Special school (Netherlands)
Encyclopedia
A special school in the education system
Education in the Netherlands
Education in the Netherlands is characterized by division: education is orientated toward the needs and background of the pupil. Education is divided over schools for different age groups, some of which are divided in streams for different educational levels...

 of the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

, is a separate category from a public or private school. It is not to be confused with "speciaal onderwijs", which refers to schools specialized to deal with severe learning disabilities.

It is administered by an independent board, as opposed to a government authority, often based on some religion or ideology. Types of schools include Protestant, Reformed, Roman Catholic, Islamic, and Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...

.

At the same time, it is within far-going control of the Ministry of Education and its Inspection. Special schools cannot charge tuition over the statutory rate, and they are subsidized on equal footing with public schools. They are notably distinct from private schools—-of which there are a small but increasing number—which get no subsidies and can charge arbitrary tuition.

The special schools arose during the pillarization of Dutch society, when religious and secular parties fought over religious education and reached a rather elaborate compromise.

Nowadays, the Netherlands is officially not a pillarized country and some discussion is taking place whether tax money should be going to schools that are majority- Christian. The existence orthodox Islam schools that do not promote integration with the rest of Dutch society triggers this discussion more than other aspects of the system.
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