I attended my first immigrant social orientation night class tonight.
This is the class that will help me integrate into Belgian life.
I may have said bad words when I arrived home, very bad words.
I may have blamed Gert for the misery caused by this first class, and for the ongoing misery yet to be caused by 10 three hour classes over the next 5 weeks.
In fact I probably did swear, and it was logical to direct it in his general direction. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be forced to attend this course and forced I am ... the fine for failing to attend is 5000euro.
The letter inviting me to come sign up for the course with 'limited places' did remind me of my obligation ....
The course notes are patronising in the extreme.
They begin the index that follows:
A. READ THIS FIRST ....page 11
1. Welcome
2. What is integration?
3. What is social orientation?
4. How do you use this book?
B. BELGIUM
1. Belgium is part of Europe
2. Flanders is part of Belgium.
Other examples, and there are 10 pages of Index to choose from, read like this:
D. TRANSPORT
1. On foot
- pedestrians have to use the pavement.
Do you want to cross the road? Use the zebra crossing if there is one. Cars have to stop. A tram does not have to stop if a pedestrian wants to cross the road!.
2. By bicycle
3. By bus, by tram or by the underground.
Page 11's welcome reads:
You are a newcomer.
Welcome to Belgium.
Welcome to Flanders.
We will explain what integration is.
We will explain what social orientation is.
In the social orientation course you get a lot of information about life in Belgium and Flanders. You will find this information in the textbook.
We will explain how you can use this textbook.
Do you have any questions or comments?
Talk to your teacher or your coach.
etc until page 17 ...
Then you arrive at B. BELGIUM
In the continent of Europe, 25 countries work together. This cooperation is the European Union.
... Page 19:
The European Commission is a sort of government. The people of all the member countries of the European Union elect the European Parliament.
Tonight ... we spent 3 hours discussing what we knew about Europe, Belgium and Antwerp.
We had a 15 minute break but were warned, just as we were taking the break, that there was no where to purchase drink or food. The class begins at 6.30pm. I only discovered I had no choice but to attend at 4pm this afternoon. I arrived home from the city in time to put on warmer clothes and leave again.
To say I an appalled is an understatement. I knew all and more than they were offering and having an intelligence level somewhat higher than a 3 year old, found the text book fairly offensive.
I'll leave you with this example from Page 283 and will post more samples over the days and weeks ahead, allowing you to share in the experience that is social integration here in Flanders.
M. LEISURE TIME
A lot of people divide their time between:
- time to work
- time to go to school
- leisure time: in your leisure time, you can do as you please.
23 comments:
My god, this would make me sooo angry, I'd flip if I had to go through this insanity...
I guess they were looking for a way to cut down on the number of unemployed Belgian teachers (who on earth is 'teaching' this class?)
while harassing some well-integrated migrants along the way.
I was so mad Peter, as I feel I've been integrating fairly well during my 2 years+ in the country.
To be fair to the teacher, he didn't make us open the folder, although some students in the class quietly used it to get information for the discussion.
I think the worst of this class is that it's at night for people who are working here or have their own businesses ... to subject them to that when they are clearly integrating seems like a waste of time.
Oh, do I feel for you. Here that course goes on for 2 years, 4 hours a day if you come as a refugee. I guess they somehow believe people with the means to negotiate life well enough to travel here are not only unschooled, they are boring and mentally deficient. I arrived before they put the whole system in place.
Will you have a test at the end? An outing where they follow you to see if you know to use the zebra stripes?
2 years, 4 hours a day?????
It sounds like passive aggressive anti-immigration policy to me.
Congratulations on missing it. Here the government, clearly missing the problems of pollution, sex traffiking and the drug trade made attendence retrospective and even people who have been here 20 years are forced ... oh, I mean 'obliged' to attend.
A test ... oh lordy, I hope not. The test is surely in the turning up for 3 hours twice a week. If we manage that, we're clearly stubborn enough to live here.
Well some parts of the integration course can be interesting and useful for people who have never lived in the Western world and on some levels, like recycling, even for Westerns. But I doubt if it will do you much good since you've learned most of these skills by your husband and know that the plastic bottles belong in the blue sack. Hang on in there Di and please enlighten us with information about Belgium.
PS: The European Union, since the beginning of the year, counts 27 nations.
Oh Manic ... but you know what, I'm intelligent and would have worked out the recycling.
I guess the 'gem' section of my blog is going to get interesting huh.
I had to take this course as well during the summer, mine was in Spanish because although I speak perfect English they just thought I would understand all this "important" facts about Belgian life better in my mother tong. I did find the course very infantilizing, a waste of time really!!
Hi Mariaclara
I really admire the intent behind the course but I think they have failed to turn the intention into something good.
Interesting to know it was 'infantilizing' in Spanish. Because I'm the only native English speaker in my class, I had imagined that the English they were using was aimed at non-English speakers ... but obviously that's not the case.
4 weeks to go ...
Exactly, the intent is good, but they shouldn't oblige people to take a course, they should have the information available for whomever needs it. Anyway, I am glad somebody is blogging about this.
I say bring the laptop and "pretend" to be taking notes while processing photos and composing brilliant blog posts and working on your novel.
Can you attend wearing ear plugs? Tell them it's a Maori custom that honors the teacher. : )
oh. my. god.
I don't know what else to say.
Seriously.
oh. my. god.
I don't like being the one blogging about it but it has to be written about ... let's call it a form of therapy. I will say something to the people who made me attend though, out of respect for the intention of it all.
The teacher is quite firm with us ... phones turned off, arrive on time and no talking when he is talking. On one hand, I admire his class control, on the other, I resent being in that position ... the laptop would be a big no-no, is what I'm saying.
Earplugs ... he already has a way of raising his eyebrow.
Thanks Laura!
I think 'oh. my. god.' is pretty much all there is to say.
It's the 5000euro fine that gets me to go and that's about it.
Waw, on behalf of all Belgians I sincerely apologize for this treatment ;-). Still, there are heaps of new immigrants who have no clue about Europe, Belgium, or the way of life here and who could use some help towards integration. Too bad long-term immigrants have to attend as well, not to mention that the course is apparently condescending. Hang in there!
Bedankt Inge, I find the fine for non-attendance kind of inspirational ...
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA. This has got to be the funniest thing I've read for ages - not so much the workbook, more the thought of you seething your way through the next 10 lessons! :> (is that bad of me?)
Dear Christopher, otherwise known as ex-husband of mine ... I rarely seethe. I am talkative and amusing, as well you know.
I was group leader, noting down and then reading out our little points about Europe, having mentioned to the teacher that I had studied the EU in university with one of world's (at the time) leading anthropologists.
So far I have only been a little ... hmmmm, challenging perhaps. Quietly seething doesn't suit me for long. I must post another little gem from the course to honour your amusement.
Oh, and I'm going to mention to Sands that you have her on your Flickr account ... take that.
My social integration course made my blood boil. Ours was 60 hours, basically every weekday afternoon for the month of August.
Our teacher was a South African woman (married to a Dutch man). They only live in Belgium because she had been kicked out of the Netherlands because her paperwork wasn't in order.
She barely 'taught' us anything, and when she did, she gave incorrect information (eg. that Verhofstadt is a socialist(!!)). Easily 80% of our time was spent talking about topics completely unrelated to Belgium.
It was such an absolute waste of time (and taxpayer money).
'60 hours ... basically every weekday afternoon for the month of August' must have been a nightmare Aimee.
Did I mention that the course I'm on is for people who work here? So we get to go 3 hours at night, twice a week.
I guess I'm lucky, as our teacher seems intelligent and Belgian.
Thinkig Verhofstadt is a socialist is surely something you should be kicked out of Belgium for ;)
It's the wasting of our time that devastates me. I don't have time to waste and some of the guys who had come straight from work were falling asleep in their chairs from sheer exhaustion.
The waste of tax payers money .. it has been mentioned by friends.
thanks for your post...I am happy to know that I am not the only one think this course is wasting my time.....
I spent like 13 euro every Friday to go to this class...sigh...
My sympathies, Maryam. I had forgotten this post, and think I may have just got post-trauma rereading it :-S
It's disappointing it hasn't improved. Ask them to explain BHV ... quickly before the new government puts their solution into practice. My teacher kind of whimpered :-)
I was taught how many countries there are in the E.U... next week...how to use the library LOOOL. God help me!! Yeah...not sure how I landed on that page...think I was searching something on inburgering!!! I see you survived it
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