Despite a significant shortage of technically skilled personnel in the Netherlands, the government is set to reduce teaching hours for several science subjects in secondary education as part of a curriculum renewal. Starting in August 2027, physics and biology in the upper years of HAVO will see their study load decrease by up to 30 percent, while VWO will experience an 18 percent reduction. Educators express concern that these cuts could negatively impact science education, although the actual impact in classrooms may be less severe than indicated on paper due to administrative adjustments in how study load is calculated.