{"id":6717,"date":"2019-03-30T11:10:22","date_gmt":"2019-03-30T11:10:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/?p=6717"},"modified":"2019-04-04T12:39:03","modified_gmt":"2019-04-04T12:39:03","slug":"teaching-english-in-the-czech-republic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/2019\/03\/30\/teaching-english-in-the-czech-republic\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaching English in the Czech Republic"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\"HanaTeaching English in the Czech Republic<\/h3>\n

by Hana Tich\u00e1<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

If you go online and search for\u00a0<\/span>the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>title of this post<\/span>, you\u2019ll get quite a few\u00a0<\/span>entries<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Y<\/span>ou\u2019ll come across\u00a0<\/span>a plethora<\/span>\u00a0of job advertisements and\u00a0<\/span>blog posts<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>which eloquently summarize<\/span>\u00a0the pros and cons of teaching English in the Czech Republic.\u00a0<\/span>One of the things y<\/span>ou\u2019ll\u00a0<\/span>discover<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>that\u00a0<\/span>Czechia<\/span><\/i>\u00a0is a great place to teach English because it\u2019s a beautiful country with stunning architecture, great nightlife and eager students.\u00a0<\/span>Such<\/span>\u00a0articles, as you can see, are\u00a0<\/span>mostly<\/span>\u00a0aimed at\u00a0<\/span>unsuspecting\u00a0<\/span>foreigners.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

T<\/span>his post<\/span>, however,<\/span>\u00a0is not going to be\u00a0<\/span>just\u00a0<\/span>another collection of tips for\u00a0<\/span>people<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>making a decision<\/span>\u00a0about the<\/span>ir<\/span>\u00a0next travel destination.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>After all,\u00a0<\/span>I\u2019m not a language school\u00a0<\/span>owner\u00a0<\/span>so I have no desire to attract potential employees. Instead,<\/span>\u00a0I\u2019d like to share what<\/span>\u00a0teaching English<\/span>\u00a0in the Czech Republic<\/span>\u00a0is like for somebody like me – a Czech currently based in a\u00a0<\/span>secondary\u00a0<\/span>state\u00a0<\/span>institution<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

First things first.\u00a0<\/span>Not everybody can become an English teacher in the state sector of education<\/span>;<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>you<\/span>\u2019ll<\/span>\u00a0need\u00a0<\/span>some specific<\/span>\u00a0qualifications. Ideally, you should hold an MA degree from a pedagogical faculty or at least\u00a0<\/span>obtain<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>a \u2018pedagogical minimum\u2019 certificate<\/span>\u00a0after you have graduated as an English major<\/span>. This applies to the primary\u00a0<\/span>as well as the<\/span>\u00a0secondary level of education. If you want to teach English at university, you\u2019ll probably\u00a0<\/span>need<\/span>\u00a0to aspire for a PhD.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A typical English teacher in the state sector is a non-native speaker<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>and female, especially at the primary level of education. The \u2018higher\u2019 you go, the more likely it is you\u2019ll bump into a male colleague.\u00a0<\/span>Ironically<\/span>, at\u00a0<\/span>our<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>school<\/span>, all the English teachers are women.\u00a0<\/span>Why is it so? Well,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>generally,\u00a0<\/span>you won\u2019t\u00a0<\/span>make<\/span>\u00a0a fortune as a teacher<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>men are still considered\u00a0<\/span>to be\u00a0<\/span>breadwinners over here.\u00a0<\/span>But\u00a0<\/span>stereotypes aside,\u00a0<\/span>since t<\/span>he working hours are\u00a0<\/span>quite<\/span>\u00a0convenient<\/span>\u00a0\u2013 there are no night shifts,\u00a0<\/span>you have\u00a0<\/span>all the<\/span>\u00a0holidays and weekends are almost always free\u00a0<\/span>– aspiring for a teaching job in the state sector is not a bad option at all, especially if you have a family and kids<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Add to that the fact that the number of students in language classes is usually much smaller than in other subject<\/span>s and that\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>high proficiency in English may open some other doors for you<\/span>\u00a0\u2013 in the field of translation and interpreting, travelling, presenting, etc.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Finally, teaching\u00a0<\/span>English<\/span>\u00a0can be enormously gratifying so in fact, it\u2019s a win-win situation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As far as\u00a0<\/span>(non)<\/span><\/i>native-ness<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span>is concerned<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>the lack of native speakers in the state sector\u00a0<\/span>is probably connected with the issue of qualifications.\u00a0<\/span>International certificates like CELTA or DELTA are\u00a0<\/span>almost<\/span>\u00a0unknown<\/span>\u00a0here, at least<\/span>\u00a0in my teaching\u00a0<\/span>environment<\/span>. I\u00a0<\/span>can\u2019t say for sure, but I\u00a0<\/span>don\u2019t think they are\u00a0<\/span>even\u00a0<\/span>recognized as proper qualifications<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Add to that the fact that\u00a0<\/span>native speakers\u00a0<\/span>seldom<\/span>\u00a0have the opportunity\u00a0<\/span>and\/<\/span>or desire\u00a0<\/span>to\u00a0<\/span>get<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>degrees<\/span>\u00a0from Czech universities<\/span>\u00a0and you\u2019ll see why\u00a0<\/span>they have become a rare species<\/span>\u00a0over the past few years<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>I\u2019m\u00a0<\/span>mentioning\u00a0<\/span>this because i<\/span>n the past, in the era of backpackers\u00a0<\/span>merrily marching from the west to the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>eastern and central Europe<\/span>, native speakers of English were quite common<\/span>, even<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>as\u00a0<\/span>state school<\/span>\u00a0employees<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But some other things have changed as well. Gone are the days when the grammar translation method was in. Now, w<\/span>e like to say that we teach English communicatively. Whatever it means,\u00a0<\/span>though,\u00a0<\/span>it\u2019s not\u00a0<\/span>prov<\/span>ed<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>terribly<\/span>\u00a0effective<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>as of yet<\/span>. T<\/span>he Czech Republic is not ra<\/span>n<\/span>ked<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>among the top non-native English-speaking countries with the best English.\u00a0<\/span>Mind you, w<\/span>e\u2019re not doing badly. I<\/span>n 2018, we came in 20<\/span>th\u00a0<\/span>according to the EF EPI Global Ranking of Countries and Regions<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>As an excuse,\u00a0<\/span>let\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>stress<\/span>\u00a0that Czech is not a Germanic language so it\u2019s tough fo<\/span>r\u00a0<\/span>us to master<\/span>\u00a0it<\/span>\u00a0the same way the Dutch<\/span>\u00a0or Swedish<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>do.\u00a0<\/span>But\u00a0<\/span>once we stop dubbing English movies, we\u2019ll\u00a0<\/span>definitely catch<\/span>\u00a0up with them.\u00a0<\/span>We will.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Apart from\u00a0<\/span>teaching communicatively<\/span>, we love\u00a0<\/span>using\u00a0<\/span>coursebooks.\u00a0<\/span>Our students<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>and schools\u00a0<\/span>spend a lot of money\u00a0<\/span>on<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>them<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>It doesn\u2019t really matter that\u00a0<\/span>these days,\u00a0<\/span>loads<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0<\/span>interesting\u00a0<\/span>teaching\u00a0<\/span>materials are accessible online<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>for free, and<\/span>, most importantly,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>that\u00a0<\/span>some of the stuff found in globally produced coursebooks is unsuitable for a Czech learner. W<\/span>e\u00a0<\/span>still\u00a0<\/span>love coursebooks<\/span>. This is<\/span>\u00a0probably<\/span>\u00a0because they represent something tangible \u2013 something to hold on to in the bad times.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Another thing we a<\/span>dore<\/span>\u00a0here in the Czech Republic<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>British English.\u00a0<\/span>It\u2019s OK<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>except that<\/span>\u00a0many\u00a0<\/span>students,<\/span>\u00a0as well as\u00a0<\/span>some\u00a0<\/span>teachers,<\/span>\u00a0believe that British English is\u00a0<\/span>the only correct version of English. But\u00a0<\/span>recently, with the influx of American pop culture,\u00a0<\/span>particularly<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0<\/span>film industry,\u00a0<\/span>the situation has<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>changed a bit<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Now we have another version of \u2018acceptable\u2019 English, preferred by many students but still looked down on by some English teachers. It seems<\/span>\u00a0that<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>not everybody has accepted<\/span>\u00a0the fact that there are\u00a0<\/span>more than one<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>or two\u00a0<\/span>englishes<\/span><\/i>\u00a0out there<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Also, w<\/span>e need to\u00a0<\/span>start acknowledging<\/span>\u00a0that<\/span>\u00a0non-native speakers outnumber the native\u00a0<\/span>speakers by three to one and the imbalance\u00a0<\/span>will keep<\/span>\u00a0grow<\/span>ing<\/span>. Thus, it may not always be desirable to aim for a perfect\u00a0<\/span>English<\/span>\u00a0accent.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Having said that<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>I believe<\/span>\u00a0teaching English\u00a0<\/span>in the Czech Republic\u00a0<\/span>has become much easier\u00a0<\/span>in<\/span>\u00a0the past few years. This is mainly due to all the opportunities technology offers these days.\u00a0<\/span>Unknown w<\/span>ords can be\u00a0<\/span>instantly\u00a0<\/span>looked up in an online dictionary.\u00a0<\/span>There are useful apps which can help the learner to acquire English faster.\u00a0<\/span>English songs and\u00a0<\/span>movie<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0with or without subtitles\u00a0<\/span>are\u00a0<\/span>just a<\/span>\u00a0click away. Sometimes it feels as if we are no longer teaching English in class; students learn it on their own outside of school and we only monitor their progress.\u00a0<\/span>The fact that our students can do without us\u00a0<\/span>just fine\u00a0<\/span>may appear a bit scary, but I believe there\u2019s no need to despair.\u00a0<\/span>As<\/span>\u00a0our students get better, we<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>Czech\u00a0<\/span>teachers<\/span>\u00a0of English<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0are gently forced to become better professionals too.\u00a0<\/span>And that\u2019s what I really love about my job \u2013 I don\u2019t feel like I\u2019m getting fossilized.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Teaching English in the Czech Republic by Hana Tich\u00e1   If you go online and search for\u00a0the\u00a0title of this post, you\u2019ll get quite a few\u00a0entries.\u00a0You\u2019ll come across\u00a0a plethora\u00a0of job advertisements and\u00a0blog posts\u00a0which eloquently summarize\u00a0the pros and cons of teaching English in the Czech Republic.\u00a0One of the things you\u2019ll\u00a0discover\u00a0is\u00a0that\u00a0Czechia\u00a0is a great place to teach English because … Continue reading Teaching English in the Czech Republic<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[131],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6717","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-teaching-in-my-country"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6717"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6717\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6717"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itdi.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}