{"id":128541,"date":"2021-07-02T16:16:35","date_gmt":"2021-07-02T14:16:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=128541"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:25:42","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:25:42","slug":"education-ministers-plans-for-september-rely-on-lecturers-ability-to-quickly-shift-gears","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2021\/07\/02\/education-ministers-plans-for-september-rely-on-lecturers-ability-to-quickly-shift-gears\/","title":{"rendered":"Education Minister\u2019s plans for September rely on lecturers\u2019 ability to quickly shift gears"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Thursday morning, the outgoing Minister of Education, Culture and Science Ingrid van Engelshoven (D66) dropped by Campus Woudestein. EM spoke with her about education arrangements after the summer. Students are hoping on a return to \u2018offline\u2019 education. And some lecturers are less than thrilled with the idea of having to work out two different scenarios for the upcoming academic year.<\/p>\n

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Minister Ingrid van Engelshoven<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAysha Gasanova<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

For a long time, it wasn\u2019t clear how education would be organised from September on. Last week, a letter sent by Minister Van Engelshoven<\/a>\u00a0sent to the sector shed some light on this matter. Although this has failed to satisfy some: the institutions are still required to prepare two different scenarios. In a nutshell: one scenario where students and staff need to maintain the 1.5-m rule, and one where they don\u2019t. Because there\u2019s still a risk of new outbreaks. On 13 August \u2013 only a few days before Eurekaweek \u2013 the minister will be announcing which scenario will be adopted.<\/p>\n

A student at Erasmus University is currently campaigning to get all education activities offline by 1 September. What\u2019s the chance of this happening, in your view?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not a fortune teller. What we\u2019ve said to the higher education sector is: prepare for a scenario in which the social distancing rule is dropped from mid-August on. But we\u2019ve also said: also take a scenario into account where this has proven impossible. Right now, you can see a surge in Delta variant cases across Europe, and we don\u2019t know how it will be landing in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing that\u2019s particularly important \u2013 which is also what I\u2019d like to say to this student \u2013 is that everyone, including students, should have themselves tested after going on holiday. And if the results come back positive: report to your Municipal Health Service (GGD), quarantine yourself, stick to these measures. Exercising due caution as we enter the holiday period is the only way to ensure that our preferred scenario \u2013 the one without social distancing \u2013 may possibly go ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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