Sem (student)

“You learn how important teamwork is”

At Sondervick College, hands-on and project-based learning is playing an increasingly important role. This is how we foster entrepreneurship and prepare you for the future. That’s why all third-year students in the theoretical track take the course “Mavo in Practice.” In this course, you work on projects for real clients. Student Sem van der Heijden (15) talks enthusiastically about the projects from the past school year.

Talking with visitors and residents

“This school year, we worked on three projects. The first project was at Coppelmans Garden Center. We baked cookies at school in the kitchen of the Zorg & Welzijnplein and then handed them out to visitors at the garden center. It was also just nice to chat with the older visitors.”
The second project was a collaboration with the municipality of Veldhoven. The assignment: Design a meeting place for young people. “First, we did some research. We went into the village to ask people questions. That already yielded a lot of good ideas for our design.” The students presented their designs to aldermen, municipal enforcement officers, and other interested parties.

Looking for a client

Sem is now in the final stages of his last—and favorite—project: making a film. To do this, the students had to find a client on their own. “Through our network, we first connected with a coach for the Dutch national soccer team, but that didn’t work out in the end. Now we’re making a film for a tile company owned by a classmate’s uncle.” They’ll soon be presenting their film to parents and clients at Odeon.

Working Together to Prepare for the Future

What has Sem learned most of all? “That you have to start early and make a good plan. And that you then have to stick to it. But perhaps the most important thing is working together. After high school, I want to enroll in a training program with the Ministry of Defense. That’s also very much about working together.”