English ability is the entrance, not the way of learning itself
Taking classes in English requires the ability to read, listen, write and speak. But even when two students can read the same English passage, the depth of their learning differs according to whether they can find the key claim, check the evidence and compare it with another explanation.
In preparing for university abroad, it helps to practise not only solving English problems but also what you think about using English.
What UvA's teaching vision tells us
UvA's Vision on Teaching and Learning explains that UvA's education is research-intensive and built around academic growth. Its goal is for students to acquire the skills and knowledge they need to thrive in an increasingly complex world, and it assumes motivated and ambitious students.
Another official page says UvA is committed to an active and stimulating form of education, that teaching takes place where science, research and society meet, and that it is a place where diverse people, experiences and ideas come together.
What can be read from this is that learning with an awareness of connections to research and society, not only receiving knowledge, is positioned as part of university education. However, this is the university's own description of its policy, and actual classes are not necessarily the same across every faculty and course.
When it is up to you to ask for help
VU Amsterdam explains that many classes in Dutch higher education are interactive and that active learning is emphasised. It also says that students are expected to study quite independently, and that teachers assume things are going well if you do not tell them about a problem. When you need help, the expectation is that you ask for it yourself.
At some schools a teacher may notice and approach you, so it is worth starting early to practise telling people yourself. The ability to put what you do not understand into the form of a question is useful in lessons and with assignments.
That said, this is one university's description. It cannot be said that every class at every Dutch university is run in the same way.
Why Petra Tutors thinks from Amsterdam
Petra Tutors' core team is based in Amsterdam. That fact alone, however, does not let us speak for UvA or for Dutch universities as a whole.
So Petra Tutors separates a university's official policy from Petra Tutors' own educational interpretation. Where we describe a specific classroom experience, we deal only with what was actually experienced. We see being on the ground not as a source of authority, but as a position from which to keep observing a different educational environment and think about how it can be translated for families in Japan.
Five skills to practise at secondary school
The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) guidance, which brings together research on learning, also recommends explicitly teaching planning, monitoring and reflection. Such methods are said to be easier to acquire when practised in connection with subject content.
| Skill | Example of practice |
|---|---|
| Forming questions | Instead of stopping at "I don't understand", put into one sentence what you do understand and what you do not |
| Finding evidence | Check not only the answer but the textbook, source, data or quotation that supports it |
| Comparing | Instead of stopping at one explanation, set out the similarities and differences between two ways of thinking |
| Explaining | Explain why you think so, in an order the other person can follow |
| Planning | Working back from the deadline, separate the stages of reading, researching, writing and revising |
Changing how you do homework a little
You can practise without any special materials.
- For an English reading passage, after checking the answers, explain where in the text the evidence was
- In history, give at least two causes of one event and write which is more important and why
- In maths, explain in words your way of thinking along the way, not just the answer
- In writing, before submitting, check once that your claim and evidence are connected
Habits like these also help keep exam preparation and university preparation from becoming completely separate things.
What a tutor can and cannot do
A tutor can help by organising your questions, putting your thinking into words, giving feedback and building a plan together. Writing assignments or producing answers on the student's behalf, however, is not learning.
The more you consider university abroad, the more important it becomes to practise thinking for yourself while keeping to academic integrity. UvA also has regulations governing fraud and plagiarism, which apply to all students.
Summary
In preparing for university abroad, the ability to form your own questions, look for evidence, explain and plan matters as well as an English score. UvA says it values research-intensive learning and academic growth and aims at an active and stimulating form of education.
At Petra Tutors, we do not treat these ideas as right because they come from the Netherlands. We translate them into actions that secondary students in Japan can practise now.
References
- University of Amsterdam | Vision on Teaching and Learning (policy)
- University of Amsterdam | Vision on teaching and learning (about the university)
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam | High-quality education
- University of Amsterdam | Regulations Governing Fraud and Plagiarism for UvA students
- Education Endowment Foundation | Metacognition and Self-Regulated Learning
