International Humanist and Ethical Youth Organisation
 
 



Europe

Austria
Belgium
Finland
France
Germany
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Slovakia
Sweden
United Kingdom




Or go to:

Africa

Asia

Australia

North America

South America

 

 



Youth humanism around the world

 

Netherlands

Jong HV
Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education (HVO)


 


Jong HV

The Jong HV (JH) is a national humanist youth group (age 18-35) within the Humanistisch Verbond (HV), the spiritual home in the Netherlands for people with a humanist life stance.

Aims
The Jong HV aims to be a forum where young people can develop themselves and their opinions on societal, personal and ethical topics. It wants to be a place where dialogue is valued and stimulated and wants to give youth an opportunity to learn more about humanism.


Activities
The aims are met by organising several activities:
1) a magazine,
2) an interactive website,
3) local groups where people talk about topics on a monthly basis,
4) day-activities and weekends.

Especially the weekends are an activity members all over the country look forward to during the year.
Besides this we have co-organised the 2002 international humanist youth conference which was held in the Netherlands. Also we organised in this year a well-visited inspirationday, this time it was about materialism.


Organisation

The Jong HV has around 150 members, 300 people receive the magazine. All its activities -the website, the magazine as well as the local discussion groups- aim at all young people who are interested. There are around 20 volunteers who organise the activities, are active in website work, make the magazine or who are in the board. There are almost ten local discussiongroups. And there is one employee who does the concrete work for the board one day per week.


Contact JH
website: www.jonghv.nl,
Address: Sarphatikade 13, 1070 AL Amsterdam,
Phone: +31 (0)20 5219045,
Contact by e-mail:
info@jonghv.nl .

@Written by Gea Meijers


Involvement in IHEYO

Jong HV is a full member of IHEYO.

back to top




Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education (HVO)


Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education is a course given in Dutch schools, developed by the centre for Humanistisch Vormings Onderwijs (HVO). HVO is an educational centre for humanist education and upbringing.

The centre is in charge of the education for becoming a teacher in Primary or Secondary school able to give 'Ethical and Worldview Education' based on humanist education principles. Also HVO provides trainings to people giving courses on upbringing and HVO provides extra education to teachers giving 'Ethical and Worldview Education' to update their knowledge and skills. Next to this, HVO develops several projects in this area. It is a centre of knowledge concerning Ethical and Worldview Education and Humanist Education.

Ethical and Worldview Education is not the same as Humanist Education. Ethical and Worldview Education is based on Humanist principles of teaching, but is not about teaching the humanist perspective on life.



Ethical and Worldview Education in the Dutch school system


Ethical and Worldview Education -religious or non-religious- is by Law a part of the School's curriculum in the Netherlands. For Primary (up to 12 years of age) and Secondary school (12-16/17/18) there are different provisions.


Primary Education

Children in the state primary schools in the Netherlands have a legal right to receive religious instruction or ideological-ethical education during school hours. This instruction is bound to certain regulations that are legally binding and it is offered by the different religious and non-religious groups. The Dutch education system is based on a division of special schools (mostly religious school) and public schools (with a neutral identity); both are funded by the state.

From 1969, humanists have started offering Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education as an ideological-ethical course in primary schools. Humanist ethical and worldview education can at present be offered at a third of public primary schools. Teachers of this subject are trained and guided by HVO.


Secondary School

In Secondary school, Ethical and Worldview Education is one of the subjects schools can choose to offer youngsters. It is not part of the standard minimum curriculum that all school should provide their students. At two schools in the Netherlands Humanism is given as course during school hours. At other schools HVO-teachers give the course 'Ethics'. Most HVO-teachers teach Ethical and Worldview Education.



Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education in practice  

The essence of Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education is to guide students to moral self-guidance so that they can take personal responsibility for their own lives, in commitment to others.

Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education in practice has given rise to a special methodology -recognize, examine, choose, evaluate- for this, which is primarily descriptive rather than prescriptive. This methodology gives HVO-teachers a structure, a frame within which to plan and to develop their themed lessons.

This methodology allows for a variety of working methods, such as play and role-playing, different forms of dialogue and discussion, the use of visual and auditive forms to stimulate all senses and all kinds of other creative working methods, which all reinforce the objective of humanist ethical and worldview education. Important subjects in these lessons at primary schools: are friendship, childrens’ rights, being different, feasts, pets, feelings, happiness, sorrow, mourning and many other aspects from the pupils’ perception of their environment.

With humanist Ethical and Worldview Education, humanists offer children and youngsters a methodically well-thought-out course in becoming responsibly autonomous, directed at their moral, socio-emotional and identity development.



Guiding principles in Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education


The guiding principles in Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education are the images of man as a master in the art of social living, as a committed citizen of the world. The art of living in society ‘is an inspiration, an urge for renewal, a long-term process in which two values are welded together which had been driven apart: a fundamental skill to navigate through one’s own life and a many-sided involvement in the fortunes of others. And that not out of duty or self-sacrifice, but as the fulfilment of a happy human existence’ (Manschot, 2000).

Committed citizenship of the world emphasizes the involvement with the fortunes of others beyond local, regional or national boundaries. Many parents opt for humanist ethical and worldview education because it has been found to be an additional preparation for life in the democratic society.


Book in English: a taste of Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education


To give you a taste of Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education, a book of lesson plans and teaching suggestions for Humanist Ethical and Worldview Education is published, called: 'Mastering the art of living and becoming a citizen of the world, it isn´t something that just happens'. It offers an insight into the special contribution humanists make in the Netherlands through their life and world view education at public schools. To order the book, you can send a e-mail to: psc@hvo.nl.


Contact

Postal Address: P.O. 85475,
3505 AL Utrecht, The Netherlands
Telefphone: 0031 30-2856 663
E-mail: psc@hvo.nl
Website: www.hvo.nl



Involvement In IHEYO
HVO is a member Organisation of IHEU (IHEYO is the youth section fo IHEU).