Teacher, pharmacist and restaurateur. Ukrainian women learn Czech in order to work
The whole class then writes the dictation, repeating the words from the recording without any accent: “Station, restaurant, school, square, hospital, airport, bus stop.” To learn how to spell the words correctly, they go to the interactive whiteboard, where jumbled letters appear under the photos . They must line up correctly. He also manages a cluster of ENCAŘÁNKL and correctly deciphers it as an “office” to the general hilarity of the class. The laughter stops at the photo of the living room, under which they compose the simple word: “at home”.
“Teaching Czech to Slavs is always a huge advantage. The student controls a similar language and understands its system, the notation is different, and differences in grammar and vocabulary cause difficulties. We are used to Ukrainian students, around one hundred and fifty of them go through classes with us every year. We also have a pedagogy of Ukrainians who are fluent in the language or explained by the deputy director of the Institute of Language and Vocational Training, Barbora Štindlová.
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They then turned some of their former Ukrainian students into mentors for newly arrived compatriots. They have been holding basic “survival” courses in the Czech environment since March, and they also babysat Ukrainian women at that time. However, very soon babysitting turned into a more useful teaching of Czech for young children.
The institute has been operating for more than sixty years. But the current situation has no period. Students from all over the world regularly pass through the institution, they are divided into groups according to their languages and learn Czech and then the professional basics of their field so that they can start their regular studies the following year. Now they have hundreds of Ukrainians here, from small children to the elderly, and they expect more.
Some need to prepare for studies at school or university, others want to pursue a qualified field that they studied in their homeland, and others just need to agree on the basics. At the same time, they educate kindergarten and school teachers so that they can teach Czech as a foreign language. “Here at the Institute, instead of summer holidays and rest, everyone who has hands and feet is teaching,” summarizes Barbora Štindlová. However, he does not know what will happen after the holidays. Most language programs supported by the state or municipality only run until September. “But the need to educate Ukrainians in Czech will not disappear after that.”
It’s a shame that teachers or pharmacists clean up here
Ukrainian Olga Kirchen has been living in the Czech Republic for almost twenty years, she graduated here and taught English and Russian at private language schools. She now works at the Institute as a coordinator of language projects. He organizes Czech language courses and negotiates with interested parties who will be the best for them. “Sometimes it’s also about communication. A lot of women confide in me about their experiences, asking whether they should stay here or not,” she adds.
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When asked how the women could learn Czech so well during the four days of classes, she answers with a smile: “It’s also about motivation. They really need the Czech language and really want to learn it. We have teachers, pharmacists, and architects here, and it’s a shame that they only clean here and we don’t use their potential here. The Czechia doesn’t even need so many cleaners.”
Pharmacist Anna, who had her university degree certified and would like to work in a pharmacy, also attends the courses. “I’m making progress in Czech, but grammar is difficult. And some words mean something else. For example, ‘fruit’ is a vegetable in our country, fruit is called ‘frukt’,” he explains. And also Taja, who studied building restoration in Ukraine. “Now I would like to work in the field in the Czech Republic as well,” she wishes. When we are learning, Anna and Taja also ask: “Would you write in the article that we really appreciate what Charles University does for us and what the Czechs do for us?” We appreciate that and it’s not taken for granted.”