EDUCATION IN THE NETHERLANDS:

ITS HISTORY AND PRESENT CONDITION.

BY

C. H. PLUGGÉ,

TRANSLATOR OF THE BUREAU OF EDUCATION.

EDUCATION IN THE NETHERLANDS.*

GENERAL REMARKS.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands, (commonly called Holland,) since the independence of Belgium in 1830 is divided into eleven provinces, namely: North Brabant, Gelderland, North and South Holland, Zealand, Utrecht, Friesland, Overijssel, Groningen, Drenthe, and Limburg. It has an area of 20,527 square miles and a population of 3,809,527.

The Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, which is connected with the kingdom, though possessed of a separate administration, has an area of 1,592 square miles and 197,528 inhabitants.

The capital of the Netherlands, The Hague, has 100,254 inhabitants. The commercial centres are Amsterdam, with a population of 289,982, and Rotterdam, with a population of 132,054. In 1785 Amsterdam had a population of 935,000 souls.

The colonial possessions of the Netherlands embrace an area of 666,756 square miles and a population of 24,386,991.

The kingdom derives a considerable revenue from its colonies, arising from the sale of colonial produce, chiefly coffee and tin.

The leading occupations of the Hollanders, who are universally known as a thrifty people, are farming, dairy work, the fisheries, manufacturing, and commerce.

Religious liberty, liberty of conscience, and complete social equality are granted by the constitution to the members of all religious sects. The royal family and the majority of the inhabitants belong to the Reformed Church; but the Roman Catholics are about equal in number.

HISTORICAL SKETCH OF EDUCATION.

The original inhabitants of the country now included in the Netherlands and Belgium, the Belgæ, the Batavi, and the Frisii, figure in the conquests of the Roman armies under Julius Cæsar and in the spread of Christianity under Anglo-Saxon bishops and monks. Christianity was introduced by Bishop Willibrord, who landed on the coast of the Netherlands about A. D. 690.

The earliest school of which there is any record was that of St. Martin at Utrecht, which tradition reports to have been founded by Charles

*This summary has been compiled from the following publications: Buddingh's Geschiedenis van opvoeding en onderwijs in de Nederlanden: 's Gravenhage, 1842; Annales Academici: Lugduni-Batavorum, 1840-1872; Verslag van den staat der hooge-, middelbare en lagere scholen in het Koningrijk der Nederlanden, over 1848-1876.

Martel, King of the Franks, (690-741,) and at which his son Pepin received his education. This school was suppressed during the invasion of the Normaus, but it was afterward reëstablished and attended by many pupils from the neighboring countries. Bruno, son of Emperor Henry the Fowler, who afterward became the famous archbishop of Cologne and archduke of Lothringen, was educated at the same school. In the twelfth century Utrecht possessed five flourishing schools, which were under the control of the clergy. There were, besides, several good schools in connection with the convents of Aduwert, Nijmwegen, Middleburg, Zealand, and Egmond. In addition to these schools, we find several public schools, which were established in the twelfth century by the more wealthy communities. The latter schools were styled "School en Schrijfambacht," "Schoolen en kostern," (school and writing office; schools and clerks' houses.) The " schoolmijsters" (schoolmasters) were looked upon as professional men. They formed distinct guilds and fraternities, and were highly respected by their fellow citizens. The public schools were divided into "groote en bijschoolen," (higher and lower schools.) Latin was taught only in the higher schools, which had generally the largest number of pupils. One of them, the school of Zwolle, numbered 1,000 pupils from the Netherlands and Germany. The Brethren of the Common Life, whose first school was founded by Gerhard the Great, of Deventer, (1340-1384,) did much for the promotion of education in different European countries. According to Schwarz, the number of schools under the control of this order was, in 1430, 45 and in 1460, 135.

During the fifteenth century we find in the Netherlands many famous scholars, among whom Wessel, Agricola, Hegius, and Erasmus have a world wide reputation.

In 1575 the University of Leyden was founded, which may be called the bulwark of Protestant doctrine in the Netherlands. Other universities were successively established, at Franeker in 1585, at Groningen in 1614, at Utrecht in 1638, and at Harderwijk in 1648. The universities of Franeker and Harderwijk were closed in 1811.

During the eighteenth century there was a remarkable decline in the zeal for education. Cuvrier, in 1811, reported very unfavorably upon the condition of the Dutch schools. Under the French government established in Holland by Napoleon I, some reforms were introduced, which were afterward further developed by King William I. Since that time the higher schools in the Netherlands have regained their former reputation to such an extent that the system of education in Holland has attracted the attention of many foreign educators. A prominent feature of the Dutch school laws is the outspoken opposi tion to the principle of denominational schools. The first school law was passed April 3, 1806. This law prescribed that the inspection of schools should be intrusted to inspectors, who were to constitute in each province a permanent school board. In larger communes there

were to be, in addition to these, local school boards. No school was to be established without the special permission of the provincial or communal government. The course of instruction embraced reading, writing, arithmetic, Dutch, French, or other modern languages, geography and history. Schools were to be entirely independent of ecclesiastical influence. The school books were to be subjected to a strict inspection of the school boards. Nobody was allowed to teach without passing the prescribed examinations.

When, on the establishment of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, a new constitution was framed, a decree, dated March 6, 1815, ordained that the school law of 1806 should be taken as the basis for further regulations concerning public instruction. Shortly afterward, however, a vehement opposition arose in the southern provinces (the present Kingdom of Belgium) among the Roman Catholics, against the prohibition of religious teaching in the schools. They energetically objected to the interference of the state in educational matters. Their dissatisfaction grew from year to year, and finally gave rise to the revolution in 1830, which was followed by a permanent separation of Belgium from Holland.

In the northern provinces, too, voices were heard in favor of liberty of instruction. By a royal decree of January 2, 1842, the influence of the ecclesiastical element attained an important ascendency. Thenceforth the religious persuasion of the teachers who applied for a place was to be taken into account. The clergy of the various denominations were allowed to examine and to approve the school books before they could be introduced into the schools. Religious instruction made no part of the regular course of study, but the school rooms were to be placed at the disposal of the clergy, before or after the regular school hours, for religious instruction.

The results of the operation of the law of 1806 and the decree of 1842 were mentioned as satisfactory by several foreign educators who wrote. reports on the condition of education in the Netherlands. Nevertheless the opinion prevailed among leading educationists that education ought to be more universal; that the teachers ought to be better trained and their salaries increased. The first important step toward reform was the adoption of the educational provision in the new constitution of 1848, which is still in force. Article 194 of the constitution is thus worded:

Public instruction shall be an object of incessant care on the part of the government. Public instruction shall be regulated by law, with due deference to all religious creeds.

The legal authorities shall provide for sufficient public elementary instruction throughout the kingdom.

Instruction is free, and it is to be under the supervision of the secular authorities, whose functions shall be regulated by law.

A report on the state of higher, middle class, and elementary instruction shall be submitted to the States-General (parliament) every year by the Crown.