| The Netherlands is a country known for its | | | | reminiscent of its past when it was an |
| religious, ideological and ethnical | | | | integrated part of the monastery still |
| tolerance. But what is perhaps less known is | | | | located in the adjacent building. A few monks |
| that it is also a country religiously divided | | | | even taught some classes there until as late |
| into a northern part dominated by a culture | | | | as the early 80s. I will not draw out all the |
| of Calvinism and a southern part, which is | | | | petty arguments, my naively offending |
| predominantly Catholic. Today, when people | | | | inquiries into the reasons for certain rules |
| speak of 'below the rivers' they refer to the | | | | and disciplinary measurements that followed, |
| Catholic provinces and when they talk about | | | | and the tensions between me and the school |
| 'above the rivers' they are pointing to the | | | | master and head teachers that arose. Enough |
| Calvinist provinces north of the geographical | | | | to draw out a particular scene, which |
| border of the rivers Maas, Waal and Rhine, | | | | engrained itself in my precious and |
| which roughly run parallel to this historical | | | | unraveling awareness as a budding teenager. |
| and cultural border.When the Netherlands | | | | It was this experience, which was to become |
| declared independence from Spain in 1579 by | | | | my sobering 'way of light' while finding my |
| the Union of Utrecht and were recognized by | | | | way through the dreary labyrinth of the |
| the peace agreement with Spain by the signing | | | | world.Once, we were given back our graded |
| of the Treaty of Munster in 1648, 'the Low | | | | Latin exam to review. We could take them home |
| Lands' (as the Netherlands is literally | | | | with us, but had to hand them in the very |
| translated), did not include the southern | | | | next day. Of course, it came to be that I |
| provinces. Only with the defeat of Napoleon | | | | forgot to pack my papers and I apologized, |
| and the Congress of Vienna in 1815 were these | | | | pledging I would bring back the exam the next |
| provinces included, and not until 1831 when | | | | day. But it caused my teacher great anger and |
| Belgium gained independence were the borders | | | | he punished me by ordering me to hand copy |
| constituted that comprise the Netherlands as | | | | the school's regulations and hand them in |
| we know it. Culturally though, the southern | | | | with the exam the next day. Unfortunately |
| provinces and especially the province of | | | | too, I was the only student who had forgotten |
| Limburg (the hind leg of the Dutch lion) | | | | his exam and I suspected a personal vendetta |
| where I grew up belonged to the Catholic | | | | in his harsh and unreasonable punishment. Now |
| sphere of influence. Even in present day the | | | | I understand his reaction was a typical |
| Netherlands, it makes a huge difference in | | | | scholastic pedagogical method that must be |
| attitude and perspective on life if you are | | | | common in the Catholic training of a teacher, |
| from above or from below the rivers.As a | | | | but I also resented his incompetence as a |
| child I slept in the attic room of our home, | | | | pedagogue who failed to acknowledge the |
| which had 5 windows that looked like | | | | reasonable nature of the child I was.At first |
| embrasures cut out in the rooftop. In the | | | | I didn't, no couldn't, take his response |
| small distance that separated the small town | | | | serious and in a calm manner of disbelief I |
| of Papenhoven from adjoining Obbicht to the | | | | politely replied: 'I am sorry, I will return |
| south, I could see the church belfry in the | | | | my exam tomorrow.' I couldn't and still don't |
| center of town rising high above its | | | | see the loss of returning the exam one day |
| surrounding, the short line of farms and | | | | later, but it seemed to make a huge |
| single family houses of red brick stone and | | | | difference for my teacher, who insisted.The |
| tilted tile roofs. Looking out of a | | | | next day I came to school and handed in my |
| 'loophole' in my little fortress in the | | | | exam without the composition, which as a |
| attic, to the west I looked over fields of | | | | result accumulated to a doubling of the |
| golden grain stalks billowing like ocean | | | | writing imposition for each extra day I was |
| waves to a slight breeze. From my window I | | | | late. In the following lessons again it was |
| could clearly see the river Maas cutting | | | | doubled until finally I was excluded from |
| through the landscape meandering along, and | | | | Latin classes overall and was called into the |
| at the other bank of the river, Belgium. I | | | | principal's office to explain my behavior.The |
| lived on the narrowest stroke of land in the | | | | school principal, Bitsch, had the posture of |
| Netherlands, where Belgium and Germany | | | | a saturated pig, adorned with a friendly |
| squeeze the hind leg of the Dutch lion. On | | | | neighbor's smile, in which I hoped to find |
| the other side of our house was the Juliana | | | | the insight of reason. Maybe I should have |
| canal and only 2 or 3 miles further to the | | | | abandoned all hope the moment I entered his |
| east lay Germany, the old heartland of | | | | office and heard him recite a quote from the |
| Charlemagne, buried in the nearby famous Dom | | | | Bible. Of course I forgot the quote, as I |
| of Aachen. Like in Belgium, most people in | | | | also did not know the answer to his question |
| Limburg are Catholic, so are the schools, the | | | | of where in the Bible the quote was located. |
| soccer clubs and of course the 'fanfare', the | | | | He provided the answer for me, although I |
| drill band to be found in each small town in | | | | could not know if he was sincere in |
| Limburg. The 'Episcopal College', my | | | | answering, more than I had been. His |
| secondary school, was located in Sittard, a | | | | 'compromise' was for me to copy the school |
| border town with Germany and 5 miles from my | | | | regulations ten times by hand, encouraging me |
| home. Diligently for almost 6 years, I | | | | to be the wiser of the two and just swallow |
| bicycled every morning through the | | | | my pride. This halfhearted attempt to reason |
| alternating corn and grain fields, meadows | | | | made an even weaker impression upon me than |
| and small villages on my way to school.I | | | | the complete lack of it in my authoritative |
| never liked school very much, not even my | | | | Latin teacher Hanssen. The punishment was |
| Catholic primary school, the Saint Joseph | | | | ridiculous from the start and I could not |
| school. At first of course, I didn't think | | | | submit myself to ridicule. The main |
| much of it, like small children never do. The | | | | conclusion I drew from this was that my |
| world to small children is simply what exists | | | | enthusiasm for formal education definitively |
| immediately around them. To the young child's | | | | cracked and it was not long after this that I |
| mind, there is no other happiness than the | | | | would drop out of the 'Episcopal |
| one that surrounds them. At Catholic school | | | | curriculum.'Despite dropping out of school, I |
| we would say our prayers each morning before | | | | never lost my enthusiasm for learning. |
| lessons started, and on Friday and Tuesday | | | | However, I never lost my skepticism for |
| mornings the local priest would teach Bible | | | | formal education and have become an |
| classes. All this constituted my childhood | | | | autodidact by heart. I consider learning a |
| happiness in which I participated | | | | life-long obligation without end in the line |
| wholeheartedly like all children did, even | | | | of Comenius' thought. I think back of my days |
| though my parents were from above the rivers, | | | | at school now with a certain bitterness for |
| and even though now the faithfulness of | | | | the professional pedagogues who could not |
| Catholicism is a strange entity to me. As a | | | | recognize a child's nature and instead of |
| young child I didn't give it much reflection, | | | | stimulating it to find its own path, they |
| nor could I. With the wisdom of hindsight, it | | | | attempted to curb and bend it to serve their |
| might look cruel that it was always Mohammed, | | | | own purpose. Nevertheless, I am a warmhearted |
| the Moroccan kid whom the substitute teacher | | | | supporter of education for all and the |
| used to pick on, until one day the teacher, | | | | principles promoted more than 400 years |
| holding him firmly by his neck, pushing him | | | | earlier by the Czech educational reformer Jan |
| out of the classroom, ended up busting his | | | | Amos Comenius. Comenius was born in 1592 and |
| head through a glass panel in the door. Yet, | | | | brought up in Bohemia in the present day |
| I didn't think much of it. Now, of course I | | | | Czech Republic; and like I did, Comenius |
| recognize the scholastic methods of | | | | suffered from incompetent teachers as a |
| Jesuitism, and the dominance of structured | | | | child. But despite their incompetence, he |
| discipline in Catholicism at my school over | | | | grew to love learning and proper education as |
| the Protestant's care for nurturing each | | | | the pillar of societal reform and human |
| child's inner nature and the diversity of | | | | progress.In a time of fierce religious |
| individual personalities. I didn't think much | | | | conflicts, Comenius was the head of the Union |
| of it, even though my most profound school | | | | of Brethren, the first Reformed Church in |
| memory has always been boredom and aloofness | | | | Europe, which followed the principles of the |
| from the Catholic methods of education.My | | | | Czech reformer Jan Hus (1369-1415) and was |
| parents of course did not grow up in Limburg, | | | | brutally suppressed by the Jesuit King |
| but they moved there when I was barely a few | | | | Ferdinand of Habsburg. Despite the incredible |
| weeks old. They raised me in the progressive | | | | hardship he would suffer in life, from an |
| spirit of northern reformers like Comenius, | | | | early loss of parents, wife and children, |
| Rousseau and Froebel, allowing me as a young | | | | home and experiencing the Habsburgian |
| child to explore my own needs, drives, | | | | contra-Reformist suppression and the |
| feelings and thoughts and form my own | | | | cruelties of the 30-Years War between the |
| personality freely and spontaneously. The | | | | Catholic League and the Protestant German |
| only limitations I faced were the limitations | | | | princes, Comenius was able to find his way |
| of common reason, which were without | | | | out of the 'Labyrinth of the World' and |
| exception explained to me rationally after | | | | regain the 'Paradise of the Heart'. His book |
| which it was left to me to decide on my | | | | of that title would become a classic in |
| actions AND bear the consequences that | | | | European literature, while Comenius himself |
| resulted from them. This of course was the | | | | grew to become one of the most celebrated |
| worst preparation for attending a Catholic | | | | educational reformers in history. He |
| school one can imagine, with its more | | | | advocated reforming the old medieval |
| rigorous perception of social hierarchy and | | | | scholastic method and introducing a more |
| educational method. Yet, alternatives to | | | | child-friendly method of education, which in |
| attend other schools are scarce in Limburg | | | | our time has become so evident.Being a |
| unless you are able and willing to travel | | | | refugee most of his life, Comenius was |
| more than an hour daily to reach one of the | | | | finally settled in tolerant Amsterdam in 1556 |
| few Montessori schools in the south. Thus, my | | | | until he died in 1570. He now lies buried in |
| parents being pragmatic and practical people, | | | | the Wallonian Church in Naarden, the |
| I completed Saint Joseph's elementary school | | | | Netherlands, a place of pilgrimage for many |
| and entered a Catholic secondary school | | | | Czechs, to whom Comenius is one of their |
| called the 'Episcopal College', a name | | | | biggest national heroes. |