In 1986, English became a compulsory subject in primary education in The Netherlands1. While secondary schools have, by law, been required to offer English since 1863 the articulation between Dutch primary and secondary education levels of English language teaching has always been problematic to
the point it has been referred to as a connection problem. The term ‘articulation between levels’ has been used frequently to refer to the connection
between parts of the language education system, such as between primary and secondary education and between secondary and tertiary education. In particular the group of Richard Lambert at the National Foreign language centre in Washington have promoted research on articulation between levels. This study focusses on the connection between primary and secondary education and the possibility to improve the articulation between these levels with regard to the English teaching in The Netherlands.