I want students to feel seen

When Nissrin started studying Law in Utrecht, she wanted to make a difference. But the programme didn’t turn out to be what she had expected. She struggled to pass her courses and started wondering whether higher professional education was right for her. That changed when she started International Social Work and met her mentor, Dellwyn. “For the first time, I had a mentor who genuinely wanted me to succeed,” she says.

Studying in English was another challenge. But meeting Dellwyn made a big difference. “At Utrecht my mentor didn’t even know my name. I was literally a number.” Dellwyn was also the first person of colour who was her mentor or teacher. “That really helped me connect. I didn’t have to explain everything in a way that I’m used to. For the first time, I felt: I can do this.” It is one of the reasons Nissrin nominated Dellwyn for the Impact Teacher of the Year Award.

Dellwyn says he remembers his own experience when he was at university. “I also felt like a number, nobody really cared, I just did my job and went home. When I became a teacher, I thought I don’t want any student to feel that way. I want them to feel seen.” For Dellwyn, teaching is about more than completing a programme or getting a grade. “This is your future we’re talking about here. You’re here to discover whether this programme is for you.”

Dellwyn has worked at HAN for almost 14 years. He started at the language centre, but when he heard about this new programme ISW, it was the international character of the programme and its students that appealed to him. “Students come from all over the world, not only to become social workers, but to become changemakers. Being people who want to influence, listen, share, inspire and empower. All these words made me excited: I wanted to teach these students.”

Dellwyn’s background is in organisational behaviour, he brings his own experience into the classroom. Rather than simply teaching students, he also asks students to connect what they learn to their own lives and assignments. Dellwyn sees learning as equal, recognising that “my students are teaching me things as well. I think learning and asking questions are things that both students and teachers should do. Authenticity and vulnerability are important parts of teaching, including being comfortable admitting when you don’t know.”

For Nissrin, cultural awareness is important in her studies. “I think being culturally aware of the people who are in your class, that would really help.” She notes that students may feel they have to explain their culture repeatedly: “Why do you wear a hijab, why don’t you join this holiday, why don’t you do that. Those are not questions that you have to ask yourself in class when the teacher knows.”

For Dellwyn, good teaching starts with the same values as social work: authenticity and vulnerability. “Become a teacher with compassion.” But Dellwyn also had to learn how to set boundaries. “I love being a teacher, I love what I do, but it’s getting harder, it takes a toll on you. We teach our students about compassion fatigue. I experience it myself as well.”

Dellwyn: “Social work isn’t simple. And we keep on evolving, keep on growing, and whatever’s happening in the world, we talk about immediately, whatever’s happening with our students, they share with us. We laugh together, we cry together.”

One moment stayed with Nissrin. During a class on presentation skills, Dellwyn said he had to leave the classroom, but would come back. Later, he explained that he had left to help a student who was in an unsafe situation. “It stayed with me, cause apparently students feel safe enough to share their own personal story. For me, that shows that Dellwyn really understands what social work is about.”

Dellwyn says the goal is to prepare students for the world while also helping them understand themselves. “We can’t send these young people into the world if they don’t understand who they are. But also, to not be afraid of asking for help because we can’t do this on our own.”

For Nissrin, that learning already has an impact beyond the classroom as a chairwoman of Jointly Women. “I registered the charity officially so now we have a board and volunteers. I used to do this by myself and now there are 10 people. The skills you learn at ISW really help me with navigating through that. It helps with running the organisation, communicating with the team and connecting with its audience.” And it started with something simple: having a teacher who saw her, believed she could succeed and made her feel that she belonged.