Ghent (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Around 1,000 students at former Lyceum Gent start the school year using the Dalton method, guided by director Bob Podevin and principal Ann Blomme, focusing on independence, responsibility, and modern skills.
As VRT News reported, around 1,000 students from the former Lyceum Ghent are starting the school year with a major change in how they will be taught. From September 1, 2025, the entire school will follow the Dalton method. Students are encouraged to take control of their learning.
They are completing assignments individually, yet teachers can assist if required. The approach also allows for cooperative work, discussion, and learning from each other. Officials stated that for the students, this is not just an academic year. It is a chance to learn in a completely new way and develop skills they will need for life.
“We’re making this shift very consciously,”
says Bob Podevin, director of the GO education umbrella organisation in Ghent.
“We strongly believe this approach is relevant to modern societal challenges. One of our main goals is to improve our students’ problem-solving skills, which is still too often a problem. We want to give them the tools to take matters into their own hands and see them through to success.”
How Are 1,000 Lyceum Gent Students Adapting to the Dalton Method?
History teacher Machteld Laureyns said the change is a challenge.
“At Dalton, I step back from teaching from the front of the class,” she said. “I guide students, but I also give them freedom to work on assignments themselves. This allows stronger students to challenge themselves. At the same time, we can help students who need extra support to take charge of their work.”
Laureyns added that the goal is to make students independent, responsible, and motivated in their learning.
“We’re definitely moving away from the traditional lesson schedule a bit,”
agrees principal Ann Blomme.
“The week starts on Monday with a landing moment and a group discussion. Weekends can often be intense for teenagers, so it’s important to take the time to transition to the week. This includes a weekly schedule. Students will plan their own assignments for the week.”
“Not all students work at the same pace all the time, so it is up to them to finish their own work,”
says history teacher Machteld Laureyns.
“I think it is a good way to prepare them for further studies. Even with guidance, they still have to process the assignments themselves. It encourages independence, responsibility, and self-confidence.”
Officials mentioned that the method is designed to help students take charge of their learning. It also allows them to develop important skills for life, not just for school, and helps create a classroom environment where students can work together, learn from each other, and grow at their own pace.
“We are very motivated, but of course everyone does it in his or her own way and at his or her own pace, and fortunately there is room for that too.”
teacher Machteld Laurens
The Dalton approach is not just aimed at students planning to go to college. School director Blomme says it also prepares them for the job market.
“The learning outcomes are the same for all schools, but we want to go further. Education is organised in an outdated way, and students themselves are asking for new approaches,”
she says.
The system allows students to organise their own work, while personal coaches meet with each student individually to talk about their current situation in terms of school and their well-being. Not all students and not all teachers were enthusiastic about the change right away.
Teachers have been updating their skills over the past years to adjust to the Dalton method.
“We cannot implement everything at once,”
Blomme explains.
“We are already using the new schedule in all areas, and the rest will develop over time.”
Teachers like Laureyns see the change as positive.
“It is nice to try something new. It adds variety to our work. I am curious to see how it develops,”
she concludes.
“We understand that, and we’re resolutely choosing something new. We’re doing this very consciously, based on extensive scientific research,”
says Podevin.
“We’ve tested the concept in recent years on our smaller Portus campus. Now it’s being rolled out across both campuses.”
The Dalton method was developed in the United States in the early 20th century by teacher Helen Parkhurst and has since spread internationally as an innovative approach to education. It is based on 5 key principles: freedom within limits, responsibility, collaboration, individualised learning, and structured guidance from teachers.
The method aims to shift classrooms from teacher-led instruction to student-centred learning, allowing students to manage their own assignments while developing critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and personal accountability.
In recent years, schools across Europe, including in Belgium, have increasingly adopted Dalton education to modernise teaching practices, respond to students’ evolving needs, and better prepare them for higher education and the workforce.
