'Students sense that I know what I'm talking about'

Interview with Professor of Practice for Diversity and Inclusion, Abdelhamid Idrissi

20 Dec 2022 15:00 | Faculty of Education

The aim of Professor of Practice for Diversity and Inclusion Abdelhamid Idrissi (33) is to help the AUAS become the nicest, safest and most inclusive educational institution in the Netherlands within three years. "Lecturers who immerse themselves in students' worlds and genuinely want to be there for them are key to this."

“Lecturers need to become friends with their students”

YOU HAVE BEEN PROFESSOR OF PRACTICE FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THIS YEAR. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

"That for the next three years I get to use all my expertise and experience to make the AUAS community, together with everyone who works there and is involved with it, a more attractive, diverse and inclusive place."

WHAT IS YOUR EXPERTISE AND EXPERIENCE IN THIS FIELD?

"In my family, studying did not come naturally. For example, I knew that I needed a laptop to study architecture at the AUAS, but there was no money for that at home, so I thought that I wouldn't be able to do that Bachelor’s programme. My father fortunately came up with the idea of borrowing one. In the evenings and at weekends, I worked on a borrowed laptop. Around me, I saw peers not starting degree programmes for the same reason. Or that fellow students quit their degree programmes because they couldn't find a work placement, and their parents didn't have the network or power to help them. They pretended to be tough and self‑assured but in the meantime they had stomach pains from stress. Such a person then thinks, this is yet another delay in my studies I must suffer, so I'll just quit and be rid of the hassle. I know what these thoughts are like. And I also know that you can turn them into positive energy and more self-confidence."

YOU FOUNDED THE STUDY HALLS FOUNDATION. THERE ARE 47 OF THEM IN AMSTERDAM NOW, AND NOT IN THE EASIEST NEIGHBOURHOODS, RIGHT?

"The ambition of the Study Halls Foundation (in Dutch, Studiezalen) is broader than the name might suggest. We do more than helping with homework. We want to get the maximum talent out of children living in disadvantaged neighbourhoods, which is why we also provide life coaching. By doing this, we give young people a wider view of the world and a positive perspective, for example, by taking them to a museum or to a company, places they wouldn't otherwise go. We want to empower people."

DOES IT WORK?

"Through training, a positive lifestyle and optimistic mindset, people can take control of their own lives. They don't have to resign themselves to the fact that they have fewer opportunities than others. That’s in their own interest as well as in the interest of society."

WHAT DO YOU SEE HAPPENING AT THE AUAS?

"It’s still the case that the children of parents who were not able to study are less likely to end up at a university of applied sciences. And when they are there, they drop out more often. Even at the AUAS, more is needed than education alone if the goal is to provide a safe place for everyone. In my first year as Professor of Practice, I want to get to the heart of the problem quickly. What are the experiences of students and lecturers, where do things go wrong? They are the experts, and I need their help to understand where the stress is. And I also want to hear what they think the solutions are."

AND THEN IN THREE YEARS THERE WILL BE A REPORT WITH GREAT RECOMMENDATIONS?

"No, no, I'm not doing this for show. I believe in practical solutions: what does someone need right now to go forward, to experience the AUAS as a home and therefore not quit their studies?"

DO YOU HAVE AN EXAMPLE OF THAT?

"I spoke to a student who is too poor to buy a winter coat. In addition, she is a caregiver. Education is therefore an afterthought for her. I then think, how do we ensure that she and other poor students get coats and stay in the degree programme? Another example is that you can't concentrate or socialise when you are hungry."

BUT THERE’S PLENTY OF COFFEE AND SANDWICHES IN THE CANTEEN, RIGHT?

"Well, if you have money, yes. When I studied here, I sometimes saw fellow students sitting together after a lecture to discuss something. I was never there, I went home because I couldn't buy a round. Then you start avoiding such meetings, so you don't build a network, and studying becomes less fun. The AUAS community knows by now that it is difficult for some students to get a laptop and the internet, but there are even more basic things. People who are hungry, girls who have no money for sanitary towels, boys who steal shaving blades and cream from the supermarket to be able to shave before going to lectures or job interviews."

DO STUDENTS ACTUALLY TELL YOU THESE THINGS?

"Yes, if they can talk to me on their own and not in a group. There's a lot of shame, it's sensitive stuff. I say, with me everything’s safe, nothing surprises me. Students sense that I know what I'm talking about. I also know that poverty is not only about lack of money. It’s also about poverty of vocabulary, of network, poverty of positive experiences. It was only during my studies here that I came to understand that it’s OK to express your feelings, that you can ask for help. I never did, I always just nodded and pretended to understand everything, even though I come from a loving family where I got plenty of attention."

WHAT CAN THE AUAS DO?

"I don't yet know that exactly. What I do know is that this issue should get the attention it deserves every day, it should not just become a project. What I know from my work at the Study Halls Foundation is that lecturers must become friends with their students. We need to listen carefully, seek similarities instead of opposites, be involved and give compliments when something succeeds. Then students feel heard and seen. That’s why it’s important to have more diversity and examples in all layers of the AUAS community. Then it will also be easier for students to talk about what bothers them. Lecturers need to know and feel that they can make a difference in young people's lives. I know how great that is, for all involved."

This interview is from Blik, the magazine created by the Centre of Expertise Urban Education (Dutch), which contains stories about improving the equality of opportunity for children and young people in the city.