ABSTRACT
The Netherlands is a society which has been extensively permeated by the mores of the ‘protestant ethic’. The officials of the Dutch Ministry of Education were particularly interested in the concept of ‘learning for leisure’, and in 1952 a separate bureau of the Ministry was established with the primary task of promoting the recreational and educational use of free time of young people. In 1958 a new Department of Outdoor Recreation was created and in turn during the 1960s this agency widened its scope from a purely physical planning to a more active educational and training role. In turn education is seen as a mechanism which is to prepare young people for a position in working life. Parents and teachers thought it important, especially in the case of leisure education, that the parents and the community participated as much as possible in school-work. Leisure education must also provide criteria that can guide the choice of leisure activities.
