More people sign up to train to be teachers, 30% rise in part-time students

There has been a sharp rise in the number of people signing up to attend teacher training college (pabo) so they can work in Dutch primary schools, including a 30% increase in the number of people deciding to take a part-time course.

In particular, the number of students taking a fast-track part-time course has doubled to 350 for the coming academic year, the NRC reported on Friday. For the regular, full-time course, applications are up 11% at 7,864.

‘There are always people who consciously decide to become teachers,’ Henk Verheijde, of teacher training college lobby group Lobo, told the paper. ‘They are not after money, but want to contribute something to society.’

Primary school teacher training numbers halved between 2006 and 2015 and have been rising since 2016.

The NRC said the new pay deal for primary school teachers had not had an impact on the figures because they date from mid June, just after the new deal had been agreed.