Versfelt\u2019s children would often tell him about lessons at school that were not very good. Back then, he just took the stories with a pinch of salt. That was until, some years later, his wife opted to become a teacher. Before long, she would come home with similar stories. She recounted about students who blossomed under a good teacher. As well as, stories of what students miss out on when they encounter a mediocre teacher. \u2018I was astonished by the vast differences of standards between teachers. But I was also surprised by the fact that they rarely learn from each other. Very often school leaders are absent from the classroom. I was thinking: even in a biscuit factory people work together. Then why is it that you have to figure out something so complicated as teaching all by yourself?\u2019 <\/p>\n\n
Unable to bear it any longer, Versfelt resigned as a partner at the management consulting firm McKinsey. His mission? To establish a culture of \u2018working together to make education a little better every day\u2019, at as many schools as possible. One where teachers learn from each other. One in which they apply scientifically proven approaches. And where the team gradually improves education in a goal-oriented way. \u2018I thought: my children will be fine. I\u2019ll make sure of that, like many other academically schooled parents. Yet for millions of children in the Netherlands, teachers make all the difference.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n
With the assistance of education unions, he established leerKRACHT*. A programme aimed at continuous improvement, grounded in business knowledge such as the concepts lean and scrum. The method is very simple: (1) first, set improvement goals, (2) then together design lessons to achieve them, (3) observe each other in the classroom to assess whether it works and (4) above all, ask the pupils if it works. In this respect, school coaches play an important role. They are teachers who are specially appointed by the school. <\/p>\n\n
\u2018When I initially explained my plan, the response was often: impossible. What about the ministry, curriculum planners and all these other people? I consciously left them out, since the greatest force for change lies with the teachers themselves.\u2019 Since then, as many as 1,400 schools use this approach. \u2018Over 500,000 pupils receive a better education as a result. At the same time, 30,000 teachers and school principals work together much more as a team.\u2019<\/p>\n\n
All schools pay their own costs for participation. However, in order to develop and expand the methodology, funders step in. \u2018People sometimes ask: but surely this is part of the Ministry\u2019s remit? Well of course it is. But if we do not act, then the situation will continue unchanged. In that case, I would rather be thinking: Let\u2019s work together to see how things can be done better.\u2019 This is already beginning to bear fruit. As of the 2024-2025 school year, schools can obtain financial support from the government should they choose to start leerKRACHT. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":3592,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"class_list":["post-5177","social-nederland","type-social-nederland","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n