Students who want to learn Dutch but don’t have access to the UG Language Centre’s regular courses might want to try their luck with a free MOOC. The next session starts next week.
The Dutch course recently reached a milestone, having taught 300,000 subscribers from all over the world. Created by the UG Language Centre, the programme offers free online lessons covering the basics of Dutch.
On the platform, students can learn and interact with each other through online exercises. ‘It was pretty basic, but it gave me a good introduction to the language. It was nice to chat with people through the forum, where you can post things after the lessons,’ says Sarah Manohar.
Sarah had just moved to Groningen in 2021 to do her pre-master’s in law when she discovered the course. She found it to be a great icebreaker for learning Dutch and a way to meet people during the pandemic. The course also helped her at work: ‘Everything wasn’t so foreign.’
Course is free
Over three weeks, students learn to introduce themselves, describe objects, count, and understand short dialogues. The course is free and open to people from different backgrounds, with no prerequisites. The number of subscribers is unlimited.
Although the classes are pre-recorded, lecturers are available throughout the course to answer questions and provide feedback. ‘When we have written assignments, we give feedback. Of course, we can’t respond to every submission because there are too many participants, but we try to give as much as we can,’ says Margrite Hidding, co-founder of the introductory Dutch course. Participants can follow the lessons at their own pace each week.
Refugees
Originally designed to help RUG students and staff learn Dutch, the course has also attracted the interest of refugees in the Netherlands. As a result, the organization responsible for the reception of asylum seekers in the Netherlands (COA, Centraal Orgaan opvang asielzoekers) now refers refugees to the programme.
The next course begins on February 24, with additional sessions starting on August 11 and November 17. The learning platform is free to access during the three-week course. However, students who wish to retain unlimited access after the course ends must pay a 75 euros fee.