The boss of WRTS for one day
Today Chantal experiences what it is like to take over WRTS for one day. She thinks about how we can make WRTS even better. Tijntje: “WRTS is a platform for high school students to practice and get explanations for school subjects for which they have a test soon. Who better to know the requirements for a platform like that than someone that age? Chantal is also going to take her final exams next year and that is perfect for us. Because just like Chantal, we will also be taking our final exams next year. And we could really use some help with that.”
Equal opportunities for everyone
With Boss of Tomorrow, WRTS and JINC want to combat inequality of opportunity. In the Netherlands, hundreds of thousands of children grow up in an environment with a lot of socio-economic disadvantage. All these children have dreams and talents, but their zip code and social environment are often obstacles on their road to success. Those who grow up in an environment with few role models or opportunities unfortunately have fewer prospects for career success than peers from “wealthier” neighborhoods. Regardless of how smart or talented the children are.
Tijntje says: “In the Netherlands we can all get a good education. And that is necessary. Because we need all the talent there is to make our country ready for the future. We are training the future leaders now. And we as a company help with that with our platforms, but also inspire all students who want to work with the different jobs they could do in the future. We do this by working a lot with JINC through lightning internships, career coaching and Boss of Tomorrow. Every child has talent, and with every talent comes a suitable career. Some children do not know the different options for further learning. By opening up our company to these children, we want to inspire them to find their own talents and also see what they can do with them in the future.”
Boss for one day
Imraan experiences today what it is like to run a company like WRTS, from leading the stand-up to brainstorming about a new product that was recently launched for his peers in the lower years of VMBO, HAVO and VWO. Tijntje says: “For many pre-vocational secondary education students, doing homework is quite a thing. WRTS therefore offers a platform with online homework guidance and test preparation, which children can use at home and at school to achieve higher grades. We think Imraan’s opinion is important, he really has something to say today!” says Tijntje.
Equal opportunities
With Baas van Morgen, WRTS and JINC want to fight the inequality of opportunity among young people from neighborhoods that have to deal with a lot of poverty and socio-economic disadvantage. They often lack a role model who can give them the right example or help them make the difficult choices. That’s a shame, because this group has less chance of making it far than peers from ‘richer’ neighborhoods. Tijntje fully agrees: “Every child deserves good homework guidance, both at school and at home. That’s why we offer the majority of WRTS for free to high school students of all grades and levels.”
A promise and a wish
It was a busy, inspiring (and warm) day for Imraan. As every year, special compliments were handed out. Imraan also received a ‘promise card’ from Tijntje. With that card she promises that Imraan, later in his career, always can give her a call.
And the people at WRTS? They were very pleased with their new boss! Watch out, Tijntje…
- Squla joins worldwide network organizations that want to make a social impact.
- The certification was preceded by an extensive “B Impact Assessment” of several months.
- Certificate “B Corporation” recognition mission to provide all children with equal opportunities for quality education.
“B Corporations” are organizations that succeed in creating a good balance between “purpose” and “profit”. They are organizations that not only strive for profitability, but also take people, the environment and society as a starting point in their activities. Although more and more companies and organizations are aware of the need for this and want to be certified by B Corp, obtaining the certificate is certainly not easy. The “B Corporation” certificate is only awarded if at least 80 of the 200 points have been obtained in the “B Impact Assessment”: a way to measure the sustainable and social impact of an organization. In addition to their social mission, the activities and culture of organizations are examined on the basis of dozens of (social) factors, such as the business model, processes that facilitate social ways of thinking and the way in which sustainability is embedded in work processes.
Caroline Henneman, the Head of Marketing & Growth at Squla, guided this assessment from start to finish. “We are very proud to receive this certificate, which is a special milestone for Squla. Since our foundation, it has been our mission to help every child progress through play and this certification is a crown on our work. Moreover, obtaining a B Corp certificate is no easy task. It is preceded by an extensive process that takes several months. During this certification, our organization was screened at all levels. Squla passed this assessment with flying colors and we did not have to make any structural adjustments to qualify.”
A positive impact on society
Serge Bueters, the CEO of Squla, considers it honourable that Squla can call itself a ‘B Corp’ and is part of a select group of organizations that want to make a positive impact on society and that themes such as social responsibility, transparency and sustainability are of paramount importance. are the standard. “I consider it a very nice recognition of our mission. Squla wants to enable all children – regardless of their parents’ financial resources – to grow and use their talents. That is a mission to which we have been faithful for ten years. For many years, Squla has served as a supplement to education and a nice extra support in teaching to stimulate, challenge and grow students’ self-confidence at their own level and pace. In the existing education system – with its ever-expanding classes and the growing teacher shortage – this is no superfluous luxury. This is how we give substance to our social responsibility and we are extremely proud that Squla can call itself a “B Corporation”.
Equal opportunities for a good education for all children
Squla can be used as a low-threshold and accessible tool that teachers can use to give children an extra helping hand, not only at school, but also at home. For example, “Squla in de Klas” is free every day of the week during school hours. After school, the platform is available at home for paying subscribers. Here Squla tries to keep the threshold as low as possible for families who are less fortunate and works together with organizations such as Stichting Leergeld and the Het Jeugdeducatiefonds. In the past period, Squla has shown in various ways that it takes its social responsibility seriously. When the schools had to close their doors this spring due to corona, this was the reason to open ‘Squla in de Klas’ to all children in the Netherlands, also at home. By making the platform free for all primary school students, Squla has met a great need. Every day, more than 300,000 children logged into the platform from home and answered more than 80 million questions about the teaching material they used to practice.
About B Corp
The B Corp movement is an initiative of the B Lab founded in 2006. This American non-profit organization is active worldwide in the development, award and verification of the B Corp certification. B Lab is now active in 70 countries and in the Netherlands for the past five years. There are currently 3,600 “B Corps” worldwide, of which about 800 in Europe and over 100 in the Netherlands. The B Corp status shows that the company does not only successfully focus on commercial, but also on social and sustainable purposes, thereby contributing to a better world. To achieve this status, companies go through a strict audit. This involves an evaluation of the company’s social, ecological and societal performance and looking at transparency and accountability. Companies that achieve at least 80 out of 200 points in this evaluation may call themselves a B Corp. After that, they must re-certify every three years to maintain their B Corp status.
About Squla
Squla is the largest provider of supplementary education in the Netherlands. More than 180,000 primary students practice and play Squla from home and more than 600,000 primary students through their primary school. Squla is an online exercise program for primary school students in grades 1 to 8. With fun quizzes and games they practice with the curriculum of school. Squla is a supplement, intended to support teaching at school and also at home, to stimulate students at their own level and at their own pace. Squla believes this should be available to every child. That is why teachers can use Squla in de Klas for free. Squla was developed by educational experts and game developers. This makes the quizzes not only fun, but also completely in line with the educational goals set by the government. Squla is part of Futurewhiz, which is active in Poland as well as in the Netherlands. Futurewhiz has 70 employees and is located in Amsterdam. In addition to Squla, Futurewhiz also owns WRTS, an online learning platform for high school students to learn words and concepts more easily and quickly, and scoyo, the German equivalent of Squla.
Note to the editor (not for publication)
For more information, please contact Caroline Henneman from Squla; phone: 0646847053; e-mail: caroline@squla.com.
Are you curious about our report? Take a look at it here.
