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Do you agree the Dutch national anthem should be part of the compulsory integration course?

earthcitizen
September 1, 2010 4:34:52 PM CEST

to learn it is no problem , might give some insight. But the National Anthem of the Netherlands should be referred to as the International Anthem of the Netherlands. they refer to several other countries in it
qed
- 41 posts
September 1, 2010 4:58:04 PM CEST

The anthem was first written down in 1574, making it over 436 years old. It is no longer relevant to modern society, no?

Besides, I can't even remember the anthem of my own country... why should I learn to do the Wilhelmus???
rshire
- 37 posts
April 5, 2011 3:46:34 PM CEST

editores (Dec 2 2009, 12:33 PM) said: > original post
A majority of MPs voted Tuesday for the Dutch national anthem, Wilhelmus, to be taught as part of the compulsory integration course for immigrants to the Netherlands.

What are your thoughts on this?

I think this should be optional as i know dutch that really dont care for it my boyfriend for example and im the same about the British one. but the compulsory course you speak of is no longer avaliable to people from the EU moving the the Netherlands as i learned when i moved here. I was annoyed as i was looking forward to doing it too.
Deleted Member
- 7374 posts
April 5, 2011 3:59:28 PM CEST

rshire (Apr 5 2011, 01:46 PM) said: > original post
I think this should be optional as i know dutch that really dont care for it my boyfriend for example and im the same about the British one. but the compulsory course you speak of is no longer avaliable to people from the EU moving the the Netherlands as i learned when i moved here. I was annoyed as i was looking forward to doing it too.

Be grateful. Trust me. Some enlightened gemeentes excepted, it was not a course I would recommend to anybody.

Sometimes you get what you pay for...
miromidy
- 14 posts
April 5, 2011 4:21:53 PM CEST

rshire (Apr 5 2011, 12:46 PM) said: > original post
I think this should be optional as i know dutch that really dont care for it my boyfriend for example and im the same about the British one. but the compulsory course you speak of is no longer avaliable to people from the EU moving the the Netherlands as i learned when i moved here. I was annoyed as i was looking forward to doing it too.

I did a free NT2 Staatsexamen-II preparation course in Amsterdam from 2008 to 2009, sponsored by the gemeente. Most of the students were non-EU but there were some EU people in it too, from Poland and Lithuania.

It was an evening course that met twice a week and averaged around 8 students (people came and went). The textbooks were free and the instructor was good.

Also, some of the students had been living in Holland for ten or twenty years.

And yet it was free for all of us, including the Staatexamen. Amsterdam was very generous in those days.

I only "learned" the Wilhelmus at my citizenship ceremony last month. The text was displayed on a large screen and a Dutch person got up on stage and sang it.
fortuner
- 10337 posts
May 25, 2011 2:43:07 PM CEST

Oh for heavens sake, can we have pithpaker's account deleted please, another assole spammer!
mikeyt
- 677 posts
May 25, 2011 9:03:48 PM CEST

wesleynl (May 25 2011, 06:43 AM) said: > original post
Oh for heavens sake, can we have pithpaker's account deleted please, another assole spammer!

He/She is on the list Wes.... just waiting for Matt to do his thing.
fortuner
- 10337 posts
May 26, 2011 12:08:06 AM CEST

mikeyt (May 25 2011, 07:03 PM) said: > original post
He/She is on the list Wes.... just waiting for Matt to do his thing.
dutchguyinthehague
- 14 posts
August 28, 2011 5:20:40 PM CEST

Even the Dutch only know a couple of lines, so who cares (and I am Dutch). We aren't exactly proud of our country, so we only care about the anthem if it is played when we win something during an international sports competition If you recognize the tune, that would be good enough ;-)
Nerrida
- 20 posts
September 19, 2011 11:15:12 AM CEST

Yes, I agree with the topic. It's handy to know the anthem, and birthday song and perhaps even a Sintaklaas song or two. At least then you know whats going on at sports events and family gatherings. Learning the words to something is not the same as swearing allegiance to something.

I would have liked it if we learned the anthem and songs in my language class. I learned it myself off youtube.
maximillion
- 5 posts
September 19, 2011 11:24:20 AM CEST

The song is actually all about "swearing allegiance to spain" ... a hangover from Phillip II, very undutch.

I can't help but laugh at the befuddled expressions of Dutch folk when that is pointed out to them

But I would agree that it's good to learn it so that you can at least join in abit & not stand there like a lemon....
pepec
- 2277 posts
September 20, 2011 11:50:47 AM CEST

maximillion said:

The song is actually all about "swearing allegiance to spain" ... a hangover from Phillip II, very undutch.

Actually the lyrics were written in the days when it was unheard of to oppose a king. After all the king ruled by the grace of God. So the lyrics are about seeking peace with the fact that they did start a revolution against the king.
indianinnl
- 76 posts
September 20, 2011 1:48:20 PM CEST

It would be good to know the anthem but it should not be compulsory for the inburgering......why force people to learn the anthem?

Inburgering is already too difficult with all the exams and portfolio.....no more addition to the procedure :)
maximillion
- 5 posts
September 21, 2011 10:42:50 AM CEST

Hi again,

I thought I'd try this poll thingy out...

What do we reckon, YES or NO.

Vote on it here | http://community.expatica.com/polls/view/7/dutch-national-anthem

I voted YES by the way. Just coz it's a little thing to learn that'd help you feel like you fit in a bit more.

This post was edited by maximillion at September 21, 2011 10:45:53 AM CEST
qed
- 41 posts
February 7, 2012 12:19:48 PM CET

I thought this will help me feel like I fit in a bit more: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kWgb4KKnwI

we should sing this during the inbuggering ceremony.
aneesh
- 1 posts
March 9, 2012 11:14:17 PM CET

Hello,

I am Aneesh and I am now currently preparing for my Inburgering exam. I have started making my portfolio of 20 Bewijzen. I had a question regarding the same. I guess I need to collect 8 bewijzen corresponding to "Werk Hebben". Now, I spoke to my colleagues at work and my boss and collected few Bewijzen. Now, my question is whether is it ok to just get those forms filled and signed by my colleages or do I also need some official stamp of the Company to authenticate those forms ? I am speaking about the "Bewijsformulier Gesprekken".

I ask this because my Company being a private one does not seem to have a seal or a stamp! Let me know on this. Thanks a lot!

Regarrds,
Aneesh