On Friday 6 March, the Flemish Government approved, on a proposal by Flemish Minister for Education Zuhal Demir, a policy concept note on the reform of teacher education programmes. In developing these proposals, the Minister drew in part on the NVAO report Study and Advice on Quality Enhancement in Teacher Education, which the NVAO presented to the Minister on 1 December 2025.
The report is based on input from experts and contains explicit policy recommendations aimed at structurally strengthening the quality of the professional bachelor's programmes in pre-primary and primary education in Flanders. The NVAO identifies three key levers for improvement:
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A focus on a core curriculum, informed by consensus-based research, through which student teachers acquire specific entry-level competences in subject knowledge, didactics and pedagogical relationships, including strong classroom management skills.
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Structural and sustainable partnerships between teacher education providers and primary schools, ensuring strong alignment between what students learn within their programme and in their placement schools, while also guaranteeing effective supervision and transparent, fair assessment for every student.
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An external quality assessment by the NVAO of the reformed pre-primary and primary teacher education programmes, based on the new quality requirements.
In this way, initial teacher education provides a solid foundation for the further professional development of beginning teachers. According to the NVAO, this strong foundation should be seamlessly connected to an induction phase with workplace-based support, enabling novice teachers to develop full professional competence.
