“Grandpa, what’s behind those gates?” A question often asked by me during the weekly walks I took as a little girl with my grandfather through the Maastricht park. I always thought the beautiful buildings that lay hidden behind those high gates and wrought iron in the midst of a park, were absolutely fascinating. My grandfather always patiently replied me with the same answer: “the army, dear”. Although his answer fascinated me even more, it was the only information he would give me. Not because he didn’t want to, but simply because the citizens of Maastricht didn’t know an awful lot of what went on behind those gates. And even now, when there are no longer soldiers living inside those interesting buildings and my weekly walks with granddad lie in the past, my curiosity to what happened at Tapijn still exists.
However, at the end of 2013 the high gates were removed and the site was made publicly accessible, due to the purchase of Tapijn by the UM, Province Limburg and the Community of Maastricht. As to my curiosity, it has transformed into enthusiasm since I am allowed to work in one of those fascinating buildings for the UM, building X!
Not just building X with EDLAB, but the whole site of Tapijn is currently being developed. Where the area used to be so shut off from the outside world, it will have a very open and accessible character in the near future. The more reason to take a moment to remember the history of this beautiful place.
The Tapijn barracks were built between 1916 and 1916 on the site of the Kommen (this name reminds us of the inundation basins, that used to be south of the city in the 17th century as a wet defense line). The barracks were named after Sebastiaan Tapijn in 1934, who heroically – although fruitlessly – defended the city against the Spanish besiegers en payed for it with his life.
The barracks consisted at first only of a few buildings and was developed and extended throughout the years. Building X was built in 1955, as a new teaching building with diner for the officers. A creation of architect P. de Ruiter en famed for its architectonical qualities.
A very important part of the Tapijn barracks and recently as well for building X, is the cenotaph of General Dibbets. General Bernardus Johannes Cornelis Dibbets (1748-1839) was commanding officer of the stronghold Maastricht. He was – and remains so even today – viewed as a traitor by the citizens of Maastricht, who held him accountable for the adding of Maastricht and Dutch Limburg to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Originally he was buried in 1839 with all military honors in the municipal cemetery on the Tongerseweg. After two months the body of Dibbets was reburied on the Nieuwe Bossche Fronten. It was a great honor to be buried on the Defense Works. For many years there was a tradition among the citizens of Maastricht to urinate of his tomb on Sundays, after Mass. In the late twenties of the last century, the tomb was moved to the ground of the Tapijn barracks. It was during this move that it was discovered that the grave was in fact empty. That is why the current monument is a cenotaph.
Although General Dibbets was very much disliked, the history of Maastricht during his lifetime forms the basis for a beautiful piece of art that that recently covers the walls of building X. A mural with a motif and colors based on the characteristics of the building itself and the history of not just Tapijn but the whole city of Maastricht. You can recognize the X inside the pattern, but also some elements of the city itself (park, St. Jan, Jeker). Some parts of the mural appear even to attack the central motif, mirroring battle plans like the ones Dibbets used to encounter. The colors and patterns are also influenced by the Maastricht carnival and are part of the traditional outfit for a Harlequin, a figure that the famous Mestreechter Geis – symbol for the Maastricht carnival and the esprit of the people of Maastricht – was sculptured after. Let us then complete the circle by concluding that according to history, it was during the reign of General Dibbets that the Maastricht carnival was founded as a way of enlivening the people.
Stage 3: Align means and ends
At the Maastricht Sustainability Institute, teaching and learning in the master takes place in a ‘flipped classroom’ format. Small groups of 5 to 6 students first work independently on learning objectives, and subsequently report back in a plenary meeting with around 20 students. This puts a strong emphasis on the self-directed and collaborative aspects of learning. To prepare for this, at the beginning of the programme, students do an exercise in group work. They also draw up a Team Charter that describes how they will collaborate.
Stage 5: How are we doing?
This activity aims to get students to reflect on their experiences with PBL, especially those that have been less positive, thinking first about what caused the disappointment, then possible solutions. The activity involves a 10-15-minute individual reflection activity, followed by some 30 minutes of small group discussion of causes and solutions to problems. The tutor’s role (not described in the exercise) is to monitor the discussion and ensure suggestions are collected in a useable form.
Stage 4: Keeping up the spirit
At the MSc Learning and Development in Organisations, learning is based on the principles of constructive, contextual, collaborative and self-directed learning. The constructive and collaborative aspects of learning in particular, are seen as very similar to learning and working in a professional context. In the coaching that is an integral part of this programme, reflection on what is learned and how it is learned become two sides of the same coin. Goal setting and self-evaluation by students concerns the development of competencies and the way in which these are acquired through learning.
Stage 2: Mind the gap to previous experiences
We used a flipped format to deliver PBL information during Introduction days. We set up a canvas course dedicated to Introduction days were students could find all sort of information, including websites, contact information and student manuals related to their selected study programme. Within this canvas site, we added an Introduction days schedule with embedded welcome videos and/or documents. In the week prior to Introduction Days, participants received an email (via Canvas announcements) asking them to go over the event’s schedule on Canvas and watch a ~40 min video with a detailed explanation on how PBL works. During Introduction days the panel was organized as follows:
— Panel chair briefly summarized the main concepts related to PBL
— The tutors/coordinators and current students panelists introduced themselves and shared (informally) their thoughts and experience with PBL
— The chair opened the room for questions from new students
Unlike previous years that used a simple PBL presentation (passive listening), the flipped approach allowed us to provide the factual information before hand and opt for a more active PBM meeting for optimal engagement of participants during the event. Participants asked many questions, often building up from answers provided by the panel. Having a diverse panel answering questions was an added bonus, as the participants quickly realized that different coordinators/tutors might approach PBL differently, depending on the content and focus of the course. The current student perspective was very valuable as they provided examples of how they prepare for PBL and act as chairs or scribes. In Period 2 we asked the new students to provide feedback about Introduction Days and they commented quite favorably about the active PBL panel.
Stage 1: Mapping Teaching & Learning Styles
This activity is designed to get students to compare their expectations of teacher and student roles, with the hope of revealing underlying cultural perceptions so that all are aware of them and they can be addressed. When grouping the students, try to select diverse nationality groups. Time stage A so that students discuss their (national) cultural expectations before learning in detail about PBL. Carry out stage B after they have received some input about what PBL is.