Belgium’s future teachers show gaps in general knowledge

A study published yesterday reveals that a large number of Belgium’s future secondary school teachers struggle with basic concepts of geography, politics and history, reports Reuters’ Robert-Jan Bartunek. Among final-year teaching students involved in the study, one in three could not identify the United States on a map and almost half did not know where the Pacific Ocean was. Shown a picture of Mao Zedong, two in three could not recognise the Chinese Communist leader, with the most common response being that it was the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Researchers at Limburg Catholic University College tested 1,000 students in eight teacher-training colleges in Flanders. The test, which asked 114 multiple-choice questions, was carried out because students often showed gaps in their general knowledge. “Nobody is completely taken aback by the results,” said researcher Erik De Winter. Students who followed the news and read newspapers scored better in the test than those who said they did not, and the college will now carry out further research to see how the situation can be improved. Flemish education minister Pascal Smet said the region was already rethinking the training of its future teachers and would, if necessary, make adjustments by the summer.