Digital platform to help Brussels civil servants speak Dutch

A new online learning platform has been launched to help civil servants at the 19 town halls in Brussels become more bilingual. The platform, available to workers via an intra-net system, was developed by Huis van het Nederlands with the support of the Brussels-Capital Region.

The language laws oblige Brussels’ communes to employ staff able to speak both French and Dutch. In practice, most municipalities have some Dutch-speaking civil servants, but the majority who deal with the public only speak French.

The new platform provides vocabulary, grammar and hundreds of conversational exercises at three skill levels to allow staff to practice for common situations. There are also pronunciation exercises and written tests.

The app is “a passive form of language teaching that is most useful in combination with language lessons,” Michiel Renier of Huis van het Nederlands explained to brusselnieuws.be. “But even if those are not available, the course can be helpful. A learner can, for example, print off a list of typical sentences frequently used in the job and keep them beside the counter.”

The advantage of the online platform is that, unlike traditional lessons, it can be turned to at any moment of the day for short practice sessions. It also comes as an application for digital devices.

“Municipal staff often associate language learning with obtaining a Selor diploma,” said Brussels alderman for personnel, Philippe Close, referring to the federal government’s job recruitment agency, which administers language tests. “So they think of Dutch lessons as a burden. The platform makes it more enjoyable.”

Huis van het Nederlands also provides classic language lessons for Brussels-City staff who deal with the public, including counter staff at the city’s administration. Four other communes – Sint-Gillis, Elsene, Jette and Schaarbeek (pictured) – have also started language training for staff.

photo courtesy M0tty/Wikimedia