Brussels (The Brussels Morning Newspaper): De Bloeiende Kerselaar adopted a four-day school week, overcoming initial challenges and achieving positive results. Similarly, Sint-Jans-Molenbeek schools adjusted their schedule for personalized learning and improved teaching methods.
De Bloeiende Kerselaar, a nursery and primary school in Watermael-Boitsfort, has started its second school year with a four-day school week. This new idea has received mixed reactions, especially at the beginning. The director, Kristel Derdelinckx, said that switching to a four-day week was tough, especially for the younger kids. In the first year of this schedule, first-grade teachers and parents were worried because first graders usually learn a new word every day, and it was hard to keep that up with one less school day each week.
How are Brussels schools adapting to four-day weeks and personalized schedules?
Despite the initial challenges, De Bloeiende Kerselaar saw positive results by the end of the school year. Director Derdelinckx noted that students effectively learned the required material, even with the shorter schedule. Teachers adapted their methods to ensure they covered the essential curriculum, proving that students could still achieve their learning goals. It has been said that this experience highlights the importance of flexibility in teaching, showing that with the right adjustments, a four-day school week can still provide quality education without compromising standards.
Martine Van Lier, the director of five primary schools in Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, has pointed out a big change in the school schedule this year. Two of the schools are starting their school year during the fourth and fifth weeks of lessons instead of following the usual start of the academic calendar. This change is meant to better match the curriculum with specific learning goals and give students a more personalized learning experience. It shows an effort to improve the school’s teaching methods and include new strategies.
This change requires a lot of adjustments from the teachers, who need to update their lesson plans and teaching methods to fit the new schedule. Even though this shift brings challenges, Martine Van Lier is optimistic about the new approach. She thinks that the updated schedule will help students by providing a more organized and focused learning environment, which will support their academic growth and engagement throughout the year. Van Lier thinks there are many good things about this. She says, “We’ve kept some people who wanted to leave and brought in new staff. Fewer people are taking leave, so we don’t need to find replacements.”
