Netherlands/ 8.3 Arts and cultural education  

8.3.5 Basic out-of-school arts and cultural education

Community schools [brede scholen] are a fairly recent phenomenon in the Netherlands; they form a coherent network of accessible provisions for children, youth and families in a neighbourhood, with the school as the focal point. Community schools work together with all kinds of organisations, and direct themselves to developing chances for children under 12 years old. The municipalities are responsible for community schools in primary education (direction, progress, evaluation, income), while the organisations involved take care of the programmes and concrete activities. Minister of Culture Ronald Plasterk has made it a policy issue to encourage cultural institutions (libraries, theatrical groups, museums, music schools) and community schools to work together; to this end, he proposes, together with the state secretaries for Health, Welfare & Sport and for Education, Culture & Science, to invest in sports and culture at these schools. This policy issue is part of the 10 point cultural participation plan Minister Plasterk introduced in his policy memorandum Art for Life's Sake [Kunst van leven, 2007] and can be seen in the context of linking culture lessons at school with extracurricular art education and the amateur arts (for other points in the 10 point cultural participation plan, see  chapter 4.2.4,  chapter 4.2.7,  chapter 8.2.2 and  chapter 8.4.1).

Cultural citizens through reading and media awareness

Minister Plasterk announced, in his policy memorandum Art for Life's Sake [Kunst van leven, 2007], 2 other points: carrying out a reading promotion programme to promote competence in reading literary texts and setting up a media awareness network organisation. Public libraries will play an important role in the reading promotion programme. The National Expert Centre for Media Wisdom will be established in 2008, with the aim of equipping children, youth, their parents and teachers with skills in media images and messages. Media awareness involves developing the skills, know-how, and attitude to cope effectively with the media from three different perspectives: functional (a prerequisite for participation and personal development), inspirational (discovering new opportunities), and critical (looking critically at the media, for instance to make young girls and women less vulnerable to sexual violence via internet sites, music broadcasting stations like MTV and other television programmes, see also  chapter 4.2.10). Initially, the Centre will have a budget of 500 000 euros; in 2009 and 2010, this will be raised to 1 million euros per year; the centre will have separate box offices in public libraries. The reading promotion programme and the media awareness centre are both part of the 10 point cultural participation plan Minister Plasterk introduced in his policy memorandum Art for Life's Sake [Kunst van leven, 2007] (for other points in the 10 point cultural participation plan, see  chapter 4.2.4,  chapter 4.2.7,  chapter 8.2.2 and  chapter 8.4.1).

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