Career Development in The Netherlands

Mieke Bakkenes, Ministry of Economic Affairs

Annemarie Oomen, National Center for School Improvement and

Frans Meijers, Meijers Onderzoek Advies

Introduction

Developments in the Netherlands undermine the traditional division between public policies in education, labour market and economic policies. This is a logic consequence of concepts such as Life Long Learning and Employability. After all in these concepts learning life and working life are logical steps that are inter-linked in the individuals career. It often occurs that the individual combines education or training with work.

Erosion of the boundaries between policy in education, labour market and economic policies also has its impact on the way that careers development is perceived and is being organised.

The consequence of new concepts, in which learning is a process that continues after initial education, leads to an increased focus for careers development in several Departments, like the Dutch Ministries of Welfare and Economic Affairs e.g.. The policies they formulate for the realisation of the objectives they aspire, are derived from their respective responsibilities and visions. This is also applicable to the Dutch Ministry of Education.

A notable development is the emerging involvement of the Ministry of Economic Affairs with the functioning of the labour market, especially where the mismatch between demand and supply is concerned.

To all parties however careers development, under which name whatever, is an important instrument of policy going beyond the several Departments. In this document we highlight two perspectives. Paragraph 1 of this document looks upon careers development in The Netherlands from an educational perspective. A more economic perspective is the subject of paragraph 2.

1. Career development from an educational perspective: ”Leave the thinking to us.”

1.1.Democracy for over 300 years.

The Netherlands is a democracy for over 300 years, ruled by consensus between the two major religions (protestant and catholic) and the non-religious part (traders). These latter three have become the 'pillars' of Dutch society and are influential in every sphere, from political parties and labour unions to libraries, hospitals, schools and leisure organisations. Even nowadays this sense of coalition making is very pronounced: 'polder-model'. National policy has always been based upon broad consensus, shared by a majority of the political parties and related to interest groups.

1.2.Freedom of educationIn the constitution it is stated that, "all persons, or groups of persons, shall be free to provide education" and "private schools, that satisfy the conditions laid down by Act of Parliament, shall be financed from public funds, according to the same standards as public-authority schools."

The implication of this is that basically any group can establish a school without financial constraints. It also ensures that, while schools are free to develop their own curriculum, the government is still entitled to set standards in such areas as teacher qualification and salaries, core subjects, teacher/student ratios, construction of school building. The final examinations of secondary schools give a striking example: the government (nation-wide) provides half of the tests, and the other half is left to the discretion of the school.

There is consensus on one core curriculum in all secondary schools. But this doesn’t imply that there is, or will be, the same curriculum for all students, as the goals are defined in such a way that every single school can have different emphasis or adaptations of their own. It is not surprising that unlike most of our neighbouring countries in Europe, the Netherlands have never decided on a uniform comprehensive secondary education. The autonomy of the school has always been well established, in hand with restrictions ad rules based on political negotiations.

1.3.Professed decentralization.

This last decade, national government and policy shifted from regulation into deregulation, from centralization to decentralization, from funding supply to funding demand. National government limits itself to policy development and stating broader guidelines, while implementation of policy is left to i.c. the schools. Instead of following regulations, schools are enabled to look for support in their implementation process, while the choice of support agencies is not restricted by national guidelines.

This shift also applies to the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sciences. (Note: The Ministry has several, rather autonomous operating sub departments. At least four different ones are involved here. Also the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has a say in this field due to the (pre-) vocational agricultural education)

Their intentions: less regulations, more possibilities for (secondary) schools to make their own policy responding to major national educational reforms, supported by a system of lump sum financing. All the resources for training, staff development, school support and career guidance services that formally went to national, regional and local bodies, gradually went directly to schools in these last decade. Schools nowadays have the means to 'buy' the support they think necessary, wherever they like.

Recently however, complaints of schools that there are still too many rules, met with support from officials, some while leaving the educational field. Retiring professor Mok: "the Ministry considers the field as their enemy, mistrust them." The Inspector general of National Education Inspectorate, Mr. Mertens states: "The Ministry of Education is too powerful. There is an overkill of governmental regulations so that schools behave controlling en apathetic. Schools should be better off if they could decide themselves on the implementation of the national educational reforms. Actually the Ministry says: It’s okay: Leave the thinking to us."

That's why the National Educational Council advises the Minister to go on deregulate "as schools know insufficiently to use their increasing freedom." and the Ministry itself promotes a public competition for further deregulation in 2001.

1.4.Initial structure for career services

The fact that in the Netherlands vocational education, training and qualification is largely education based -as of 1999, some 75% of all 19 year olds are in fulltime education - explains why career guidance is traditionally concentrated, located in and closely connected to the educational system.

Up until the late sixties, guidance services are uniquely provided by fully subsidised independent agencies. By the late sixties, there are career teachers in every secondary school to start with, without any policy or legal base. Their task is to inform students in their final year in the transition to further education. Later on, the career teacher also gets involved for lower grades students, who have to leave school earlier, as they don’t fit in the tracks the schools provide.

Only in the start of the nineties, the career teacher becomes a legal position as it is coincidentally taken into the law. Career teachers nowadays, still have none, one or two years training, There is no standard on that. Research on the main frame of reference of the career teacher is not known, but undoubtedly will largely be the trait-and-factor concept.

With the entrance of the career teacher, guidance services to schools continued and are paramountly subsidised. The services of these agencies are concentrated on the last years of primary and secondary schools in order to facilitate the selection of pupils to secondary and post-secondary education. In 1993, connected with the deregulation shift, the field of career guidance services is completely reorganised. The main motive for this discontinuation is to economize. Another reason is to enlarge the influence of the schools – the primary responsible now- on the guidance services provided.

Between 1996 en 2000 gradually the careers services are supposed to earn their own money in the free market. Only a few survived. In some cases schools have been considering employing career service staff in the career teacher role, because they are cheaper.

1.5.Legislation of career development in education

In a learning society, individuals are expected to create their own career trajectories from and between education, training, employment, unemployment and non-employment. In order to do so, individuals must be in a position to make informed choices with regard to their education, training and employment. For this reason, the Ministry of Education considers" careers education and guidance of utmost importance" in 1991. Legislation is announced in secondary education and senior secondary vocational education, alongside through the national educational reforms upfront.

Alongside the shift to ‘professed’ decentralization, three major and nation-wide educational reforms are established in secondary education in 1993, 1998, 2000 and in senior secondary vocational education in 1995. These reforms support the central educational policy aim to create a structure that allows all individuals to obtain a basic qualification; the move in Dutch society from knowledge-based to skills-based education with active and autonomous learning. However, the reforms do not undermine the traditional tracking system with the 3 different types of secondary education that each provide different opportunities for further education.

The long-term impact of educational policies is difficult to access in the Netherlands as the OECD finds in 1990: "policy tend to change before they are fully implemented." Contemporary examples will follow.

With these reforms, careers education and guidance becomes mandatory in education. The career education and guidance guidelines in the new national reforms, are no regulations for the school as a whole, but requires every subject teacher to make a contribution. Every school has primary responsibility for the quality of the education they provide and must determine its own policy, including that of careers education and guidance.

In 1993 the educational reforms starts with Basic education for the 12-14 year olds. One of the objectives of this reform is to postpone too early educational and vocational choices.

In 1999 the National Educational Inspectorate reports that this particular objective isn't realised. On the whole the quality of education is improved due to Basic education, but the school organisation and the didactic qualities of the teachers aren’t yet up to the demands. The Ministry of Education responds to this by announcing that the National Educational Council will be consulted on the development of a renewed curriculum that will be initiated in 2004. Until then several measurements shall take away actual bottlenecks. E.g. subject teachers are no longer obliged to contribute to career education and guidance, which is one of the six general educational objective: 'learning to reflect on the future'. The Ministry states "The procedures to put students in the right track (determination) are well established, so the contribution of the subject teacher is no longer necessary." And the idea of a basic qualification for everyone is dropped.

In 1998 the educational reforms pertaining the pre-university training and senior general secondary education (4 or 3 years following basic education) are 3 months old (!) when the Secretary of State for Education decides for some temporary provisions as teachers, school leaders and students complain about the overloaded programmes. One of the temporary provisions is the possibly not to oblige subject teachers to contribute to career education and guidance as part of the exams portfolio.

In 2000 the educational reforms made a start in pre-vocational and junior general secondary education (both lasting 2 years after basic education). This educational reform is considered the most complex. One of the six general educational objectives for all subjects will be 'orientation on learning, vocational area and work.' Furthermore schools may provide future students up to 20% of the curriculum time for practical and vocational orientating programs (PSO) in Basic education.

In senior secondary vocational education, since 1995, by law the Dutch version of the community colleges in the UK and the USA, the ROC´s, are expected "to provide career information and support, among other things by regular consulting students on progression of the training, within or outside the training." Currently the law is under evaluation. In contrast to the schools in secondary education, the community colleges are on output financing.

1.6.External support for schools to realize career education and guidanceNowadays most schools have contracts with the careers services, but will spend less money than before, because they expect to generate the same quality by themselves. Schools state in 1995 "We will continue to utilise the careers services for the testing of pupils for selection and determination purposes."

Earlier research in 1994 finds that the main frame of reference of career advisers in the career services is the trait-and-factor perspective. That many of them take up their psychometric role again in the chaotic period between 1993 and 2000 can be understood. Still little is notable in other approaches where their knowledge is applied to the school context. The professional standards of the career advisers give little hope that schools can expect support from the careers services in realising career education and guidance through education. Their standards in 2000 emphasise knowledge of career processes, psychometrics, vocations, education, training possibilities and skills to make insights to others.

There are also other organizations that support schools in providing careers education and guidance. Many small career services are established those last years, as a result of the extensive reorganisations and mergers in the career services. Some of them make their entrance to the schools now. The Dutch Association of Career Teachers, recently turned into a real union, provides training as how to co-ordinate tutors. The National Center for School Improvement traditionally support nation-wide the two-years-preparation of every educational reform, including career education and guidance. Is also supports schools in realising policy and staff development on a not for profit base. It runs nation-wide projects for the government in co-operation with schools and the National Center for Curriculum development, like the development of PSO.

1.7.Another structureThe Education Inspectorate -which in our country is void of power compared to e.g. the UK and Germany- point out in their reports that no policies regarding career education and guidance exists in most secondary schools between 1992 and 2000. In 1994 the Education Inspectorate find that schools and subject teachers haven’t made a start yet with career education and guidance in the subjects as schools seem to be giving priority to the innovation of the subject content rather then the identification of the goals of career education and guidance.

The reports of the Education Inspectorate on the lack of careers education policy in the schools, urges the Ministry of Education to launch a plan of action. Between 1996 en 2000 the National Center for Career Issues managed the overall plan. Many activities are undertaken, many products are made, barely anything found its way to the schools. The final research results show " little acceptance for the introduced concept for careers education and guidance. More possibilities should be found in the curriculum to connect careers education and guidance to it. Tasks for the tutor and subject teacher should be more clearly defined. And finally more incentives and communication are needed with the subject teachers by the school leader and career teachers."