Last week I attended an online webinar about social safety and how to deal with anxieties in the classroom organised by ‘School and Safety. Since the development of the war between Ukraine and Russia and Israel en Hamas tutors are encountering difficult conversations in the classroom. Minister Dijkgraaf visited Leiden University in November to discuss […]
Continue ReadingHow to Navigate Change and Foster Inclusion
On the 9th and 10th of November, the Willem de Kooning Academy (WdKA) hosted an EDI conference, initiated by my colleague Sylvia Erlings. The conference began with an opening statement from our new dean, Úna Henry. She addressed the current global issues of systemic violence and highlighted crises in countries such as Congo, Myanmar, Ukraine, China, […]
Continue ReadingHow to Understand Pedagogy of High Expectations
On October 12th, I attended the mini-conference on the Pedagogy of High Expectations at the Rotterdam University of Applied Science (RUAS). This approach emphasizes teachers’ belief in the potential of every student to succeed and encourages them to pursue challenging goals. The topic is included in RUAS’s new strategic agenda. The title initially caused some […]
Continue ReadingHow to embed Equity Diversity and Inclusion
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of meeting with Gabriela Acosta Camacho, a representative from the Inclusive Pathway Training (IPT) program in which our team recently participated as part of a symposium organized by the lectorate Social Justice and Diversity in the Arts. This meeting served as a follow-up to our initial training. During our meeting, […]
Continue ReadingHow We Can Learn to Listen
The value of listening is undeniable in education, leadership and communication. But what makes active listening so challenging? Bohm (2004) suggests that it’s our tendency to continuously repeat our own thoughts and filter out any information that doesn’t align with them. This is a defensive reflex, steering us toward confirmation during conversations rather than open […]
Continue ReadingHow to: Materialise Dreams: WdKA graduation review July 2023
The WdKA Graduation Show of 2023 showcased the aspirations of a new generation of artists, designers, and educators. With 183 students presenting their projects, I had the privilege to witness their creative endeavours and gain insight into their perspectives (see overview with photos). In this review I describe the projects that caught my intention via […]
Continue ReadingHow to reach goals
I visited the presentation of Ray Klaassen 12th of June 2023. As a former special forces operator he challenged his comfort zone by organizing his first public show in which he collaborated with different artistic disciplines such as; dance, music and song. He introduced the principle of the ‘learning pit’. I think he referred to […]
Continue ReadingHow to deal with “ongezellig”
“Stick your ears out the door because something is about to happen” Earlier this month, I had the privilege of attending the Inclusivity Pathway Training (IPT) conference initiated by Aminata Cairo. Representatives from various Dutch art academies, including AHK, ArtEZ, CodArts, Fontys, HKU, and WdKA, gathered at Amsterdam Hogeschool for the Arts for this event. […]
Continue ReadingHow to stay Resillient
Last week I visited a college-lecture by Dai Carter. Based on his book Mental Resilience (mentale veerkracht) he shared stories about his life lessons as a special forces operator and how to deal with adversity. From an educational perspective it was an interesting to observe his preparation, way of story-telling, his interaction with the audience […]
Continue ReadingHow to implement programmatic assessments
Mini conference Programmatic Assessments Hogeschool Rotterdam Tuesday 28 March 2023 Supported by: Laura Lobert (facilitator), Peter Schouten & Dominique Sluismans The mini conference on programmatic assessments at Hogeschool Rotterdam (HR) was organized in response to the growing interest and discussions around the topic. The event was initiated by the chairman of the executive […]
Continue ReadingHow to overcome crisis
There is a crisis at work. A situation I have not experienced before. Our dean, who is my direct supervisor, has decided to step aside in times of turmoil. Reason for this were different reports that indicated issues with staff. I am familiar with the challenges as outlined in the report. I am trying to […]
Continue ReadingIt’s Showtime 2023
In 2020 I asked myself the question: “how long should I hold on to my paintings?”. In 2023 I’ve set up my first instagram-account, created a new website of my paintings and I rented a place at the Art Eindhoven on the 4th and 5th of February 2023 to sell my paintings. I don’t know […]
Continue ReadingHow to survive AI
How new tech will change higher art education in 2023 keywords: Online video’s, Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence Danai Fuengshunut and AI As the world continues to evolve and technology advances, art academies and tutors have had to adjust their teaching methods to keep up. I believe 2023 will be a turning point due to the […]
Continue ReadingHow I Spent Five Days With Covid
Day one. The firs symptoms I can remember were a light headache in combination with a cold lower back. I had eaten at a pizzeria the other day. I thought the food had been way too salty. That night I went to the bathroom for about six to seven times. I had taken an aspirin, […]
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How to: bring different tutors together
Design by: Lisa Zakharova I’m excited about our upcoming Education Day on Wednesday the 9th of November 2022 at the Willem de Kooning Academy (WdKA). An Education Day is an internal event for all(230-250)teachers during our development week in which students have no classes. Pervious years these events were limited to a morning-programme. This year […]
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How will our covid-generation art & design graduates shape tomorrow?
Willem de Kooning graduation exposition review after lockdown This weekend was the last day of the first onsite art & design graduation exposition of the Willem De Kooning Academy (WdKA) in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It was the first time since the lockdown that the academy could provide an onsite exposition in the building. The […]
Continue ReadingArt Student Looking Back In 2025: Morning, Afternoon, Evening
I wrote a short story about educational changes and how a student could reflect upon these changes in the near future. I hope elements of the story can help us find a way to improve our education. We came together in the morning between 09:00 and 09:30. Sometimes we met at the academy, sometimes at […]
Continue ReadingHow to: Graduate Artschool
A few days ago I provided a meeting for our graduate students. It was based upon the idea that graduation can be a special kind of obstacle for students. The challenge of graduation is often not graduation itself, but the story we tell ourselves about what graduation means. I had designed a meeting that involved […]
Continue ReadingHow to: Get Creative
Just finished the War of Art by Stephen Pressfield. I liked his concept of Resistance. Resistance for him is a destructive force that disables you from being creative. In his words: ‘with ever tree of creativity that grows; comes a shadow. Being creative for him is about finding ways to overcome that Resistance. In his […]
Continue ReadingHow to: overcome yourself
Words I often hear from students during reflection-moment are distractions, procrastination, anxieties, and imposter syndrome. Studying on itself probably would not be half as difficult if it was not for ourselves. There is a title of a book that I often think about: ‘You Are What You Do’. Sometimes we perceive studying as a ritual […]
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