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Mastering the basics

Original title: De basis meester

Language and arithmetic/mathematics are basic skills, but it can no longer be taken for granted that school pupils and students have a good mastery of them. This publication describes current thinking in the educational field about devoting more attention to basic skills in primary and secondary education. It is based on a qualitative study of the views and opinions of primary and secondary school teachers, school heads, school boards, supervisors, parents and local authorities. All parties in the study believe that basic skills are important, and there is certainly support for the policy. However, numerous problems mean that the national policy objectives are interpreted and put into practice in different ways.

The study was an initiative of the Netherlands Institute for Social Research/SCP and was not carried out on a contract basis.