Together we grow stronger. On this news page we share the latest updates, inspiring ideas and innovative solutions to make your journey even better. From new courses to real-life examples: discover everything you need here.
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The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport is launching an action agenda to make it easier for young people with an eating disorder to share their stories and ask for help. The action agenda aims to prevent young people from coming into contact with so-called pro-ana websites and coaches.
Little seems to have changed in recent years in the approach to perpetrators of sexual violence against children. This is evident from the Perpetrator Monitor on sexual violence against children 2015–2019.
Interventions against obesity generally have a small effect. That is the conclusion of Annita Kobes, who will defend her PhD on this subject at the University of Groningen on 17 June.
Drug dealing and carrying weapons at school: unfortunately, these things occur among students. A protocol can help the school deal with this, but in practice things are often more complicated. Stichting School & Veiligheid would like to hear from those working in the field about the (legal and educational) dilemmas you have encountered. Is there information you need but cannot find? Do you have examples you would like to share anonymously? What went well, and what was difficult?
Young people are fairly positive about their own hearing. On a scale of 1 (very poor) to 10 (very good), they rate their hearing an average of 8.8. This is evident from the results of the pilot phase of a study into listening behaviour and hearing damage among young people.
Until Friday, 18 June, all schools in primary education, special education, secondary education and vocational education can express their interest in the 2021 Healthy School Incentive via Mijngezondeschool.nl. If interest exceeds the number of available places, registration will close earlier. So be quick!
From 27 September to 1 October 2021, the School & Safety Foundation is once again organising Anti-Bullying Week. This year’s motto is: Excluding others? Excluded! Join in with your school and make a good start to the new school year.
The use of different terms to describe, interpret and define mental health in youth makes it difficult to form a consistent picture of young people’s mental health. As a step towards greater consistency, the Trimbos Institute and RIVM have mapped out the concept of ‘mental health in youth’—including its characteristics—with a diverse group of participants, including young people and healthcare and education professionals.
Thanks to the support funding from the National Education Programme, schools can now focus on improving the mental well-being of pupils and students. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) recently presented a menu of options for this purpose. In addition to contributing to the menu of options, the collaborating knowledge institutes Pharos, the NJi, the NIP (corona expert group of school psychologists), the NCJ and the Trimbos Institute have developed a practical guide that focuses on working on well-being in the short term.
The number of schools with a Healthy School quality mark rose from 11% in 2017 to as much as 19% in 2020. This is shown by the Healthy School Evaluation 2017–2020.
On 27 May, the Inspiration Session on the Icelandic prevention model took place, during which the participating municipalities – Amersfoort, Hardenberg, the Kempengemeenten partnership (Bergeijk, Bladel, Eersel, Reusel-De Mierden), Súdwest-Fryslân, Texel and Urk – shared their experiences from the pilot. The Inspiration Session was organised by the Trimbos Institute and the Netherlands Youth Institute.
Healthy pupils perform better! But how do we ensure that health is not an obstacle to helping children achieve their full potential? This will be discussed during the Education of the Future Webinar on 7 June. The webinar is organised by the Health & Youth Service South Holland South.
As of 31 May, schools may fully reopen. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre offers seven tips for a hygienic and safe school canteen.
The coronavirus period is not always easy for children, young people and young adults. For example, they may experience feelings of loneliness, anxiety or stress. These are ‘normal’ reactions to this strange period. Nevertheless, it is important to pay attention to and continue to focus on their mental well-being. You can help most children and young people through the ‘ordinary’ contact you already have with them. Others need more. What can you do as a professional? The Netherlands Youth Institute has put it all together.
Citizenship education at a young age encourages young adults to engage in political activities later in life. This is the conclusion reached by Edwin Slijkhuis in research for which he received his doctorate on 20 May at the University of Groningen.
From 2017 to 2020, the Trimbos Institute and youth care organisation Entrea Lindenhout, commissioned by ‘FNO Zorg voor kansen’, conducted a pilot study of the family intervention ‘Family Check-up’ among 58 families with children between the ages of 6 and 14. Families and youth care professionals are enthusiastic about this intervention. It is experienced as an efficient method for identifying family problems and providing parents with practical tools. Based on the results of this pilot study, Entrea Lindenhout is offering the Family Check-up at all primary schools in Nijmegen.
Based on 80 cases involving school absenteeism reviewed by the Disputes Committee for Appropriate Education (GPO), the Kohnstamm Institute investigated, commissioned by the Dutch Association of Educationalists and Educationists (NVO), which factors play a role in the emergence or perpetuation of school absenteeism among this group of students.
Energizers during the school day make a positive contribution to concentration and enjoyment. Watch the video, made possible by the Knowledge Centre for Sport & Physical Activity, about the dynamic school day at CBS De Waterhof in Delft and get inspired!
Working on a healthy lifestyle, but remotely. The coronavirus pandemic has sometimes required creative solutions. The WoWijs app is one of them: it enables pupils with overweight to receive online support in developing a healthy lifestyle.
Iceland has successfully reduced the number of young people using alcohol, cigarettes and drugs. Six Dutch municipalities therefore ran a pilot based on their approach. Below, you can read how the Icelandic model helps Dutch municipalities give their young people a promising and healthy future. On 27 May, they will talk about it during an inspiration session.
Getting enough exercise and physical activity is important for children’s development. However, parents of these children are not always aware of the importance of physical activity. As a professional, discussing children’s physical activity habits can sometimes be difficult and may lead to resistance. In that case, the updated Argument Cards from the Knowledge Centre for Sport & Physical Activity offer a solution: with this handy discussion tool, you gain insight into what parents consider important for their child. On 16 June, the Knowledge Centre for Sport & Physical Activity is hosting an interactive webinar on the updated Argument Cards from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Health inequalities and inequality of opportunity are increasing. To turn the tide, education, support services and the municipality must work together. That is why Pharos, the Centre of Expertise on Health Inequalities and the Trimbos Institute are organising the webinar: ‘Well-being at school, a matter for both education and the municipality’ on Thursday 3 June 2021 from 9:30 to 11:00 a.m.
The triangle conversation between school, parents and student, and the voice of the child: all of this was central during the webinar ‘Together, We Are the School’, recently hosted by Ouders en Onderwijs. Four speakers shared their ideas and experiences in this area. Students complemented the stories.
The vast majority of young people aged 4 to 25 – 92 percent – perceived their health as good or very good in 2019–2020. However, young people aged 12 and over who are overweight are less often positive about their health than their peers who are not overweight. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reports this in the Youth Monitor, following new figures from the CBS Health and Lifestyle Survey, conducted in collaboration with the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM). The data for the survey years 2019 and 2020 have been combined. A total of 4,200 young people were surveyed.
Do you work at a primary school and are you interested in lesson programs for physical education? Then complete the short questionnaire from the Mulier Institute!
The National Education Programme (NPO) stipulates that schools map out the consequences of coronavirus for their students’ education. To involve parents in this process, Ouders & Onderwijs, together with other organisations, has developed a conversation guide.
Did you know that 42.7% of all young people do not get enough sleep? And when they do sleep, the quality of that sleep is often poor. This can come at the expense of healthy brain development and learning performance. Worrying, going to bed late because of homework, and media use are the main causes. That is why Healthy School is launching a new topic: Sleep.
In recent decades, many training programs have been developed to strengthen children’s social-emotional skills. These often consist of various components, such as exercises to understand others and education about behavior. However, not all components of social-emotional skills training appear to work equally well, and the dosage with which they are used is crucial to program effectiveness. This is the conclusion reached by Brechtje de Mooij in her dissertation, on which she was awarded her doctorate at the University of Amsterdam on Thursday, April 22.
With the reopening of out-of-school care (bso) on 19 April, the new version of the decision tree for children from 0 years old through group 8 can be put into use. The rules have not changed. However, a number of points have been clarified.
Teaching children health skills is essential for their development. Healthy children participate well at school, feel happy and have room for social connection. But what actually is health? And how can we teach children what they themselves can do to feel better and stay healthy? The Positive Health Child Tool helps teachers, healthcare providers and parents/carers talk to children about their health.