“The last three years I’ve been observing and preparing,” Smet said. “Now I’m ready to take decisions, and, in the coming months, I want to cut through the knots. We can’t get around the fact that our education system needs to be strengthened.”

Among the ideas being considered is the possibility for teachers coming into education from other fields being allowed to retain their seniority for the purposes of pay. Also, young teachers would have less time to wait before obtaining an indefinite contract. Both measures are designed to attract more people to the profession.

Smet has promised a full proposal on the reform of teaching by the beginning of next year at the latest.

New international schools

Meanwhile, school started last Monday across Flanders. The new International School in Ghent welcomed its first 10 pupils – six in pre-school and four in primary. The school is aimed at expat families and expects more students to arrive over the coming months. Most of those coming for the first time this week were living in the area of Ghent, with some from Kortrijk.

In Kraainem, the region’s first trilingual school, offering classes in Dutch, French and English, has managed to attract only six students, and the school’s management is now considering whether it will be possible to carry on.

In Leuven, Prince Filip delivered his younger son Emmanuel to the Eureka school in Kessel-Lo. The school is specialised in teaching children with learning difficulties like dyslexia and dyscalculia to prepare them for a return to mainstream schools. Prince Emmanuel was previously a pupil, like his brothers, sisters and cousins, at the Sint-Jan Berchmans college in Brussels.

In other school news, more than eight out of 10 secondary school students travel to school on foot, by bicycle or on public transport, according to a report just released by the Flemish Traffic Study Foundation. Only 11% of students are brought to school by car, with a further 4% driving themselves by car or moped.

The quality of mathematics education in Flanders, meanwhile, is below standard, according to retired Ghent University professor Raymond Boute. He particularly criticised the books teachers use. “Mathematics is based on precision, and that’s something that’s nowhere to be found in these books,” he told De Morgen. Maths classes in secondary schools do not get across complex abstract concepts, he said, or prepare students for higher education, where courses are much more theoretical.