EUA QC II PROJECT: NETWORK 4 UNIVERSITY OF HRADEC KRÁLOVÉ INSTITUTIONAL REPORT UNIVERSITY OF HRADEC KRÁLOVÉ CZECH REPUBLIC

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1 UNIVERSITY OF HRADEC KRÁLOVÉ CZECH REPUBLIC

2 1. NATIONAL EDUCATION SYSTEM IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC The central governing body covering the entire education system in the Czech Republic is the Ministery of Education, Sports and Youth which formulates strategic documents and proposes the relevant legislation. Pre-school education of children aged three to six is provided by nursery school (mateřská škola). Compulsory school attendance (introduced as early as 1774) lasts nine years, normally from the age of six to fifteen. Primary education is provided by the first (five-year) stage of the basic school (základní škola). Lower secondary education is provided by the second (fouryear) stage of the basic school, or at the lower stage of six- and eight-year general secondary school (gymnázium). Basic schools may establish classes with extended tuition in certain subjects or groups of subjects, special classes for pupils with specific learning needs. Pupils work is assessed on the basis of written and oral presentation and marked using a scale from one to five. Continous assessment is summarised on a school report at the end of each term. Admittance to a secondary school (střední škola) is conditional upon succesful completation of basic school and the fulfilment of admission requirements which normally include an entry examination. Upper secondary education may be acquired at general secondary school (gymnázium), at secondary technical school (střední odborná škola) or at secondary vocational school (střední odborné učiliště). General secondary school (gymnázium) provides secondary general education. The length of studies lasts four, six or eight years depending on the year from which basic schools pupils are admitted. Studies are completed by a maturitní zkouška examination. Secondary technical school (střední odborná škola) normally provides full secondary technical education. The studies last four years and are completed by maturitní zkouška. Secondary vocational school (střední odborné učiliště) provides first of all three-year programmes that are completed by a final examination and the award of an apprenticeship certificate (výuční list). Tertiary technical education is realized at tertiary technical schools (vyšší odborná škola). Admittance is conditional upon a succesful passing of the maturitní zkouška (at upper secondary schools) and meeting of entry requirements. These schools train students to perform specific occupations which are demanding but do not require a university degree. The studies end with absolutorium, an examination and the defence of a written assignment. The programmes last from two to three and half years and the graduates get the title specialist with a diploma DiS (diplomovaný specialista). Students pay tuition fees. Czech higher education has a long tradition of over six hundred years. In 1348 Charles IV established what is today Charles University in Prague, which is the oldest academic institution in Central Europe. Higher education institutions (vysoká škola, univerzita) are divided into public, state and private institutions. Current developments aim at harmonisation of the structure of study programmes as agreed in Lisbon in 1997, e.g. Bachelor (bakalář), Master (magistr) and Doctoral (doktor) study programmes. Bachelor programme lasts three or four years, Master programme lasts either from four to six years, or two or three years (as following programme after a bachelor programme), Doctoral programme (designed for Master degree holders) lasts normally three years.

3 2. THE UNIVERSITY OF HRADEC KRÁLOVÉ ( The institution officially called the University of Hradec Králové (UHK, Univerzita Hradec Králové) came into being in September The history of this institution is older though: In August 1964 an independent Pedagogical Faculty (Faculty of Education) was established for realizing of teacher training programmes for primary and secondary schools. (The history of teacher training institutions in the town of Hradec Králové is more older and goes even to the end of 18th century.) In 1992 the Faculty of Education was declared a university type of school with just one faculty and in 1993 the second faculty Faculty of Management and Information Technologies was established (in 2000 re-named to the Faculty of Informatics and Management). The University of Hradec Králové belongs to the public higher education institutions. It consists from two faculties with a wide scale of study programmes and study branches from teacher training programmes for primary and secondary schools to social work, politology, informatics and financial management etc. Since the beginning of 90th the structure of study programmes has changed significantly. Original teacher study programmes are not dominant more at the University of Hradec Králové 12 Bachelor (bakalář, Bc.) study programmes (within their frame 26 study branches), 7 Master (magister, Mgr. or Ing.) study programmes (within their frame 46 study branches) and 3 Doctoral (doktor, Dr.) study programmes (with 4 study branches) are realized. Following tables document the actual situation in developing study offers and study possibilities at the University of Hradec Králové: Faculty Study programmes Study branches Faculty of Education Faculty of Informatics and Management 5 9 University of Hradec Králové Table 1: Number of study programmes and study branches (2004) Faculty Bc. Mgr. Dr. Faculty of Education Faculty of Informatics and Management University of Hradec Králové Table 2: Number of study branches in study levels (2004) Faculty Bc. Mgr. Dr. Σ Faculty of Education Faculty of Informatics and Management University of Hradec Králové Table 3: Numer of students in study levels (2004)

4 The University of Hradec Králové offers higher (academic) education for all those applicants both from the Czech Republic and abroad who meet the entry requirements. Every year a great number of applicants want to study at this university, but because of capacity only a part of them can start to study: 1882 new students were immatriculated from 9732 applicants in Both faculties provide programmes of life-long education in various types, too. These programmes are not only for professional public (teachers, state administration etc.), but for general public, too (for example the University of the 3rd Age for seniors). In the academic year 2004/2005 there are 26 departments and institutes at the University of Hradec Králové: Departments and Institutes of the Faculty of Education: the department of mathematics, of chemistry, of biology, of physics and informatics, of technical subjects, of English language and literature (with the section of French language), of German language and literature, of Slavonic studies, of music, of arts, of physical training and sports, of pedagogy and psychology, of special pedagogy, of social patology and sociology, of social pedagogy, of social work and social politics, of religious education and charity work, the institute of pedagogy and psychology for primary education, of historical sciences, of Czech language and literature, of philosophy and social sciences. Departments of the Faculty of Informatics and Management: the department of applied linguistics, of economics and management, of informatics, of information science and quantitative methods, of recreology and travelling. The academic levels of the university staff has been improving since 2000 every year in comparison with the situation before It is a result of the university management strategy in changing the work style, and last but not least, of financial incentives, too. The university management will support this trend in the future as well. In 2004, the university academic staff were 360 members, of whom 32 were university professors. The University of Hradec Králové is located in the town of Hradec Králové (about 100 km from Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, and about inhabitants) in nine buildings of which the most buildings are located in the centre of the town. In 1997 a new central building of the university was opened as the first building of the future university campus. The beginning of the construction of the second building of the campus is planned for this year (2005). The university has a modern library located in the first new building of the future campus. It helps to support the study, pedagogical, scietific and art activities of the faculties. There are more than book volumes together with various periodicals (312 subscribed titles, of which 76 are foreign titles) available. The library is equipped with a computer system and it is fully electronically operated. The library has registered readers, more than book-loans per year, visitors per year. To the library a multimedia study room belongs, too, which offers an access to encyclopaedias, dictionaries and other study materials provided on CD-ROMs. There are computer equipped classrooms and study rooms available to the students. The computers are inter-linked via a network and there is a full Internet connectivity available from any computer. 3. INSTITUTIONAL MISSION According to the Higher Education Act (Nr. 111/1998), higher education institutions play the key role in scholastic, cultural, social and economic development of society by

5 performing of maintaining and augmenting acquired knowledge, cultivating scholarly, research, developmental, artistic or other creative activities, facilitating access to higher education in compliance with democratic principles, providing adequate professional qualification and training for research work and other challenging specialised activities, playing an active role in public discussion on social and ethical questions, cultivating cultural diversity and mutual understanding, shaping civil society and preparing young generation for their life in such a society, developing international and namely European co-operation as a fundamental extent of its activities, supporting common projects with similar institutions abroad, mutual recognition of credits and diplomas, exchange of academic staff and students. The University of Hradec Králové formulates the concrete fulfiling of these tasks in its Long-term Development Plan and evaluates the process every year. The results of the work in all three basic spheres of higher education activities, e.g. teaching/learning activities, research and other creative activities and the sphere of services for academic and non-academic community, are very important for all the region, because the University of Hradec Králové is the only university in the region with the wide scale of study opportunities, and in the most branches for the whole republic. The university is also a significant centre of research activities with importance for the region and for the whole republic in some research topics, as for example in comprehensive research of Central European history, comprehensive social analysis of the youth in Central Europe, knowledge management for information society, information technologies and their potential for interactive teaching/learning etc. Both faculties organise series of specialist scientific as well as art gatherings, seminars, conferences, concerts and exhibitions for professional and general public. In this manner the University of Hradec Králové plays an important role in the development of the town, of the region and of the whole society.