiously neutral, but 3 “must contribute to the development of its students by paying attention to religious,
ideological and social values as they occur in Dutch society, and by recognising
the importance of the diversity of these values” (Netherlands Primary Education
Act, Article 46). Religious backgrounds of students in all their diversity play an
active role in public education. Non-government education is founded by private
initiatives and is based upon a specific religious or philosophical orientation
(Glenn and Zoontjens 2012). Education in these schools aims at familiarising
students with the religious tradition in question. Both public and non-government
education receive equal funding from the national government.
Due to the decreasing number of students in several areas across the country, public and non-government schools are merging or considering a merger (Renkema, Mulder and Barnard 2016). These merged schools are called ‘cooperation schools’. In these schools, students from a religiously neutral (public) school and students from a school based on a religious or philosophical orientation (non-government) come together in a new school. One side effect of such mergers is an increase in diversity. However, although diversity is increased, it does not lead to a plurality of religious traditions that the various students represent. This can be explained by the rural context of these schools: almost all cooperation schools arise in areas that are relatively sparsely populated and are less likely to have a multi-religious population. What we see at cooperation schools in terms of religious diversity is that students from secular backgrounds are placed in a school alongside students from religious backgrounds, which is almost always either Protestant or Catholic. This is also the case with the teachers: teachers with a religious orientation work together with secular colleagues. This aspect is especially uncommon in the Netherlands: teachers and students at public schools are not familiar with regular activities of religious education and a school identity that is based on a specific religious tradition. And students and teachers of non-government schools have no experience with a neutral and active multiform view on the religious identity of the school. Therefore, the feature of diversity faces a challenge that is unique and important for the reflection on the Dutch educational system: how can a denominational view of school identity and religious education and a secular view work together
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