The Netherlands: Sexuality, Gender, and Identity

Location:
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Sponsor:
School for International Training

Program:
The Netherlands is known for its atmosphere of tolerance and progressive social thinking. Its liberal laws concerning gay and lesbian rights, sexuality education, birth control, and euthanasia set it apart from the United States as well as from many of its European neighbors.

This path-breaking, interdisciplinary program integrates traditional classroom learning with field excursions to sites in Amsterdam, throughout the Netherlands, and to key locations elsewhere in Europe to provide a comprehensive view of the impact of legislation on the daily life of various communities and minorities. Opportunities to interact with community outreach organizations add to your understanding of the study of sexuality and gender in this nation famed for embracing equal rights for all its citizens.

Course Offerings:
This 16-credit program includes the following:

• Program Orientation: Academic, cross-cultural, health, safety, and program orientation conducted by the Academic Director and other contributors during the first week of the program. Material covered includes program rationale, organization, and logistics; attitudes and tools for immersion in another culture; academic and personal expectations; evaluation methods and criteria.
  
• Homestay: Thirteen weeks in and around the Amsterdam area. All homestay families are aware and supportive of issues surrounding sexuality and gender. Our hosts include gay and lesbian households, single parents, and traditional families, all of whom offer unique insights into issues of sexuality, gender, and identity within a Dutch context.
  
• Introduction to Dutch Language and Culture: Emphasis on speaking and reading "survival" Dutch. Topics relevant to sexuality and gender issues are included in the curriculum. The cultural portion of this class is taught while at particular field sites of cultural interest, such as museums, churches, parliament, and local schools. Historical, political, economic, and social developments are highlighted as facets of contemporary Dutch society. Readings and discussions include cross-cultural adaptation and skill building.
  
• Sexuality, Gender, and Identity Seminar: An introduction to the field of sexuality and gender studies with a focus on the Dutch perspective of individual and group cultural identities. The seminar includes lectures from faculty of the Women's Studies and Homo Studies departments at the Universities of Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Nijmegen, as well as other professionals.
  
  Most topics are taught from a social science perspective and include the history of sexology in Europe; biology vs. social construction as behavioral determinants; the history of sexual communities in the Netherlands; sexuality and gender in film and literature; cross-cultural considerations in sexuality research; gay/lesbian political activism in the European Union; and feminist and post-modern theoretical perspectives on sex and gender identities. Educational excursions include tours of the red-light district, sex museums, a prostitutions research center, a gender reassignment clinic, and other organizations and services within the fields of sexuality and gender.
  
  Educational Excursions - In addition to day trips within the Netherlands, the program includes lecture visits and educational excursions to Berlin and London to enable students to learn from a variety of academicians, community perspectives, and social settings.
  
• Field Study Seminar: A course in the concepts of learning across cultures and from field experience. Introduction to the Independent Study Project. Material covered includes cross-cultural adaptation and skills building; project selection and refinement; appropriate methodologies; ethics in field study; developing contacts and finding resources; developing skills in observation and interviewing; gathering, organizing, and communicating data; and maintaining a work journal.
  
• Independent Study Project: Conducted in Amsterdam or other location appropriate to the project; includes an investigation into a population or topic dependent on direct methods of data collection with primary sources. Sample topic areas: alternative constructions of family; domestic partnership laws; race relations in the Amsterdam gay culture; women, music, and feminism in the Netherlands; male prostitution in Amsterdam; interactions between the gay/lesbian movement and the Dutch government; AIDS education for Dutch youth; interface of religious and sexual identity.
  
• Program Evaluation: Oral and written presentation of the Independent Study Project. Final assessment in language. Overall program synthesis and assessment.

Contact Information:
School for International Training
Kipling Rd., P.O. Box 676
Brattleboro, VT 05302-0676 USA
Phone: 802-258-3212 or 888-272-7881 within the US
Fax: 802-258-3296
E-mail: csa@sit.edu
http://www.sit.edu/studyabroad/europe/netherlands.html