How to read a Dutch school report (rapport)
Letters, numbers, levels and short comments: a Dutch school report can be hard to read. This guide explains the parts and the words you will see.
Two or three times a year, your child brings home a school report, the rapport. Every school designs its own report, so they look different — but most have the same parts.
1. Subjects and marks
Each subject gets a mark. Schools use different scales:
- Words or letters, often in primary school: goed (good), ruim voldoende (more than sufficient), voldoende (sufficient), matig (moderate) and onvoldoende (insufficient). Sometimes only the first letters are used, such as G, V or O.
- Numbers from 1 to 10, more common in the higher groups and in secondary school. A 6 or higher is a pass; a 5.5 is often rounded up to a 6.
Typical subjects are rekenen (maths), taal (Dutch language), spelling, begrijpend lezen (reading comprehension) and technisch lezen (reading aloud fluently).
2. Test results
Many reports also show the results of the national pupil monitoring tests (leerlingvolgsysteem, often called Cito after a well-known test maker). They are usually shown as levels, such as I to V or A to E, where I or A is the highest. They compare your child with children of the same age across the country.
3. Work attitude and behaviour
Under werkhouding (work attitude) and gedrag (behaviour), the teacher describes how your child works and gets along with others: concentration, independence, working neatly, playing together.
4. The teacher’s comment
Most reports end with a short text from the teacher. It is often the most useful part: it says what goes well and what your child can work on.
Tips for reading the report
- Compare it with the previous report: is your child making progress?
- Look at the comment and the test levels together, not only at one mark.
- Write down what you do not understand, and ask about it in the report meeting.
- Ask: Wat kan ik thuis doen om te helpen? — What can I do at home to help?
Let Lexora explain it
Upload a photo or PDF of the report in Lexora. You get an explanation in your own language: how your child is doing per subject, strengths, areas to grow, advice for at home, and questions you can ask the teacher in Dutch. The explanation is made by AI, so check important points with the school.
