SLW 25: The pursuit of learning with Ronald Beekelaar

Ronald Beekelaar is a man of many talents. A qualified computer
scientist, he has been involved in training and certification
within the Microsoft ecosystem since the 1990s. Following the
introduction of virtualisation in the early 2000s, he swiftly
became one of the foremost experts in this area. Initially, he
focused on VMware products, but with the release of Hyper-V —
Microsoft's first in-house hypervisor development — Microsoft's
solution became the centre of his work. He founded Virsoft ,
developing it into one of the leading lab hosting providers. During
the 2026 MCT Summit in Sarajevo, I spoke to Ronald about his
education in the Netherlands and the USA, learning and teaching in
the 1990s, and his views on cultural differences in learning
between continents. We also discussed the future of teaching and
learning in the age of artificial intelligence, learning with
disabilities and his unique experiences with the Dutch royal
family.