ORANJESTAD/THE BOTTOM – A team from Bureau ICE, consisting of Adriaan D’Haens and Willemijn van den Berg, travelled to St. Eustatius and Saba last week to instruct teachers on evaluating the tests of Leerling volg systeem (LVS) BES.

The LVS BES aims to provide teachers with insight into the language proficiency of their students for Dutch as a Foreign Language, English, and Papiamentu. Bureau ICE develops formative tests on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science/OCW to measure students’ progress.

“As an outsider, I am impressed by the efforts made to develop tests that resonate with the lives of children on the BES islands. These tests are aligned with the European Framework for Foreign Language Education and offer different approaches for Bonaire, Saba, and Statia,” says D’Haens.

Instrument

D’Haens also notes that during his visits, he observed that teachers in Saba and St. Eustatius needed a tool to measure their students’ progress. “It was gratifying to assist in explaining how our tests can be used and evaluated.”