Inburgering - Big Fat Changes

I’m going back to my roots today at Adventures in Integration.  I’m going to talk about Inburgering, something that I haven’t spent much time thinking about in quite a long time.

You may have heard the rumours flying around about the changes to the Inburgering policy and exams and as I originally started this blog to share my experiences about Inburgering I thought I should do some research and pass on what information I could find and how it will affect you as an immigrant potentially having to take the exams in the coming few years.

The changes are big.  Really big.  They are the biggest changes since the big shake up of 2007.  Some are good, some; not so much.

Let’s start with the big changes, the exams.  The good news is that portions of the old exams are being phased out and replaced by a new centralised system.  This means that the Dreaded Portfolio no longer needs to be an option and neither do the assessments.  It will still be possible to follow this path up until 01 January 2015 if you would prefer, or if you have already begun to assemble your portfolio, for instance.

The Centrale Examen have been altered somewhat.  Instead of the old KNS, TGN and EPE exams, there will now be five portions to the exams.  They are:

1. Knowledge of Dutch Society - presumably remaining much the same as the old KNS exam
2. Fluency - From what I can understand, this is the old TGN exam dressed up with a fancy new name as it will still be conducted over the telephone.
3. Reading - much the same as the old EPE, without the audio/video accompaniment.
4. Listening - sames as reading, but having to listen instead of reading or watching a video.
5. Writing - you will be expected to answer questions and complete tasks in written form.  The questions will be electronic, i.e. submitted via the computer, so no need to worry about your doctor’s handwriting...

As I mentioned above, you can choose either the old version of the exams (KNS, TGN and EPE coupled with either the portfolio or assessments), or the new version (KNS, Fluency, Reading, Listening and Writing with no practical component) right up until January 2015.  So you will have plenty of time, depending on how long you have left on your contract with the Gemeente to decide which is the best fit for you.

Another big change, which really affects those of you who have been living here for a long time and can speak Dutch is that the KVT (exemption exam) has been completely removed from the system and is no longer an option.  Instead, you are able to apply for an exemption if you can satisfy the Gemeente that you are sufficiently integrated.  I’m not exactly certain how this will work in practice, but in theory if you have completed a course in the Netherlands (in Dutch), or taken a language course in the past, you may be able to apply for exemption.  However, it appears that this is purely at your Gemeente’s discretion and I would love to be able to get my hands on their criteria to find out if it is a standardised system nationwide or if you will be at the mercy of your contact.  But, I won’t speculate further on that...

Further to the changes to the exams themselves, are the changes to what you pay.  If you were lucky enough to be living in one of the few remaining cities in the Netherlands who was paying residents to integrate up until the end of 2012 and you managed to get a slice of the action, way to go!  For the rest you, you’re on your own.  You will have to pay the cost of the exams (and any course you choose to take) yourself.  It will still be possible to apply for a loan from DUO and you begin to pay the loan back (plus the current rate of interest which is right now set at 0.6%) six months after you successfully pass your exams.  The loan must be fully repayed within three and a half years years of passing the exams and it’s possible to borrow up to €5000, which can be used for either Inburgering or Staatsexamen.  

Now, how much does it all cost?  The cost of the exams is all broken down on the DUO site, but I’ll give you a quick overview here.

The old exams:

• Practical exam (portfolio or assessments) - €110
• Central Exams - €140 (KNS - €40, EPE - €40 and TGN - €60)

Total cost (if passing on the first attempt): €240

The new exams:

• Knowledge of Dutch Society (KNS) - €40
• Fluency (TGN) - €60
• Listening - €50
• Reading - €50
• Writing - €50

Total cost (if passing on the first attempt): €250

So, taking the old option will save you a grand total of €10.  But that’s without the cost of any course you might take, which can cost anywhere around €600 for three months.  So, taking my own experience as an example, I took eight month to complete my course and exams (so presumably would have had to pay for nine months).  I would be up for €1800 plus €240 for the exams.  Ouch.  If that’s not an incentive to pull your finger out and pass the exams quicksmart then I don’t know what is!

So those are the changes in a nutshell.  The biggest disappointment for me is the doing away with the exemption test, but who knows.  The new exemption application process may be more efficient and cost effective in the long run.

I do love that the portfolio is being phased out though.  This really was one of the most tedious parts of the entire process.  Seriously, “Ik pin geld bij de bank,” is truly ridiculous.  So, there’s at least one positive.

My biggest recommendation in all of this is:  Skip inburgering altogether and go straight for Staatsexamen.  At least then you will be in good stead to move on and study at either a vocational or university level here if you want.  Inburgering gives you none of that preparation.




Over to you now.  How is this going to affect you?  Are glad to have taken the exemption test, or disappointed to have missed out?  Do you like the fact that you will now have some options as to which type of exams you take?

Geslaagd!

I can't believe it, but I just had a message from my teacher that I passed all components of my exams!  That means that I'm finished with the course and my obligation to the Dutch government is fulfilled and I will be allowed to apply for naturalisation (with a dual passport, of course) when I become eligible in May next year.

I must take a few moments to offer thanks to a some very special people:

Maarten.  What a tower of strength (to pillage a cliché).  He's held my hand, wiped my tears, endured my frustrated rants and laughed heartily at my lame attempts at humour in Dutch.

My sainted teacher Iva, without whom this would have been such a fun journey.  Such a gifted teacher who makes learning fun - an absolute inspiration.

My new schoon-familie.  A wonderful team of people who have never criticised, only offered their support and have kindly ignored my stumbles and tantrums.

My colleagues, especially Miki and Haris.  Two people who have taught me more about Dutch culture (and its idiosyncrasies) than anyone else.  Not bad for a pair of ex-Yugoslavians!

The Ttif Company.  What a fantastic group of people and support network.  I can't sing the company's praises enough.  If you're just starting out and looking for a school that is a good fit, this is it.  Believe me.  And they're not even paying me to say that!

And lastly, to you.  It's because of you that I've written about my experience, hoping that it will be easier and a less daunting process.  It doesn't have to be hard, it's just a shame that the government doesn't like to share that with us.

This will probably be my last post for a while.  I'm thinking carefully about taking the next step to study Staatsexamen niveau I and II, but am not sure if I have the energy for such a huge commitment.  Until I take that step,  I think it will be all quiet on this front...

Keep me posted on how it goes for you.  If I can help, I will!!

,



Nerissa

Exams are done, done, DONE!

It's been a hectic week.  Nerissa World is insanely busy right now.  This week is really the crescendo of it all, however.  Hopefully by Monday everything will be back to normal, whatever that is!

This week I've done all four of my Dutch exams.  Hopefully for the first and last time!  I'll try to go through them all and tell you what I thought, and how I think you can better prepare yourself.

First up was the Toets Gesproken Nederland.  This exam was what I was probably most nervous about.  I was terrified about the tegenstellingen (opposites), because it is something that I've really struggled with.  Poor Maarten has been practicing with me on the couch and I've been sitting there fighting tears because I was useless!

So, I was happy that it was first.  Get the worst out the way, and all that!  We met our lovely examiner - a really friendly guy who put us all at ease straight away.  Good quality for an examiner, hey?  He showed us all to little rooms with a telephone and a headset, then dialled a number for us and off we went.  There was a practice question and the computer gave me a couple of example questions.  The test was broken down into five sections, A-E.  A was Nazeggen - repeating a sentence verbatim.  It's important to note that you are scored in this section on each word, so if you don't remember all the words, that's fine.  Just try and get as much out as possible with the same intonation that you've just heard.  I was fine with most sentences, but as they became longer I couldn't remember everything.  There were 10 sentences to repeat in all.

Section B was Tegenstellingen (from memory, but it could have been Korte Vragen).  There were only about 10 words, but this is what I was most scared of.  I think I gave a couple of stupid answers, like mondeling - stilstand (instead of schriftelijk) for example.

Section C was another round of Nazeggen, with another ten sentences.  With the first three sections, I must tell you so you can prepare yourself, the voices were NOT clear.  The voices were a bit muffled and the words were not clearly enunciated.  For example's sake, to me it sounded like the team who put together the exam went out into Amsterdam with a mic and asked random people to give words/sentences.  The accents and speed varied greatly.  And not in a good way.

Section D was Korte Vragen.  Meaning, the computer asked a short question, and I needed to give a one or two word answer.  Again, from memory I think there were 10 questions in all.  This wasn't difficult.  It is only a problem if you don't know the answer in Dutch!

Section E (for me) was by far the easiest.  We listened to two short stories, and then within a 30 second time frame had to say what the point of each story was.  Basically, who the story was about, what they were doing, where and what etc.

After the exam was finished, a group of us discussed how we all went and what we thought.  We all agreed that it was difficult to understand the voices and that the speed was faster than we expected.  What I found interesting was that all the others thought that Section E was the most difficult, whereas I thought it was the easiest...

The best way to prepare yourself?  Listen listen listen!!  Listen to the radio, try to pick up different accents, but most of all relax in the exam!  Which seems ridiculous coming from me - the least relaxed person I know!  You have a reasonable length of time to answer each question, so the worst thing you can do is panic.  Also remember that you have to get the answer right first time, so if you say the wrong word then the right word, too bad.  The computer doesn't care.

After about a 10 minute interval (long enough to skull a quick coffee) we were called in for the Kennis Nederlandse Samenleving (KNS) exam.  This is based on the practice exams that I've discussed in the past.  You open a screen on the computer, watch a small film then answer a few related multiple choice questions.  Depending on how difficult your individual test is (as they are all different), you will have between 35 and 42 questions to answer.  I had 38 questions to answer and they were all a bit more difficult than I was expecting.  I had questions about discrimination, teenagers skipping school, going into ondertrouw and healthcare (with a particularly disturbing film of Mo stabbing himself with a screwdriver!).  There may have been a couple of others, but those were the main sections.  I didn't know much about the process of when you feel discriminated at work, but tried to let commonsense  play god.  I think I did enough to pass.  This exam lasted 45 minutes, and I was done with about 10 minutes to spare.  There were a couple faster than me, and looking at my immediate neighbours, they were in strife.  I think the girl on my left will be back in that exam room for sure.

Almost immediately afterwards we went in to the Elektronish Praktijk Exam (EPE).  This exam was for 60 minutes, and was the same format as the KNS and the practice exams that I've already done.  I found this exam to be by far the easiest.  The most important point to note is that the answer is invariably in the text/video.  You will never have to make up the answer that you think is correct (hello KNS, I'm talking to you).  You just need to concentrate and read/listen correctly.  I was done within 30 minutes.

Advice for the two last exams?  KNS - learn Welkom in Nederland.  Really.  Learn it.  Everything you need to know about this exam comes out of that book.  EPE?  Learn the language.  What you learn in class is enough, if you pay attention that is...  Basically if I can get to the stage of being able to take the exams with a reasonable level of confidence after only eight months, anyone can.  Plus, think about what you would do in the situation.  For example, one was Zara walking down the street pushing her grandson in a pram.  She came across a car parked on the footpath belonging to the neighbour.  She rings his bell.  Then the question is, what happens next?  I.e. what does she say when he opens the door, or what does he say in reply.

I walked out of the exams yesterday feeling as though I have done enough to pass.  If anything, it will be the TGN that lets me down, but I certainly answered far more than 50% correctly.  The big question is, did I crack 75%...?  Only time will tell.  I should have an answer in the next couple of weeks.

Today it was onto the big one.  The Panelgesprek over mijn Portfolio.  I have been working really hard on this one for the last few weeks, rehearsing scenarios and going through what I thought was difficult, easy, and most importantly, leukst ;)

The weather outside this morning was what could only be described as klote weer, so I made sure I left in plenty of time (taking bus 157 to Amstelstation and the metro to Wibraustraat - super fast and cheaper than the train!), so I rocked into the Ttif Company headquarters at 9.00, three quarters of an hour early!  But, better too early than too late right (do we need any more proof that I'm fully ingeburgerd)?  The interview began exactly on time, and instead of a team of daunting examiners, I met with two lovely ladies - Jamilla and Angelique, and we got straight into it.  Jamilla did all the talking (and the interview was recorded), and Angelique listened and took notes.  Jamilla asked me all sorts of questions, not just related to the portfolio, but how long I've lived here, where I work etc.  Although I was nervous, I didn't feel like I was drowning, and we even got in trouble with the group next door because we were too loud!!  That was a fabulous ice breaker, so after that I totally relaxed and just did my best.  Jamilla asked me about my buurvrouw (thanks Connie!!), and even what she looks like!  Sorry Connie, you've been described as a korte vrouw, but!  You're also described as a Nieuwe Nederlander (they could tell I was so proud of you!).

After the short interview I had to complete a sheet with six questions.  All very basic questions, like how many situations I had collected, what I found hard, important, nice etc.  I was expecting to have to also write a short note to a friend (as I have been practicing that), but it wasn't necessary.  I did find that I needed the full fifteen minutes provided though.  I only just finished it in time.  Angelique read what I had written, expressed that she was very impressed (yay!) and that she could already tell me that I had done enough and that I had passed the exam!!  She told me that a letter to that effect would be following, but that I should relax, because she was very happy and could understand me very well.  So basically, I rock.

Now it's just the waiting game for the other three exams from yesterday.  I'll keep you posted.  In the meantime, please feel free to ask me ANY questions about the exams.  I'm sure I can be of some use!

Tot snel.

Portfolio Interview Preparation

Now that I'm done with gathering proof and putting together my portfolio (it's been sent to Amsterdam for assessment, I should hear sometime soon when the related exam is), I have a further document to study, which will prepare me for the exam.  As a bit of preparation for your own exam, here are the basics that we will need to know when we go into the interview room:

• The examiner will ask what was easiest, most difficult, the best and worst.
• How each (or selected segments from the portfolio) went.  For example they will ask about your chat with the neighbour - where it was, what you spoke about, what did the person look like etc.
• Why did you choose each written situation (they will select a situation to discuss) and how long did it take you to complete.

Possible questions taken from each section (this is in Dutch, run it through google translate if you need.  I would translate it for you, but google will probablly be more accurate!).  Forgive my spelling:

Algemeen vragen:

1. Hoe lang bent u bezig geweest met het verzamelen van de bewijzen?
2. Hoe vond u het om dit portfolio te maken? (obviously honesty with a positive spin is needed here!)
3. Welk gesprek vond u het moelijkst en waarom?
4. Welk gesprek vond u het makkelijkst en waarom?
5. Welk gesprek vond u het leukst en waarom?
6. Welk gesprek vond u het belangrijkst en waarom?
7. Hoe bent u begonnen met her verzamelen van de bewijen?  Heeft iemand u geholpen met het Portfolio?  Hoe?

Vragen over bewijzen van gesprekken:

The examiner will chose a situation from the portfolio and ask you about it and say something like...  "I see you have spoken with Mr/Mrs Jones...." Then will go on to ask the following sorts of questions:

1. Hoe ging dat gesprek?
2. Waar was het gesprek?
3. Waar hebben jullie over gepraat?
4. Wat wilde u weten?  Of:  Wat hebt u gevraagd?
5. Vond u het een goed gesprek?  Waarom wel/waarom niet?
6. Wat vond u moelijk aan het gesprek?
7. Wat vond u makkelijk aan het gesprek?
8. Hoe hebt u zich op het gesprek voobereid?

Then, the examiner will choose another situation from the portfolio and ask different questions, still beginning with an opener as above ("I see you have spoken with Mr/Mrs Jones..")

1. Wat junt u vertellen over dat gesprek?  Vertel eens iets over dat gesprek?
2. Wat wilde die meneer/mevrouw weten?
3. Welke vragen stelde hij/zij aan u?
4. Waar was het gesprek?
5. Hoe zag het gebouw eruit?  Seriously?  What did the building look like??)
6. Wat moet je doen als je daar binnenkomt bij het stadhuis? Of bij de politie?

Vragen over bewijzen van schrijven

Much the same as above, the examiner will take a situation from the portfolio and ask questions about it, for example "I see that you have written a note or filled in a form..."

1. Wat hebt u op dit formulier ingevuld/in dit briefje geschreven?
2. Waarvoor kunt u dit formulier/briefje gebruiken?
3. Hoe lang bent u bezig geweest met het invullen van het formulier/schrijven van het briefje?
4. Vond u het moielijk of makkelijk om did briefje te schrijven/formulier in te vullen?
5. Waarom was het makkelijk/moielijk?
6. Welke andere formulieren/briefjes heeft u verzameld in uw portfolio?
7. Welk formulier of briefje vond u het moielijkst?
8. Waarom vond u did moielijk?
9. Welk formulier of briefje vond u het belangrijkst?
10. Waarom vond u did belangrijk?

So, this interview portion is supposed to take 15 minutes in total.  It's also important to note that you DO NOT need to know the contents of the portfolio by heart, but obviously you do need to know what you have in it!  It's probably more useful to study the exam preparation document that I've outlined above so you are not thrown by any questions that the examiner might ask (what does your local city council or police station look like??!!).  Oh, and most importantly, you're allowed to take your photocopy of the portfolio with you into the exam.

To accompany the spoken interview, there is a written section.  This is also supposed to be 15 minutes.  I can't answer whether the exam is limited to 30 minutes in total and if it's not completed in that time too bad, or if you can run over time.  Perhaps someone who has completed the exam can enlighten?

The questions that you need to be able to answer in writing (full sentences, no one or two word answers allowed) could be as follows:

1. Hoe lang heeft u an uw portfolio gewerkt?
2. Hoeveel bewijzen van schrijven hebt u verzameld?
3. Welk schrijfproduct vond u moeilijk?  Noem een schrijproduct
4. Waarom vond u dit schrijfproduct moielijk?
5. Hoeveel bewijzen hebt u verzameld?
6. Welk gesprekbewijs vond u moeilijk om te halen?

And finally, you need to write a short letter to a friend/family member about your portfolio.  Basically outlining the same points as above (like how long it took, how easy or difficult it was, which was the most important to learn etc).  I would say, between 50 and 100 words or 4 or 5 sentences.

It all sounds very daunting to me, but as we know, I'm a panicker.  I have a practice interview this Wednesday at school to help me prepare.  I'm also spending most of the each night awake thinking about what I need to be able to answer. Hopefully it will see me well prepared!

I'd love to hear about your own experiences with the portfolio exam, the more information the better as far as I'm concerned!!

The Entrance Exam

Today I had the exam to find out what level I am at with Dutch language and samenlevering (I'm not sure what the best word in English is for this. Maybe society?). The exam was at 11.30 in Almere, not far from the train station.

When I arrived at the office, there was no reception and no one around to check in with. I finally found a lady and found out where the exam was, so off I went only to find that it was actually another person's exam and I barged right in. Off to a good start then! It turned out that the examiner was running late, so I had to wait which was a bit of a shame because I could have still been at work, and if they had let me know I would have made other arrangements.

So I met my examiner, who was a lovely young lady. Very friendly and welcoming. The type of person that I would want to have as a friend to be perfectly honest. We sat down to begin the test, and first of all I was given a card with a long list of words to read aloud - for pronunciation. I didn't find it too difficult until the dreaded gefeliciteerd, which I really cannot say! I can sprout the Schipols and Goudas with the best of them, but gefeliciteerd trips me up every single time! You know how some people just can't say phenomenon or specific? That's me with gefeliciteerd. I don't even know how to spell it!

The second test as to fill in a form. First name, last name etc. Then came questions like: Do you think people should eat healthy food all of the time, yes or no? Give two reasons. And Do you play sport, and which sports do you play? After completing the form I was given a sheet with a small story that had missing letters from certain words. Like: Janice is jarig. Zij is 30 j___. There were sets of three stories whereby I had to find the correct words for the sentence. Not as easy as I would have thought because as much as I can understand, the vocabulary is my weak point. I just can't find the words to describe what I want.

After the writing test we took a small break and did something like an IQ test. There was a sheet with 30 questions and images where I needed to pick out the image that didn't 'match'. I had 7 minutes to complete it. Not sure why it was in the exam, but did it with not too many issues.

Then came reading. I was given some text to read, then had to answer questions. Quite easy actually. The first was a postcard, the second was an accident report in a newspaper, third was an advertisement for the UWV (Centerlink or social security) and the last was a notice about City Council working bees. I could understand quite a lot and think I managed quite well to answer the questions.

Next was listening. The first was a man at a pharmacy to collect medicine, the second was a couple getting to know one another at a party, and the third was a news item about car free days. I managed ok with the first two (I struggled with the questions at first because I didn't understand what she was asking), but the third was very difficult. Too much information crammed into a short time frame. I really couldn't get my head around much of it.

Lastly was samenlevering. Questions started out quite easy: Who is the queen, who is the prime minister, name three holidays in the Netherlands etc. Then it went on to ask about what you do if you want to change your license, what happens if you are asked for ID by the police and you don't have it (you get a fine, by the way), what you should do if there is a problem with your gas at home etc. Then, lastly was questions about children! But not to worry, pretty easy stuff. How old are they when they start and leave school, what is the name of school for children 5-12 and 12-18 etc. Then where do you take your children if you both work - I knew it was day care, but couldn't think of the words "kinder dagopvang ."

All in all it took me just on two hours to complete the test. I think that if you have almost no knowledge of Dutch you will take much less, because in each section you begin with easy questions that gradually get harder. Once you can no longer understand, you go onto the next set of questions. Somebody who has good fluency could easily take longer than two hours to complete the test.

The best news, I'm at level A2 - the level I need to have to pass the inburgering examen! So, I'm going to push myself to get through the exam as fast as humanly possible and then use the lessons to relax and actually enjoy learning at my own pace afterwards. Of course I need to find out if that is even a possibility. The City Council will probably stop funding the course once I pass the exam which would be incentive to draw it out over a longer period (to get my money's worth).

One thing I did notice, the woman at the Gemeente (prejudiced Anita) had noted on my file that I had asked why I should do the course and goodness only knows what else, so I was put in a position to set the situation straight and let her know exactly what Anita's reasons for me to study were....

I feel great now. I don't suck and my language skills are much better than I thought!

Introduction Roundup

I thought I would wait to post again until after I had finished with the four introduction sessions at the Ttif Company, but now it is somewhat fresh in my mind so I'll outline what went on.

Lesson 1: I pretty much covered it all in my last post, so I'll skip on to lesson 2....

Lesson 2: I was so busy right at the moment I had to leave work that I was almost late and forgot my notebook and pen. I was hoping I would be able to get away with it because the previous lesson needed nothing from me, but NO! We were all given a sheet with a list of questions, then put into pairs to ask said questions. My partner was the Lovely Raschida from Morocco (one of two Raschidas from Morocco in my class if you would believe me), and we were both pretty nervous. We had questions like where do you come from, do you have children, do you work, what are you doing on your summer vacation, and the most difficult question: Waar houd je helemaal niet van? Nobody seemed to be able to answer this question. I certainly couldn't understand the verb... I asked my neighbour and her sheet read "katten" which didn't make me any the wiser. We asked the teacher, who explained that it means what do we really dislike - hate, if you will. Then it clicked. Ik hou van Maarten, or ik houd helamaal niet van voetbal (I hate soccer).

Then we had a break. Mind you, the class had been running for 35 minutes at this point so we were all in desperate need of some time out. A break for 20 minutes, no less!

Once we came back to the class we discussed the Ttif Company House Rules (as in keep the toilet and coffee area clean), and finally how we can claim back travel expenses if we take the bus or train. Unfortunately those of us who will travel by bicycle are entitle to no recourse. Oh well, I'll have a healthy heart instead.

Lesson 3: We were given a handout which describes the inburgering examen, and then the teacher discussed what is expected and how it all works. Finally! After two years of waiting, two meetings with the Gemeente and two lessons all about inburgering, we actually found out what is expected at the end of the course!

The teacher kept telling us that we shouldn't think about the inburgering examen right now and that we should just focus on learning Dutch, but let's face it. More than half of the class I was in have been living in the Netherlands for more than 5 years. Some for almost 20! They clearly speak fluent Dutch and are only in the class to pass the A2/A1 level that is compulsory as an oudkomer. In my honest view, the lessons ans fluency are just a by-product of passing the exam, which is split into the following three options:

1. The practical exam. This means that you will need to obtain 30 signatures from people in specific departments, positions of authority or local business that attest to your ability to converse with them in Dutch. This involves processes like making a police report, opening a new bank account, changing your address at the local council etc. The teacher went into no details though, nor did she provide any examples. She merely pointed to a folder with a previous student's work.
2. The assessments. You may choose not to go down the portfolio path, and opt for taking 6 assessments instead. This is done in an exam type situation where you take part in a series of role plays that are similar to the scenarios that you would have to undertake if you were completing the portfolio option. You would have three hours to complete the exam and this is held only in Amsterdam. The teacher stressed that this is not an option for everyone. Most students opt to complete the portfolio (which sends me into fits of panic just thinking about it), but depending on your level and whether your teacher agrees, you may take the assessment option. Basically, it is only for the best students.
   
3. The combination. This is a hybrid of both options. You may complete 15 portfolio items and complete 3 assessments in the exam environment. It was not clear if you are given a large list of scenarios to obtain signatures for in your portfolio, or if you have only 15/30 and you must get them all signed off.

When I understand more, I will elaborate.

Then it was break time again for 20 minutes.

After the break, we played a game called Rondje Nederland. It is a game specifically developed for students of the inburgering curses, which could be very handy! It covers history, cities and provinces, culture etc. Much like Ik Hou van Holland, but more specific.

Lesson 4: This class was held completely independently on their custom computer system "Nieuweburen". We were all given logins and were left to our own devices. It's an online lesson system very similar to the course book "Nederlands voor Buitenlanders" and you watch a video then answer questions. The best part was that the system is all 100% online, so it can be used at home. The worst part is that the software is so old that it is not possible to use on either my work or home computer.

I discussed my future classes briefly with the teacher, and because I am yet to do the language level test (tomorrow!) (I have now done the test, see my new post The Entrance Exam), they do not know which class I should go into as yet. In the meantime I should begin learning by using the online program which I find is not possible.

All in all, when I look back at the four classes that I took time out of work specifically to attend, I feel they could (read: should) have been condensed into to two blocks. A class never lasted the full two hours and the time could have been used in a much more efficient manner.

I do feel better for knowing slightly more about the inburgering examen at the end and knowing that I can begin the portfolio almost immediately if I choose to follow that path.

Next stop: language test tomorrow at the Geldergroep here in Almere. Cross your fingers.