Dr J.J.M. Dera (Jeroen)

Jeroen Dera (1986) is Associate Professor of Dutch Literature. He earned his Ph.D. in 2017 with a dissertation on literary programs on Dutch radio and television during the period 1925-1975, with a specific focus on how such programs combined their literary orientation with education and cultural mediation.

After completing his Ph.D., Dera shifted his research focus to literature education and the reading culture amongst young people. The main themes in his research line, which was awarded a prestigious NWO Veni Grant and the KNAW Early Career Award, include:

* The conceptualization and legitimization of literature in schools
* Reading behavior and literature conceptions of young people (including the issue of declines in reading)
* Intersections between literary studies and the Dutch language subject in secondary schools, especially in the realm of poetry and contemporary literature
* Digital literary culture (e.g., BookTok, Online reading challenges)
* Representations of young readers in popular culture

Within Radboud University, Dera teaches in the Bachelor's program in Dutch Language and Culture, the Master's program in Literary Studies, and the Master's program in Education in Language and Cultural Studies. He is a member of the management team of the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures and also a member of the Radboud Young Academy.

Dera serves as an editor for the Journal of Dutch Linguistics and Literature (Tijdschrift voor Nederlandse Taal- en Letterkunde or TNTL) and for 'Vaardig met vakinhoud', the new Handbook of L1 Language Teaching published by Coutinho in 2023. Additionally, he is a poetry critic for the Flemish newspaper 'De Standaard'. His most recent book on poetry is 'Poëzie als alternatief' (Amsterdam, 2021)