10 years old and already starting university?
On Saturday 19 November 2016 the students (9 – 12 years old) and several parents of the Transvaal University visited the Leiden University College (LUC) The Hague. The aim of the visit was to get acquainted with several scientific issues in an interactive session.
Transvaal University is an initiative of the primary school ‘Het Galjoen’ and community centre ‘Boerenplein’ in the Transvaal district in The Hague. Every Saturday morning a class of fifteen eager students are taught a variety of different (socially oriented) subjects in order to enhance the talents and skillsets of these children
As LUC The Hague was more than happy to contribute to this goal Prof. dr. Judi Mesman (Dean of LUC The Hague) and several teachers put together a program in order to introduce the students from Transvaal University to issues they are currently researching. After an introduction lecture given by Prof. dr. Mesman, the students attended a workshop by Dr. Thijs Bosker on fish and pollution, listened to Dr. Jessica Kiefte-De Jong explaining the importance of healthy food and, together with Dr. Joris Larik, explored Europe.
Prof. dr. Judi Mesman was very pleased with the outcome of the day. “It was tremendous fun to see the students’ enthusiasm and willingness to learn. They asked a lot of intelligent questions and already knew quite a lot. The university feels that it is very important to stimulate young talent and to show them what goes on within its buildings. These kinds of initiatives are very well suited to LUC’s aim of working together closely with the city of The Hague. We hope to be able to welcome Transvaal University more often in the future!”
Photography: LUC.ID - Martin Fox