The Focus of this Lesson is Using the Present Perfect tense for Self-Introductions
Ik heb in Leiden gestudeerd. Nederlands en Spaans
"I have studied in Leiden; Dutch and Spanish."

The present perfect tense is used to explain that something has happened in the past, but it does not specify at what time exactly.

In Dutch the present perfect is called the voltooid tegenwoordige tijd and is used in exactly the same way as in English.

Formation

The "present perfect" (voltooid tegenwoordige tijd) is made with a subject [noun, pronoun, or proper name] + the modal verb hebben (heb) + the main verb (past participle).

For example, when used with a proper name:

1. Mevrouw van Dale heeft gestudeerd.
   "Mrs van Dale has studied."

And with a pronoun:

1. Ik heb in Leiden gestudeerd.
   "I have studied in Leiden."

In Leiden is extra information about the place, and this will not change in other tenses.

In this case we don't know which years she spent studying as the present perfect doesn't specify an exact time.

The present perfect tense can also be used to say that something started in the past, but is still going on.

For example:

1. Ik woon sinds 2011 in Singapore.
   "I have lived in Singapore since 2011," with the implication that I am still living there.

In the simple past (in Dutch: onvoltooid verleden tijd), you can be more precise. For example, you would use it to say In 1999 woonde ik in Singapore("In 1999 I lived in Singapore").

So in the dialogue, when the new teacher is introducing herself and telling a bit about her past, she uses the present perfect.

Dialogue lines in which you will find the present perfect tense:

Compare the following sentences:

Present perfect: Ik heb in China gereisd. ("I have travelled in China.")

Simple past: In 1987 reisde ik in China.("In 1987 I travelled in China.")

Present perfect: Ik heb altijd veel aan sport gedaan.'("I have always done a lot of sports.")

Simple past: Op school deed ik veel aan sport.("When I was at school I used to do a lot of sports.")

So you could say that the new teacher uses the present perfect to give some information about her former career, but without being too specific.

Examples from the dialogue:

1. En waar hebt u hiervoor gewerkt?
   "And where have you worked before?"
2. Ik heb op verschillende scholen in Rotterdam lesgegeven.
   "I've taught at several schools in Rotterdam."

Sample Sentences

1. Ik heb altijd in Leiden gestudeerd, maar nooit in andere steden.
   "I've always studied in Leiden, but never in other cities."
2. En waar hebt u hiervoor gewerkt? Ook in het onderwijs?
   "And where did you work before? Also in education?"
3. Ik heb als kind ook in Spanje gewoond, maar daarna alleen maar in Nederland.
   "As a child I'd lived in Spain, but after that only in the Netherlands."

als kind "as a child"

The Dutch als usually means "if," but in this sentence it is used as "when." So als kind means "when I was a child."

In English the difference between "if" and "when" is fairly obvious, but in Dutch there can be some confusion. For example, als het regent and can be both "if it rains" and "when it rains." Officially, however, "if" should be als and "when" should be wanneer.

That would make "when it rains, I never go to the beach" wanneer het regent, ga ik niet naar het strand, but in actuality most people will use als het regent.

For example:

1. Als kind was ik altijd moeilijk.
   "As a child I was always difficult."

We hebben een nieuwe collega. "We have a new colleague."

We hebben means "We have" and een nieuwe collega is "a new colleague."

This is a sentence used to start an introduction, like an opening sentence before the more substantive part of the introduction speech starts. A more formal way to say it would be "Please allow me to introduce...," or in Dutch, Staat u mij toe .. voor te stellen, but that would immediately turn it into a very official event and might give the wrong impression.

For example:

1. We hebben een nieuwe collega. Laten we een borrel drinken.
   "We have a new colleague. Let's have a drink."

Formal versus Informal Relationships and Language

It is always difficult to make the right choice between formal and informal language. In Holland this will depend on a lot of factors. The type of relationship between two people matters of course, but age, background and education also have an influence on how you speak.

Holland used to be much more formal than it is now, but since the sixties things have become more relaxed. It is now perfectly acceptable to start a conversation using the informal je instead of the formal u (both meaning "you"), when talking to somebody of the same age and status. Of course when addressing a prime minister, CEO or somebody else with a high position, you use u.

When unsure, always start with formal language or ask mag ik 'je' zeggen?, meaning "May I use je?" or, in practice, "Can we be on a first-name basis?"