果冻传媒

Even 果冻传媒鈥檚 Best Teachers of 2025 aren鈥檛 too old or too experienced to keep learning themselves. That becomes clear when we invite Loe Schlicher and Robert van Dongen to sit down together. The conversation quickly turns to how to help students think critically and independently 鈥� and how to bring out the best in them.

LOVE FOR THE BLACKBOARD

It turns out both still enjoy using the 鈥渙ld-fashioned鈥� blackboard in their lessons, which immediately creates a connection. 鈥淒o you use the board too?鈥� Loe asks Robert. He nods: 鈥淚t鈥檚 much more dynamic. If the lesson suddenly takes a different turn, you can adapt on the fly.鈥�

For Loe, the blackboard is a way to let students follow his thinking as it unfolds. 鈥淚 really enjoy writing on the board. It gives me the space to think calmly about the next step, and students can follow me much more naturally. If you reveal everything at once on a single slide, students get overwhelmed with too much at the same time.鈥�

THE FIRST THING I鈥橫 GOING TO DO WITH THE PRIZE MONEY IS ORDER THE ROLLS-ROYCE OF CHALK FROM JAPAN.

Best Bachelor鈥檚 Teacher Loe Schlicher

A fun side note: Loe loves writing with chalk 鈥� though he鈥檚 less thrilled about ending up covered in it himself. 鈥淚n Japan, they sell chalk with a coating that doesn鈥檛 leave any dust 鈥� the Rolls-Royce of chalk. They cost about a euro each. The first thing I鈥檓 going to buy with the prize money I received for Best Bachelor鈥檚 Teacher is a box of those chalks,鈥� he says with a laugh.

PRIZE MONEY FOR EDUCATIONAL INNOVATION

With the 鈧�15,000 prize for educational innovation, he could stock up on chalk for life 鈥� though, of course, that鈥檚 not the real purpose of the award.

Loe鈥檚 research field is operations research and game theory. He plans to use the prize money to develop videos for a new course on homeland security. 鈥淭he course covers various safety themes, like city surveillance. For each topic, I want to interview an expert from the field and create a video. These videos will be shown at the beginning of each theme, before students start working on it. The recordings will take quite a bit of time and money, but I鈥檓 really excited to get started on this project.鈥�

I aim to bring education and research out of the university and into society.

Best Master鈥檚 Teacher Robert van Dongen

Robert jokes that his sons suggested he use the prize money for a trip to a tropical island. Guess who would volunteer to go along鈥�

鈥淪cience is under pressure because it鈥檚 drifting too far from society. Truth and knowledge matter, and I want to make their relevance visible. I want to bring education directly to the public, since the knowledge we develop is meant for society. For example, I could explain in a community center what we teach our students 鈥� though I鈥檓 still working out exactly how to do that.鈥�

ENGAGED AND PERSONAL

The two have a lot in common, according to their nominations and the jury reports for Best Bachelor鈥檚 and Master鈥檚 Teacher. Both show deep commitment to their students, constantly seek personal connections because it helps students learn better, are passionate about their fields, and serve as mentors whose doors are always open. Whether that鈥檚 on the fourth floor of Atlas (Loe) or the eighth floor of Vertigo (Robert).

鈥淚f a student takes the effort to come all the way up to Atlas to speak with me, I make time for them, even if it鈥檚 inconvenient,鈥� says Loe. 鈥淲hen they come knocking on your door, that鈥檚 the best moment to teach them something 鈥� because they have a real question, they鈥檙e curious, and they鈥檙e ready to learn.鈥� Robert nods in agreement.

COMPLETE REORGANIZATION

Loe was nominated for Best Bachelor鈥檚 Teacher for his course Intermediate Finance and Accounting, which he took over a few years ago. 鈥淭he funny thing is, it has nothing to do with my own research field. I had some affinity for it, but I really had to dive into the material.鈥�

He wanted to revamp the course because students had previously labeled it as easy. He added more depth, completely reorganized the course, wrote new lecture notes, created a workbook with over fifty exercises, and developed group assignments to connect the material with industry practice.

THE FUNNY THING IS: I WON THIS PRIZE FOR A COURSE THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MY RESEARCH.

Best Bachelor鈥檚 Teacher Loe Schlicher

His efforts weren鈥檛 immediately appreciated by all students. 鈥淥ne group loved it and gave the course high marks, but another group didn鈥檛 like it at all and gave really poor evaluations. There was nothing in between, and I doubted whether I was doing it right. My colleagues told me to stick with it 鈥� that opinions would even out over time, and the students who genuinely found the elective interesting would stay. I felt supported because they trusted the quality I was aiming to deliver in this course.鈥�

OUTSTANDING CANDIDATES

And it paid off. In fact, thanks to his dedication to this finance course, he was nominated by the study association Industria for Best Bachelor鈥檚 Teacher. 鈥淚t was already amazing to make it to the final three and stand on stage, but then I actually won!鈥�

鈥淭he other candidates are truly outstanding as well, and I was convinced that either Floor Van Schie or Henk Swagten would win. Henk has so much experience, and Floor is incredibly devoted to her students. Still, it was really special to be part of it. My parents were there too 鈥� both primary school teachers 鈥� and of course, they were immensely proud.鈥�

EXPERIENCING THE CITY

Robert鈥檚 field is Urban Planning and Transportation. 鈥淭he city is at the heart of it. I often send my students out so they can see and experience things for themselves. For a lesson on mobility, for example, I might ask them to walk around the city and take a photo related to the theme. Afterwards, they reflect on what they鈥檝e seen and put it on paper. In that brief quarter-hour, they realize: what this guy said in class actually exists out there in the real world.鈥�

That hands-on approach resonates with Loe as well. 鈥淚 want my students to be critical of what they hear and say. I try to challenge the master鈥檚 students I supervise a few times a year to think carefully and make choices. Do you really want to go into consultancy, or will you work for the government? Push yourself, try as many different things as possible.鈥�

THINKING IN POSSIBILITIES

What defines a truly great teacher? Robert takes a scientific approach: a good teacher is one 鈥渨ho succeeds in teaching students something.鈥� 鈥淚 try to achieve that by enjoying what I do and showing that it can be fun.鈥� He passes that attitude on to his students 鈥� and experiences it himself in his work. 鈥淲hen you do what you love, it doesn鈥檛 feel like much effort.鈥�

I TRY TO LEARN ALL MY STUDENTS鈥� NAMES BY HEART. THAT DOESN鈥橳 ALWAYS WORK IN A COURSE WITH THREE HUNDRED STUDENTS.

Best Master鈥檚 Teacher Robert van Dongen

Both focus on truly connecting with their students. 鈥淲hen you have that connection, you can pass on more knowledge,鈥� says Robert. 鈥淚 also try to learn all my students鈥� names by heart. It doesn鈥檛 always work with three hundred students, but I do my best. I want them to feel that they matter.鈥�

GREEN GRASS

At the start of a new course, Loe introduces himself to his students. 鈥淚 tell them who I am, that I have two daughters, that I love green grass and gardening. In Intermediate Finance and Accounting, I like to mention that finance isn鈥檛 really my research field.鈥�

He likes to use humor as an icebreaker. 鈥淪ometimes I get a bit carried away explaining a theory or model. Then I pause and ask, 鈥楢re you as excited about this model as I am?鈥� They laugh 鈥� and just like that, instant connection.鈥�

HELPING THEM FORWARD

Loe treasures the relationships he builds as a mentor with the master鈥檚 students he supervises. 鈥淥nce per quarter, I meet with students who want to talk about how things are going and where they want to head. Over two years, you get to know each other surprisingly well.鈥�

At graduation, Loe writes a personal speech for each of his graduates. 鈥淚t takes a lot of time, but it鈥檚 too rewarding and meaningful to skip.鈥�

MY BIGGEST LESSON? REALIZING I HAVE ENOUGH KNOWLEDGE TO OFFER MY STUDENTS SOMETHING MEANINGFUL.

Best Master鈥檚 Teacher Robert van Dongen

Robert recalls a 鈥渧aluable life lesson鈥� he learned years ago as a teacher. 鈥淚 had to teach a new course, but due to circumstances, I hadn鈥檛 had time to prepare properly. I had about half an hour before class to decide what I wanted to cover. I put together five slides with key sentences or concepts, and then discussed them with my students. The debates could get intense, but it was fantastic! That course ended up receiving the best evaluations ever. My biggest takeaway was realizing that I always have enough knowledge to give my students something meaningful.鈥�

He wants to encourage students to think in terms of possibilities. 鈥淚n our society, we鈥檙e constantly told, 鈥楾hat鈥檚 not possible.鈥� I want them to develop a mindset where 鈥榠t is possible鈥� takes center stage. To let go of the limits we鈥檝e imposed on ourselves. This is what we鈥檝e become accustomed to 鈥� but it doesn鈥檛 have to be that way.鈥�

WEARING YOUR IE GLASSES

Loe expects the same from his students, for example during bachelor鈥檚 final projects. 鈥淚 often see students wanting to dive straight into the challenge and the problem posed by a company. I force them to first put on their IE glasses (Industrial Engineering) and take a careful look. What鈥檚 really going on? I push hard on this at the start, hoping it will pay off for them later 鈥� and that they keep thinking about it. Because eventually, they have to do it themselves.鈥�

SUPER ANNOYING

That鈥檚 also why he doesn鈥檛 provide fully worked-out solutions for all assignments in his course. 鈥淪tudents find that super annoying. They ask me in class how to do the assignment, but they don鈥檛 get a complete answer. I want them to figure it out themselves. I鈥檓 not Aladdin鈥檚 genie you can call on at will to tell you what鈥檚 right or wrong. My goal is for them to learn to handle uncertainty and think critically on their own.鈥�

THE TEACHERS 鈥� THE ALL-KNOWING GENIES FROM THE LAMP 鈥� ARE NO LONGER THERE TO HELP YOU IN THE REAL WORLD. YOU HAVE TO DO IT YOURSELF.

Best Bachelor鈥檚 Teacher Loe Schlicher

鈥淚鈥檓 taking that metaphor with me,鈥� Robert says appreciatively to Loe. 鈥淥nce you start working after graduation, your teacher won鈥檛 pop out of a lamp anymore. That鈥檚 why we focus on training our students to be critical and independent thinkers.鈥�

LEARNING FROM EACH OTHER

Loe is impressed by the fact that Robert never fills his lectures to the very last minute, leaving room afterward for conversations and discussions. 鈥淭here are always students who stick around to talk about something,鈥� Robert explains.

鈥淚 really like the idea of intentionally leaving that space. There鈥檚 a certain magic in your classroom 鈥� I can feel it,鈥� Loe tells him. 鈥淚鈥檒l definitely drop by sometime to sit in on your lectures and see what I can experiment with in my own courses.鈥�

It just goes to show that even our best teachers never stop learning.