Schools & Education (May 2014) by PraguePost.com

June 2014

Schools & Education

A foreign schoolwith centuries of tradition...

2

BY ANDRÉ CROUSSTAFF WRITER

W hen people think of a film school in the Czech Republic, they think of FAMU. The Film and TV School of the Academy of the Performing Arts in Prague is the fifth-

oldest film school in the world, with only the institutions in Moscow, Berlin, Rome and Paris beating it to the historic title.

Over the nearly 70 years of its existence, many �lmmakers have worked their way through the courses offered here under the tutelage of experienced �lm professionals and gone on to achieve great success and even fame: Jiří Menzel, Věra

Chytilová, Miloš Forman, Ivan Passer, Jan Svěrák and Juraj Jakubisko are some of the local directors whose time at FAMU was instrumental in their subsequent careers as directors.

Two of the most recent graduates, Vít Klusák and Filip Remunda, made a name for themselves, locally if not necessarily on the international scene, with their 2004 documentary Czech Dream (Český sen), which examined the then-imminent accession of the Czech Republic to the European Union and the effect a marketing campaign (in their case, of a fake supermarket offering unbelievably low prices) can have on people’s perception of reality.

But the school has also had a long tradition of offering training to foreigners, and the school’s dean, Pavel Jech, highlights that the school has always been a magnet for

Still aCROWD-PULLER

❚ Prague’s oldest and most venerable film school accepts only about 10 percent of applicants.

Students work on film projects on location in interiors. Credit: FAMU

aspiring �lmmakers from around the world.

“For us, it’s important to have diverse voices from different countries,” he told the Prague Post. “And the school’s always had an international aspect to it. Even under communism there was something going on here that was a little bit strange. It was called FAMU Special, and it trained students from the Third World. Some were here under fake identities for some other sort of training, while others were legitimately into cinema.”

“Some of our most illustrious graduates, like Agnieszka Holland or Emir Kusturica, were foreigners who came to FAMU, and the very �rst student in our registry of students was a foreign student as well, from the former Yugoslavia. So, it’s always had an international connection.”

FAMU currently has about 450 students who study in Czech

(all students whose classes are in Czech have their tuition subsidized by the government), and around 100 who study in English. The English-language studies are not �nanced by the government, and students who get accepted into this program have various avenues to pursue for funding.

They tend to be part of a study-abroad program, which enables students from one university to attend classes at FAMU for a semester or two, with the possibility of FAMU students spending time at that university in return. In this way, FAMU sees students from Harvard, Yale, Johns Hopkins and Wesleyan and others frequent its classrooms, although the numbers are limited, and even though admission to these schools are competitive, candidates to FAMU need to be screened prior to being admitted to the program, no matter how long they plan to study here.

Many students also form part of the Erasmus and the Free Movers exchange programs. Others come from countries like Macedonia or Kosovo, which have special agreements with FAMU and whose governments give scholarships to any of its citizens who get accepted to study at the school. Furthermore, the Czech Foreign Affairs Ministry, as part of its Transition Scheme, provides �nancial backing to students from Burma (Myanmar) who study at FAMU.

There is also the option of paying for one’s studies out of pocket, but while some people can afford the tuition costs of around 8,000 euros (some 200,000 Kč) per year,

The school’s training is divided into 10 departments — animation, audiovisual studies, documentary, still photography, cinematography, directing, editing, production, scriptwriting and dramaturgy, and sound — each of which offers a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in �ne arts, and it is possible to register for a centralized Ph.D.

As the of�cial name of the school states, the focus is on both �lm and television, as it has been since the name change in 1960.

FAMU also has an 11th department called FAMU International, which focuses on yearlong or summer courses

” For us, it’s important to have diverse voices from different countries...

”

4

in English, although the other departments all offer classes in English to some extent, and some, like cinematography, directing and screenwriting, even have English instruction at the level of a master’s degree.

“The admissions process is always very competitive,” Jech says, and indeed, applying to get into FAMU is only for those with nerves of steel. The three-part process comprises a portfolio, which Jech diplomatically says can be “quite complicated to complete,” then an examination followed by an interview. Out of the roughly 700 applicants, less than 10 percent (between 60 and 65 students) are admitted every year.

One of the central pillars of the school is its mentor relationship, and at the end of every year — sometimes twice

a year — a commission examines the work of the students and gives feedback about the quality of the output. In this way, Jech says, the teaching is very hands-on. That explains why, even for a school like New York University, which already has a very competitive admissions process, sometimes only one-third of the students seeking a spot on the one-year exchange program at FAMU manage to get in.

With experiences that date back to before the era of communism and themselves make a genuinely compelling story, this �lm school continues to draw students from far and wide and although the deadline for applications for 2014/15 has already passed, it is never too early to start thinking about next year, sit down and write that �rst screenplay or go out and shoot some �lm.

Schools & Education JUNE 2014

LANY, CENTRAL BOHEMIA, MAY 8 (ČTK)

C zech President Miloš Zeman is of the view that the education system needs more money, Education Minister Marcel Chládek (Social Democrats, ČSSD) told journalists after

meeting Zeman.

Finance Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) only wants to increase the education budget by 83 million Kč for next year.

Chládek has said this is unacceptable and voiced the wish that the volume of the �nances should be raised by 3 billion to 5 billion Kč.

In this, he found Zeman's backing.

"We have agreed that the increase in the budget must be supported. Zeman agreed that salaries of both teachers and the rest of the staff in the educational system are very low," Chládek said.

Chládek and Zeman also turned to the question of naming of university professors.

Last year Zeman did not want to appoint literary historian Martin C. Putna, who openly came out with his homosexual orientation, as professor, reportedly due to Putna's participation in the Prague Pride gay march.

He eventually appointed him, but the decree was handed to Putna by then-education minister Petr Fiala.

This caused outrage among academics.

Due to the dispute, new professors had to wait for their naming between last autumn and this March when Chládek and Zeman agreed that he as the head of state will sign the

decrees, but they will be handed by the minister.

At present, there are another 22 candidates for professor that were proposed by universities' academic councils.

Chládek discussed the problem with Zeman, but no speci�c conclusions arose from the talks.

The �nal solution to the problem will be brought by an amendment to the university law that is to be drafted by June. If passed, it will take effect in 2015.

Czech schools need moreMONEY

ZEMAN:

But finance minister favors a very modest increase

President Miloš Zeman supports the idea of an increased education budget.

Photo: Wikipedia

BY JIN-YOUNG CALWASHINGTON, DC

C ountries need skilled and talented people to generate the innovations that underpin long-term economic growth. This is as true in developed as it is in developing economies.

But it will not happen without investment in education and training. If we are to end poverty, reduce unemployment, and stem rising economic inequality, we must find new, better, and cheaper ways to teach – and on a vast scale.

This goal may seem to be beyond even wealthier countries’ means; but the intelligent collection, analysis, and use of educational data could make a big difference. And, fortunately, we live in an age in which information technology gives us the right tools to broaden access to high-quality, affordable education. Big data – high-volume, complex data sets that businesses use to analyze and predict consumer behavior

– can provide teachers and companies with unprecedented amounts of information about student learning patterns, helping schools to personalize instruction in increasingly sophisticated ways.

The World Bank Group and its private-sector lending arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), are trying to harness this potential to support national education systems. A recently launched initiative, called the Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER), collects and shares comparative data on educational policies and institutions from countries around the world.

In the private sector, the ability to collect information about teacher-student interaction, and interaction between students and learning systems, can have a profound impact. In Kenya, for example, Bridge International Academies is using adaptive learning on a large scale. An IFC client founded by three American entrepreneurs, Bridge runs 259 nursery and primary schools, with monthly tuition averaging $6. It is a

POOR STUDENTSBig data for

The Word Bank shares policies to share and compare educational data.

Credit: Wikipedia

❚ 'The interface between data and education holds the promise of new educational products for improved learning'

massive learning laboratory for students and educators alike.

Bridge tests different approaches to teaching standard skills and concepts by deploying two versions of a lesson at the same time in a large number of classrooms. The lessons are delivered by teachers from standardized, scripted plans, via tablets that also track how long the teachers spend on each lesson. Exam results are recorded on the teacher’s tablet, with more than 250,000 scores logged every 21 days. From these data, Bridge’s evaluation team determines which lesson is most effective and distributes that lesson throughout the rest of the Academy’s network.

We know that a host of issues can cause a student’s performance to decline – scorching summer heat in classrooms without air conditioning, problems at home, or poor-quality teachers, to name a few. But when one gathers results on a large scale, variables ¶atten out, and the important differences emerge. That is the great value of big data.

Another case is SABIS, a provider of K-12 education in the United States, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. SABIS mines large data sets to ensure high standards and enhance academic performance for more than 63,000 students. Continuous tracking of annual student academic performance yields more than 14 million data points that are used to shape instruction, achieve learning objectives, and ensure consistency across the company’s network of schools in 15 countries.

Knewton, an adaptive learning platform that personalizes digital courses using predictive analytics, is another company at the forefront of the data revolution. With tailored content

and instruction, even classrooms without private-school resources can provide individual learning. As a result, teachers spend their time in the most effective way possible – solving problems with students – instead of delivering undifferentiated lessons.

These bene�ts do not come without risk. We are only beginning to grapple with how big data’s tremendous potential for learning can be harnessed while protecting students’

privacy. In some cases, data-collection technology is out-pacing our ability to decide how it should be collected, stored, and shared. No matter how rigorously data are secured, there is still a need for a clear licensing structure for its use. In many developing countries, there are no regulations for data privacy at all.

The interface between data and education holds the promise

of new educational products for improved learning, with large potential bene�ts, especially for the poor. To realize those bene�ts – and to do so responsibly – we must ensure that data collection is neither excessive nor inappropriate, and that it supports learning. The private sector, governments, and institutions such as the World Bank Group need to formulate rules for how critical information on student performance is gathered, shared, and used. Parents and students deserve no less.

Jin-Yong Cai is Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Of�cer of the International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group.

Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2014www.project-syndicate.org

Acc

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:

Mem

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ips:

www.unyp.czEDUCATING TOMORROW’S LEADERS

Think valueAccredited degrees

Practical and critical thinking orientationInternational faculty and student body

Career office

The American University of Prague

Diamant_inzerce_PraguePost_204x67mm.indd 1 12/05/14 15:06

If we are to end poverty, reduce unemployment,

and stem rising economic inequality, we must find new, better, and cheaper ways to teach – and on a vast scale.

POOR STUDENTS ””

http://www.project-syndicate.org

http://www.unyp.cz

PEACEPEACECzech rector hopes to promote

BY DANIEL BARDSLEYSTAFF WRITER

T he Czech academic who is running a new university in East Africa believes the center can contribute to the development of the region as well as promote peace.

Marek Hrubec, a former Charles University academic,is now the rector of East Africa Star University in northwestern Burundi, which began teaching classes in February.

In an interview with University World News that he also sent to The Prague Post, Hrubec said that “hopefully, [the university] can help bring well-being and peace to this region.”

The area where the university is based is not far from Rwanda, where two decades ago more than half a million people, largely Tutsis and moderate Hutus, were massacred. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), which remains highly unstable, is next door as well.

“People learned through disasters here in Burundi, Rwanda and nearby. They faced colonization, exploitation and oppression, which led to land disputes, war con¶icts, ethnic

clashes, genocide and civil wars. Now they really deserve a better life,” said Hrubec.

Given Burundi’s location at the crossroads of a series of countries, the university, which will have its full launch in September, is looking to draw in students from several countries.

“As the name of our university suggests, the objective of East Africa Star University is to offer education to students from East Africa,” said Hrubec.

“That means especially from the East African community: Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya. But we are aware of the armed con¶icts in DR Congo, mainly in eastern Congo, and we give special attention to Congolese students as well.

“We are placed on the boundaries of three states, in the north-west of Burundi, just several kilometers from DR Congo and Rwanda. However, we are not limited by that territory. We have our East African focus which shapes our identity, and, at the same time, we are open to other parts of Africa and of the world as well.”

❚ Marek Hrubec is in charge of a Burundi learning center

Marek Hrubec and his students in Burundi. Credit: Courtesy of Marek Hrubec


Hrubec, who has given lectures across the world, said his work into the economic, social, political and cultural aspects of globalization have helped make him aware of the problems parts of the world such as sub-Saharan Africa face. That meant it was “not a surprise” that he has taken a position at an East African university.

By offering courses that are of particular interest to the region, the university hopes to anchor itself in the region where it is based.

“That is why we offer nutrition studies and rural development studies. We are aware of the importance of the establishment of the Faculty of Medical Science, but also the Faculty of Agricultural and Bio-technical sciences. And later, we will establish a Faculty of Social Science as a critical school of social research and education,” said Hrubec.

A wide range of other subjects will be taught, among them public health, economics, sociology, psychology and information technology, with the number being offered increasing as the university expands until it has �ve faculties.

The university does not want to just educate people to become specialists in a particular �eld, said Hrubec. Instead, the focus will be on developing people who are “aware of interactions between local, national, regional, and global problems.”

“We want to contribute to critical thinking not only in the humanities and social sciences but also in other �elds of study,” he said.

“Students and graduates should be human beings who keep in mind the importance of social, political and cultural justice, who know the philosophical idea that human beings need mutual recognition in their social-economic, political and

cultural relations in order to realize good lives.

“To cut a long story short, that is why our university is based on the values of justice, equality and prosperity.”

There are ambitious plans for developing the university, including the building of a hospital and an experimental farm. Research, not just teaching, will be a key focus, and Hrubec said links to institutions in the

European Union have already been established, and he hopes to develop ties to Arab universities as well.

“This year, we also plan to communicate with universities and research centers from the USA, China and Brazil in order to make co-operation. The global age requires global communication and co-operation,” he said.

Daniel Bardsley can be reached at [email protected]

The Prague British SchoolKamýk site: K Lesu 558/2, Prague 4

Vlastina site: Vlastina 500/19, Prague [email protected]

www.pbschool.cz+420 226 096 200

30th June - 11th July8.30am - 5pmChildren aged

4 - 11

The Prague Post_inyerce_1.indd 1 13.05.14 15:47

9 Schools & Education JUNE 2014

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.pbschool.cz


10

BY RAYMOND JOHNSTON

STAFF WRITER

T he highly popular Erasmus program, which provides educational opportunities for young people in the European Union, has been expanded and is now being rolled out across the

28-member bloc.

Between 2007 and 2013, the previous version of the program aided 2.7 million people in the EU, including 93,000 from the Czech Republic. The new version is called Erasmus+ and is set to run from 2014 to 2020. It has a 40 percent higher budget.

It also joins various EU programs under one umbrella and for

the �rst time will support sports. The program is open to students, teachers, apprentices, volunteers, youth leaders and people working in grassroots sports. The 14.7 billion euro budget takes account of future estimates for in¶ation.

Erasmus+ will allocate around 265 million euros over seven years to sports. In part, it will support transnational projects

involving organizations in grassroots sports, promoting, for example, good governance, social inclusion, dual careers and physical activity for all.

According to an EU statement, Erasmus+ aims to increase the quality and relevance of quali�cations and skills. Two-thirds of its funding will provide grants for more than 4 million people to study, train, work or volunteer abroad. The rest of the budget will support partnerships between educational institutions, youth organizations, businesses, local and regional authorities and NGOs, as well as reforms to modernize education and training and to promote innovation, entrepreneurship and employability.

Androulla Vassiliou, European commissioner for education, culture, multilingualism and youth, said such education reforms are crucial if the EU is to equip the young generation with the quali�cations and skills they need to succeed in life.

“Erasmus+ will also contribute to the �ght against youth unemployment by giving young people the opportunity to increase their knowledge and skills through experience abroad,” Vassiliou said when the European Parliament adopted the new

The EU’s expanded education program is now rolling out

Androulla Vassiliou, European commissioner for education, culture, multilingualism and youth, is

promoting the new Erasmus+ program.

Credit: European Commission

❚ Erasmus+ will help more young people in more ways

11

program.

“As well as providing grants for individuals, Erasmus+ will support partnerships to help people make the transition from education to work," she added.

While there is high unemployment is some EU countries — nearly 6 million young people are unemployed in the EU — there are also 2 million job vacancies. One-third of employers report dif�culties in recruiting staff with the skills they need, the EU stated in a press release. This demonstrates a signi�cant skills gap in Europe. Erasmus+ will address this gap by providing opportunities for people to study, train or gain experience abroad, the EU press release states.

The way grants are given out will also be changed to take into account the costs of living in the various countries. Provisions will take into account students with special needs and students from low-income families. Students can also now take advantage of the program more than once under certain conditions, such as moving on to a higher “study cycle.”

In a speech in Germany at the end of April, Vassiliou pointed out more advantages of the new program.

“Together with our member states, we have agreed that early school leaving is an urgent priority; therefore Erasmus+ will share the best solutions from across Europe. We have identi�ed poor reading skills as a serious problem; Erasmus+ will fund new cross-border projects to tackle it. We know that our foreign-language skills are falling behind; Erasmus+ will support initiatives to boost them. We need to open up education to new technologies; Erasmus+ will support better use of ICT for learners

and teachers. Our vocational training systems are too often failing our young people; Erasmus+ will help to modernize them,” she said in Berlin when the program was of�cially launched there.

She added that the program provides a new loan guarantee for students who want to study for master’s degrees. Universities will also be encouraged to cooperate more closely with industry to create new alliances and foster innovation.

“Erasmus+ can also help countries to address speci�c challenges. In Germany, for instance, support could be directed at increasing the educational level of disadvantaged people, and at extending and improving early childhood education and care as well as all-day schools,” she said.

The program will help young people develop some of the skills that will serve them for the rest of their life. “They learn to stand on their own two feet. They learn to live and work with people from another culture. They learn a new language and a different way of thinking. They see the world through the eyes of others. In short, they open their minds,” Vassiliou said.

“Erasmus+ means a Europe that is open to the world. For the �rst time, our new program is open to third countries, allowing students from around the globe to spend part of their studies in an EU country and vice versa,” she added.

The main goal of Erasmus+ is to help people navigate though their education and into the world of work. “This is a mission where we cannot afford to fail: we must give our young people the tools that will allow them to �nd their own path to happiness, ful�llment and a place in society. This is where Europe can make a difference,” she said.

WHOM DOES ERASMUS+ BENEFIT?

• 2millionhighereducationstudentswillbeabletostudyortrainabroad,including450,000traineeships;

• 650,000vocationalstudentsandapprenticeswillreceivegrantstostudy,trainorworkabroad;

• 800,000schoolteachers,lecturers,trainers,educationstaffandyouthworkerstoteachortrainabroad;

• 200,000master’sdegreestudentsdoingafullcourseinanothercountrywillbenefitfromloanguarantees;

• Morethan500,000youngpeoplewillbeabletovolunteerabroadorparticipateinyouthexchanges;

• Morethan25,000studentswillreceivegrantsforjointmaster’sdegrees,whichinvolvestudyinginatleasttwohighereducation institutionsabroad;

• 125,000schools,vocationaleducationandtraininginstitutions,higherandadulteducationinstitutions,youthorganizationsand enterpriseswillreceivefundingtosetup25,000‘strategicpartnerships’topromotetheexchangeofexperienceandlinkswiththe worldofwork;

• 3,500educationinstitutionsandenterpriseswillgetsupporttocreatemorethan300‘knowledgealliances’and‘sectorskillsalliances’ toboostemployability,innovationandentrepreneurship;

• 600partnershipsinsports,includingEuropeannonprofitevents,willalsoreceivefunding.


C hildren love to make things with their hands, and classes being offered in the Czech Republic aim to make use of that enthusiasm by sparking interest in science and

engineering.

The Bricks4Kidz classes were launched several years ago in the United States and after becoming popular there, they have more recently been offered in a number of European countries and other parts of the world, with more than 500 franchises across 23 nations.

Early this year the program, which encompasses after-school and pre-school classes, �eld trips and birthday parties, was launched in the Czech Republic by Michele Leschová, an American mother of two who has lived in the country for two decades.

During the classes, children use kits to make a huge range of objects, among them a helicopter, paddle boat, garbage truck, crane, alligator and airplane. Each small kit of Lego pieces can

be used to produce as many as 100 objects.

Classes are offered in English or Czech for children ranging in age from 3 to 13, with easier versions of the various tasks available for younger children.

Leschová, who conducts the English-language classes herself, spoke to the Prague Post about the purpose behind Bricks 4 Kidz.

The Prague Post: What gave you the idea to secure a Bricks 4 Kidz franchise in the Czech Republic and to start offering classes here?

Michele Leschová: I thought it might be a good opportunity. Once I

learned more about it, I really liked the idea. I really liked that it was

very educational. I spoke to my sister in the States and she said they’re

wildly popular.

How do the classes operate?

The kids work in pairs. They learn to co-operate. If one gets frustrated,

the other one can help them. They go through the instructions. Almost

OneBRICKat a timeLego classes help to spark children’s interest in science and engineering



all the kids are motivated. The goal is to get the kids interested in

science and engineering using something they like.

If we have 50 minutes, then usually the �rst 10 to 15 minutes is talking

about what you’re going to build. Building it takes 15 to 20 to 25

minutes … then they use their own time to create by themselves.

It teaches them something and gives them some inspiration and they

have time to work on it by themselves … [Then] you have to teach the

kids to clean up after themselves!

Lego is particularly seen as something for boys, although the Lego Friends range for girls has been very popular. Have you had much interest from girls in your classes?

In the States it’s 20 to 25 percent girls in the classes. Here, in general,

that’s been my experience so far. But the girls that have come to the

classes, they’re really, really good … People think Lego is just for boys

and there’s nothing pink, but it’s a great way for girls as well to get

more con�dent with engineering.

What sort of engineering ideas can the classes help the children to understand?

You can see gears and they all work. They can get the sense of how

a motor works or how a car would work, for example. Some children

don’t like to build something and take it apart, but they like that they

can build so many different things from it.

Charles University in PragueFaculty of Mathematics and PhysicsMalostranské nám. 25118 00 Prague, Czech Republic

+420 221 911 [email protected]

STUDYCOMPUTER SCIENCE

at Charles University in Prague

Dare to think!

Learn from prominent and distinguished academics at one of the oldest and most highly regarded universities in Europe. Experience the intrinsic beauty of Prague’s rich historical heritage. Doors to exciting and challenging careers will be opened to you.

Term for Applicationfull-time study, in English. May 30, 2014 is deadline for application:

Master study programme Computer Science:

study branch Mathematical Linguistics, study branch Discrete Models and Algorithms, study branch �eoretical Computer Science,

Master study programme Mathematics:

study branch Financial and Insurance Mathematics, study branch Mathematical Analysis, study branch Mathematical Methods of Information Security, study branch Mathematical Modelling in Physics and Technology, study branch Mathematical Structures, study branch Numerical and Computational Mathematics, study branch Probability, Mathematical Statistics and Econometrics

Bachelor Studies:full-time study, in English, May 30, 2014 is deadline for application:

Study Programme Computer Science General Computer Science

Contact : Student Affairs DepartmentAddress: Charles University, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics Ke Karlovu 3, 121 16 Praha 2Contact Person: Stanislav VeselýE-mail: [email protected]: +420 221 911 217

study branch Discrete Models and Algorithms, study branch �eoretical Computer Science,

study branch Mathematical Analysis, study branch Mathematical Methods of Information Security, study branch Mathematical Modelling in Physics and Technology, study branch Mathematical Structures, study branch Numerical and Computational Mathematics, study branch Probability, Mathematical Statistics and Econometrics

General Computer Science

THE LESCHOVÁ FILEName: Michele Leschová

Age: 45

Nationality: American

Current position: Teacher and franchise owner,

Bricks 4 Kidz Prague

Previous positions: Head of an English pre-school,

2007-13; Consultant with Arthur D Little, 1997-2000

Education: BA International Relations, Boston

University; MA International Relations, The George

Washington University, Washington, DC



BY RAYMOND JOHNSTON

STAFF WRITER

A cross the European Union, many employers will say they are a bit reluctant to hire people with Czech degrees. The problem is that the education system is too theoretical and lacks current broad-

based practical knowledge in the fields where the graduates want to work. Employers from German multinational companies in particular praise their own country’s education model, which involves more hands-on learning techniques and close cooperation with business.

The Germany-based Fresenius University of Applied Sciences (Vysoká škola Hochschule Fresenius) is launching a Prague campus with degrees in business and psychology. Courses will be taught in the Czech language. The university already has campuses at eight locations across Germany, including in Berlin, Munich, Hamburg and Cologne. They also have a center in New York City.

The Prague campus will be at Nárožní 9 in Prague 5, and the organizers are now taking applications. The courses, which are

accredited through the main school in Germany, are mostly in the evenings and on weekends to accommodate people who are working and looking to improve their skills.

The organizers are not seeking to get Czech accreditation, as the Germany-accredited degrees already have international recognition and acceptance, they say.

Not all of the study paths available in Germany will be at the Prague location. The business school will offer two bachelor’s degrees. One is in business administration and the other in tourism, hotel and event management. It also offers a master’s degree in media management and entrepreneurship. The psychology school offers a bachelor’s degree in business psychology. It takes six semesters of study for a bachelor’s degree and four semesters for a master’s.

The school emphasizes that it has regularly organized guest lectures given by prominent personalities in the business and media world. Cooperation with corporate partners is also very close. Companies that eventually will be offering jobs and internships to the school’s students also send senior employees as lecturers, so the course material very closely matches the real needs of industry. This

FreseniusUniversityto open

PRAGUECAMPUS

❚ Classes will be taught in Czech using the hands-on German education model

Classrooms and other facilities at the Prague campus of Hochschule Fresenius.

Credit: Hochschule Fresenius

Fresenius University of Applied Sciences

Prague CampusNárožní 2600/9, Prague [email protected]


http://www.hs-fresenius.cz

also helps students with networking, as they can make contacts with people closely connected to their �eld of study.

The school also uses small study groups and individual supervision, so that students don’t simply become a number that gets lost in the crowd. There is an active alumni network as well that helps to exchange ideas among current students, graduates and staff.

Along with the core classes, students can also learn soft skills related to communication, leadership and ethics.

While the Prague campus is new, the school has a long tradition, according to the mission statement on its website. It was founded in 1848 by Carl Remigius Fresenius and has roots in the Fresenius

Chemical Laboratory. Now the school can look back over more than 165 years of privately funded educational tradition and is the oldest educational chemistry institute of its kind.

“The name Fresenius stands for practically oriented teaching closely linked to applied research and development. This holds true for the traditional Faculty of Chemistry & Biology, the Faculties of Health & Social Affairs and of Economics & Media, both established in 1997/98, and also for the new Faculty of Design, which was integrated in 2013,” the mission statement says.

The school also has a motto: “Teaching and research with practical relevance, bringing an international environment to life, challenging and supporting our students!”



P rague is host to several schools with strong links to the United Kingdom, among them English College in Prague, Prague British School and

English International School Prague.

In many other countries with substantial expatriate populations, in addition to local British-curriculum schools there are also institutions that are actually branches of well-known private schools in the UK.

From the dusty deserts of Qatar to the austere suburbs of Beijing, from Dubai’s sandy outskirts to the sweltering tropical heat of Bangkok, these foreign branches have opened to heavy demand from locally based parents.

The phenomenon is growing ever larger as demand for

upscale school places increases in emerging markets.

According to a report last year in the Financial Times, British private schools have now opened 29 campuses overseas in countries ranging from China to the United Arab Emirates.

Venerable names in the British private school sector such as Repton, Harrow and Dulwich College — all institutions steeped in tradition – have opened branches abroad.

But for all the stellar reputations of the parent schools, the model of opening branch schools has not been without controversy.

The overseas operations are expected in many cases to send back money to the original school, which although it may provide valuable funds to give bursaries to the children of less well-off parents, also raises concerns that these new foreign branches’ main reason for existence is to generate revenue rather than offer good-quality education.

A little slice of Britain in a FOREIGN LAND

❚ British private schools are busy opening foreign branches

Dubai College offers a British-style education but does not have links to an

established school

Credit: Wikipedia


The test for study,

work and lifeIELTS, International English Language Testing System, is designed to assess English language skills at all levels.

For more information, please visit www.britishcouncil.cz

“IELTS gives you greater professional and academic mobility.”

IELTS is jointly owned by the British Council,IDP: IELTS Australia and Cambridge English Language Assessment

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Also, while demand for places from expatriate families as well as Anglophile locals has been strong in many cases, despite hefty fees, it has not all been plain sailing in terms of recruiting students. At Repton Dubai, the concept of a boarding school, where pupils do not return at the end of the day, took a while to become established, with modest interest at �rst when the school opened in the late 2000s.

Existing international schools – those that have not been spun-off from a parent school back in Britain – have sometimes suggested they may have stronger links to the local community and can offer a better education, at least until the newcomers become established.

“A school cannot transplant from one environment into a totally alien environment and expect to be producing the same thing right from the start,” Dr Carlo Ferrario, the then headteacher of an international school called Dubai College, told The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi in 2008, at around the time Repton Dubai was launching.

“Just because Repton has 450 years of tradition in the UK, that doesn't mean it will immediately reproduce that tradition.

You don't create quality straight away. It takes time to establish a reputation.”

Those involved in the new foreign branches have insisted they are able to bring many of the best features of the original school into its new environment, even if they differ in many ways. For example, typically overseas branches of top schools will be coeducational, even if the original institution is single sex.

Jim Hawkins, headmaster at Harrow School in London, which educated among others the late British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, told the Financial Times last year that when the school opened a branch in Bangkok in 1998, making it one of the �rst foreign branches of a British private school to launch, the aim was not to replicate the original school physically. But, he said, it was possible to recreate the best aspects of Harrow, even in the Far East.

“It’s the curriculum, the discipline, the environment, an emphasis on extracurricular life – these are the key things,” Hawkins said in the FT interview.

Daniel Bardsley can be reached at [email protected]

http://www.britishcouncil.cz

http://www.ielts.org


BY RAYMOND JOHNSTONSTAFF WRITER

T here are some topics that people try to avoid learning about, and issues relating to old age rank high on that list. In an effort to educate people about Alzheimer’s disease, which

affects predominantly but not only older people, director Eva Rysová and playwright Ondřej Novotný along with a

group of actors have created an experimental play called Six Billion Suns (Šest milliard sluncí).

The play has the support of the Czech Alzheimer’s Foundation as well as the Culture Ministry and the cities of Prague and Brno.

The play, which had its premiere in November 2013 at Roxy NoD, will be going to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival from Aug.

shines a light on Alzheimer’s disease

❚ A play intended to spread understanding of the degenerative illness is headed to Edinburgh


The cast of Six Billion Suns met with Alzheimer’s patients to learn more about the disease. Credit: David Musil

‘Six Billion Suns’

8 to 16. It will also be performed at Czech schools, and from September there will be an interactive program for secondary school students to prepare them for the topic and to discuss it with them afterward.

The director and others involved in developing the project spent a year reading medical and �ction books, and watching �lms. The biggest inspiration came when they met two younger women who suffer from a rare form of Alzheimer’s. The patients discussed their lives and feelings.

Some of the cast also spent three days in a house for Alzheimer’s patients. “We spent the whole day with them from breakfast till evening. We were feeding them, singing with them, reading fairytales, doing crosswords. We were interested in how they behave, what makes them happy. I haven’t encountered anything similar before. … Contact with such people was very important to me, and I’m still inspired by these experiences,” actress Paulína Labudová said.

One actress in the play has a very personal experience with the disease. Marie Jansová’s grandmother suffers from it. The grandmother grew up in a German-speaking environment, and she “stepped back in time” to when the German language was primary for her. “For me it was a very strange and hard experience, because I couldn’t communicate with my grandma: She couldn’t remember the Czech words at all. So later on, when we wanted to talk to her, we have to do it in German,” Jansová said.

The people involved with the play try to empathize with the patient’s perception of the world that he or she is losing a grasp on. They want the audience to be able to imagine what it is like to be disintegrating slice by slice.

Eventually in the play, the whole tragedy of the disease is revealed. “In the patient’s environment, an absurd and sometimes comical world is created. In some sense, it is patient’s relatives who suffer more. My great wish is that our play will help the audience to view some aspects of the disease in a new light and to come to terms with the altered reality in which the patients live,” producer Eva Dryjová said.

Director Rysová said she became interested in the disease due to its proximity to what she considers the main elements of theater. “The �rst element is the fundamental ‘right here, right now.’ I call this the principle of pure presence. If you are losing your memory, you may keep asking the same question over and over again, and each time it is new for you; it takes place here and now. That’s what we strive for with each performance: to stage the repeated situation as if it was created live, in that very moment in front of the audience,” she said.

“The next is recognizing falsehood even when you no longer understand the meaning of words, but you’re still able to read the emotional aspect. That’s also something we work with in theater: In the end, what we are after during rehearsals is mainly that which the actors say sounds true,” she said.

“And the third parallel concerns creating other universes.

19

A person suffering from Alzheimer’s disease �nds himself at some point in his own reality. And if we want to remain close to him and understand him, we must try to enter this world. … We require the same thing of our audience: Without their active willingness to accept and enter the reality of the world created on stage, the theater cannot work,” Rysová said.

Šárka Kovandová, director of Czech Alzheimer’s Foundation (Alzheimer nadační fond) said she was enthusiastic about the show and that is why the foundation sponsors it. “I have the feeling that the show is very authentic, but what I really appreciate is that such a young group of artists is interested in this topic. … I hope that they could get other people interested in this theme. It’s really important,” she said, adding that her foundation primarily supports caregivers and also to educate professionals by supporting international study trips and research.

Members of the Alzheimer foundation support the play because they feel that it is important to introduce the topic to young people. “We believe this form can interest visitors who are not acquainted with the illness,” Kovandová said.

The production has won praise from a doctor who deals with the issue. “In the �rst minutes the audience is gradually transported into another world, a world of people suffering

from this disease. Thanks to this opportunity, I realized how dif�cult it is to live with a memory disorder, how people with this illness live with us in our ‘real’ world but are unable to share much of it with us,” Dr. Eva Jarolímová said.

“The young actors express experiences and fragmentary situations … from the daily life of Alzheimer’s patients in an authentic manner, with everything taking place in another world,” she said.

A patient with the disease also was enthusiastic about the performance. “I spoke to a female friend of mine, a fellow sufferer of Alzheimer’s disease, for about half an hour about the performance. She was ecstatic. She saw herself in many situations and said she laughed a great deal. We probably see it a little differently than other people do. I suppose we simply get immersed in the characters as if we were there with them. We don’t mull over the elements of sadness,” Nina Baláčková, a member of Alzheimer Europe, said. She also lamented that the play had limited exposure.

The play is now in the process of being reworked for its run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It needs to be shortened by about 20 minutes to �t into a one-hour time slot. It also needs to be performed in English. The current version is in Czech and Slovak, sometimes with projected English subtitles.


How do you try to help your graduates get a good position in the job market?

First of all, we are trying to provide education of high quality which is ensured by excellent teachers - not just professors and associate professors, but also practitioners. This helps our graduates to be competitive in the job market. In addition, we put our graduates in contact with companies that are looking for new staff. Mostly we use our university’s partner companies, but also other companies which we cooperate with on speci�c projects. Last but not least, our graduates are getting better positions in companies as the position of our university is improving. In this context, I would like to state that the University of Finance and Administration has recently gained two prestigious international certi�cates that guarantee the university's quality, i.e. DS Label and ECTS Label. We received the �rst of the two certi�cates in 2011 and the second in 2013, both for the period of 4 years. The certi�cates support the university’s internationalization and the students‘ mobility and are a testament to the ful�llment of the university‘s strategic objectives.

Do you have any indications that companies and organizations appreciate the above mentioned

international certi�cates?

Certainly, it is already clear from what the two above-


Administration offers guaranteed

MBA or MPA study programs are now slowly becoming standard practice for managers. Both are offered by several schools, but the quality differs. According to Petr Budinský, Vice-Rector for Education and External Relations at the University of Finance and Administration, applicants interested in such studies should know the quality of the foreign partners of the school. They should also know what the structure is

of teachers and educators and �nally the format and the cost of the program.

❚ Professionals help to ensure the quality education of our university.

QUALITY

mentioned certi�cates guarantee. DS Label stands for Diploma Supplement Label; the certi�cate guarantees the correct issuing of Diploma Supplement in English and Czech language to all graduates free of charge, which corresponds to the standard model developed by the European Commission, the Council of Europe and UNESCO. The purpose of the supplement is to provide a suf�cient amount of independent data to improve the international transparency and fairness of the academic and professional recognition of quali�cations, e.g. diplomas, degrees and certi�cates. ECTS Label awards the university for quality and for the correct implementation and use of the credit system in all bachelor's and master's degree programmes and for the proper provision of information on study programmes, specializations and subjects. ECTS Label is the most prestigious European award for quality in tertiary education. By receiving it, the University of Finance and Administration as the only private university

ranks among 11 renowned public universities in the Czech Republic which also obtained the certi�cate. It certi�es that our university meets the demanding criteria of the European Union and demonstrates our readiness to ful�ll all international obligations of the Bologna Declaration.

Do you think the bachelor’s degree has already gained its rightful place in the Czech society?

Bachelor's degree doesn’t have a long enough tradition, so most students are trying to get the more traditional degrees such as engineer or master. Maybe that's why a very high percentage of students continue in the master's studies while in the USA many students are satis�ed with a Bachelor and don’t continue their studies.

Have the Czech society and Czech companies lately changed the attitude to MBA and MPA degrees? Since 1990 the attitude of the Czech companies to MBA and MPA has changed signi�cantly. First there was a big boom in the studies, especially the MBA programme, then from about 2007 the numbers

decreased, partly because of the crisis of 2008. During the last two years, we have again recorded an increased interest in the study that has been offered by our university since 2002. Our MBA is a programme of City University of Seattle, MPA is a programme of London Southbank University.

According to what criteria should a candidate of MBA study programme choose the school?

The most important criterion should be, of course, the quality of the programme. It depends on the quality of the foreign partner, therefore it is important to know how the given institution and the MBA program are accredited, what the composition of teachers of the programme is, and last but not least the �nal decision is in¨uenced by the format and price of the programme. Is it possible to �nish MBA for 100,000 CZK, but also for 750,000 CZK. The candidate


should generally avoid programmes that are too cheap and without the guarantee of quality. Our university offers the MBA programme for 240,000 CZK. It is a study in English of approximately two years. In addition, the University of Finance and Administration is a member of CAMBAS which is an association of schools providing MBA in the Czech

Republic, which certi�es the quality of the offered programme. During the MBA programme study at our university we offer a unique opportunity to travel to Seattle and attend a three-

month study programme. This offers a rare experience and chance to become familiar with the study and gain knowledge directly at City University of Seattle .

Can your student of the master's degree programme study MBA at the same time?

Students of the University of Finance and Administration can take advantage of the opportunity to study the master's programme and the MBA programme of City University of Seattle simultaneously in the framework of the Joint Degree Programme. This joint programme lasts two years and is accredited by the Accreditation Commission of the Ministry of Education. Under the programme, the student completes the entire MBA programme, while approximately half of the subjects of the master's programme is recognized, so the study is very effective. Students of Joint Degree get a price reduction. The whole study is conducted in English, therefore more and more students come from abroad.

Bachelor's degree doesn’t have a long enough

tradition, so most students are trying to get the more traditional degrees such as engineer or master.

”

”

COUNCIL OFBRITISHINTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS

For further information please contact: [email protected]; Telephone: +420 224 315 336 Riverside School, Roztocká 9, 160 00 Sedlec Prague, Czech Republic

www.riversideschool.cz

A UNIQUE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLFor students between the ages of 3 to 18 years

Early Years

Primary School

Junior High

Senior High


http://www.riversideschool.cz

COURTESY OF UNYP

U niversity of New York in Prague has been providing a quality university education to Czech and international students for more than 15 years. UNYP students and graduates

are successful in national competitions and earning admission to prestigious graduate programs around the world. Recently, UNYP graduates Andrea Šandorová, Jakub Čermák and Jiří Sýkora won the national 2013 BCG Strategy Cup. Organized each year by the Boston Consulting Group, the national competition challenges students to use their “curiosity and intellect to solve real-life business problems and learn how to develop strategies from a different perspective.” Another student group consisting of UNYP students Jiří Sýkora, Anna Richtrová, Petr Rieger, Martin Konop, and Radek Musil won the national round of the CFA Institute’s Investment Research Challenge competition. Organized annually by the CFA Institute, the global competition “[promotes] best practices in equity research among the next

generation of analysts.” In a different area of study, UNYP’s psychology students helped organize our first student research symposium on “Global Community in Psychological Science for the 21st Century” in May of 2013. The event proved so successful that the second such symposium took place this May. UNYP is proud of its students and graduates and believes they are the best representatives of the quality of education the university provides.

It’s not just UNYP students who have achieved renown recently. In addition to their work in the UNYP classrooms, UNYP’s instructors have been busy publishing their research, delivering papers at conferences around the globe, and publishing books, often with the support of UNYP’s research funds. Dr. Charles Webel, UNYP instructor in the International & Economic Relations Department, published a new edition of his co-edited textbook in Peace & Con¶ict Studies with Sage Publications last year, and this year has come out with a new book from Routledge Press, The Politics of Rationality: Reason Through Occidental History. He’s promised a follow-up volume for next year, as well. And UNYP’s founder and president, Elias Foutsis, was awarded honorary doctorates in Business Administration and in Education by the University of Bolton (UK) for his service to the �eld of international education.

UNYP’s programs have also received international recognition recently. In keeping with UNYP’s international character and orientation, the school earned accreditation of its 3-year Bachelor’s program in Business and its MBA programs


STUDENTSSTUDENTSGood foundationfor aspiring

from the U.S. accreditor International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE). These are the �rst such business programs offered by a Czech higher education institution to be accredited by an American accrediting body. As part of the accreditation process, a 3-person team from IACBE conducted a 3-day site visit of UNYP in March 2013, following submission of UNYP’s detailed self-study. The accreditation application, self-study, and site visit report were evaluated by the IACBE Board of Commissioners, which voted to accredit the program at its meeting in June 2013.

In addition, a major new initiative began at the start of the current academic year: In cooperation with Czech Technical University in Prague (CVUT) and Inovacentrum, an Entrepreneurship Center was created as a forum to host monthly lectures and discussions in the area of entrepreneurship. Included in this partnership is a plan to facilitate cooperation between UNYP and CVUT students in competing in a SMART challenge in the spring of 2014 and every spring thereafter. UNYP also signed an agreement with Wayra, the largest incubator/accelerator academy in the Czech Republic, enabling UNYP students and alumni to have free access to its space and incubation support for startup companies established by UNYP students and alumni.

The University of New York in Prague (UNYP) is the leading private university institute in the Czech Republic offering studies in English language. UNYP offers an American four-year Bachelor’s program in partnership with the State University of New York/Empire State College. It also offers a three-year European Bachelor’s program accredited by the Czech Ministry of Education. Students who choose the “dual degree” option can get both a Czech and American Bachelor’s degree. UNYP also provides study programs on Master’s and doctoral levels. These are prestigious MBA studies, studies of

Professional and Business Communication (M.A.), studies of International and Commercial Law (LL.M.), and a new study program International Management (M.Sc.). A doctoral (Ph.D.) program is also offered in the �eld of innovation (by publication). All students can use the services of UNYP’s Student Affairs department, which will help you to arrange accommodation, participate in student activities and support all students in �nding their �rst job. Admission of students for the school year 2014/2015 is in progress.


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Schools & Education (May 2014) by PraguePost.com

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Transcript of Schools & Education (May 2014) by PraguePost.com