Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper): Dirk Van der Borgt, head of GEWU, announced that educational publishers must prepare new teaching materials by September 2025 due to declining fourth grader’s math and science scores. Minister Demir supports this change.
Last week, Dirk Van der Borg, the head of GEWU, confirmed that educational publishers were asked to prepare new teaching materials for preschool and primary education by September 2025. This request came after recent research revealed a significant decline in fourth graders’ performance in math and science. In response, Minister Demir plans to update the teaching materials, aiming to eliminate fill-in-the-blank books that have faced criticism from experts.
What are the challenges in updating Flemish primary education materials?
Van der Borgt thinks the deadline for new teaching materials is too tight. He says creating tools for grades one to six usually takes three years. First, they need to finalise the new primary education standards. He feels everyone agrees on the content, but the organizations need time to update their lessons. He worries that by the time they finish, it will be summer vacation, leaving them with too little time to prepare the materials for September.
Publishers have noticed that the Flemish government and education experts don’t understand the fill-in books used in schools. In March, a group called the Quality Alliance said these books could affect education. The government wants to stop using these fill-in books and might make a rule if everyone can’t agree. Van der Borgt agrees and says they are getting ready for this change, but it depends on what teachers need. Last week, Demir met with the publishers for the first time, and they plan to meet again at the end of January to talk about changes that can happen by September 2025.
