Bilingual and Foreign Language Teaching
Evaluation of the project "Support for the Development of Bilingual and Foreign Language Teaching" at the Pavel Tigrid Language School in the school year 2021/2022
In the school year 2021/2022, the Pavel Tigrid Language Grammar School was granted a non-investment subsidy by the Statutory City of Ostrava under the Grant Programme for the Support of the Development of Bilingual and Foreign Language Education in Kindergartens, Primary and Secondary Schools Located in the SMO in the total amount of 313 thousand CZK. Most of the funds were used for the remuneration of teachers who implemented bilingual education (French history, French geography, Hv in French) and for subscriptions to foreign language magazines. Furthermore, the subsidy was used (CZK 132 000) to cover part of the fee for the internationally recognised language examination for secondary school pupils at level B2 and above according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages scale, which was paid by the pupils. This school year, 90 pupils successfully passed the language exam at the B2 - C1 level.
In addition to regular teaching, foreign language teachers promote language teaching at our grammar school through presentations, workshops, their own language projects and competitions at primary schools. They represent Ostrava and the Moravian-Silesian Region as well as the Czech Republic on reciprocal stays of pupils from "French" classes at the partner school in Limoges or on foreign language trips in England, Germany or Austria.
In the autumn of 12 November 2021, the Ambassador of France to the Czech Republic, Mr. Alexis Dutertre, visited our school during his two-day trip to Ostrava, together with other distinguished guests, Mr. Stanislas Mrózek, Director of the French Institute in Prague and Cultural Counsellor of the French Embassy, and Ms. Denisa Pánková-Schránilová, Attaché for Decentralised Cooperation. On this occasion, the Ambassador presented our European Section with the LabelFrancEducation, a seal of quality for schools with bilingual education in French. This award has been granted to us for the next three years and has also been extended by one year; at present, the LabelFrancEducation seal of quality applies to years 2 to 6 of the six-year education of our school. Afterwards, the Ambassador met with the students of grades 5E and 6E. The pupils were able, among other things, to find out interesting facts about the Ambassador's work and mission, the French and Czech presidencies of the European Union in 2022, or to take part in a discussion about the position of French in the structures of the European Union after Brexit. On this festive occasion, student Natálie Machková from 5E received the prize for 2nd place in the prestigious international competition Concours des Jeunes Plumes francophones 2021.
In cooperation with the French Alliance in Ostrava, French language teachers are involved in preparing students for the international French language exam (DELF scolaire) at the level A1 - C2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. In the school year 2021/2022, a total of 11 pupils took this exam, two at level B1, four at level A2 and five at level B2.
Thanks to the high level of French language teaching, our pupils also participated in the French Language Olympiad for lower and upper secondary school students this year, where they took two 1st places and a 4th place in the regional round and one of the pupils took 6th place in the national round. The students also took part in the translation competition of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ostrava and the national round of the French Poetry Reading Aloud Competition.
Some students represent the school significantly through other activities in French. Eva Réznerová, a 5th year student of the six-year course, actively participated in the project "Simulation of a European Parliament meeting" (as the chairwoman of a political group), which was organised by the prestigious French school SciencesPo and the French Institute in Prague. She also gave a presentation in French "Do men and women have the same income?" at the Student Scientific Conference organized by the Department of Romance Studies of the University of Ostrava. After completing a work placement in Brittany, as one of eight students, Eva presented her experiences from the placement to the public at the "Brittany Evening" event organized at the PANT Centre in Ostrava. Among her other activities, she also collaborated with the Secondary School of Common Catering in Ostrava-Hrabůvka, where she participated in a guided tour of Ostrava during the exchange stay of French students and participated in two weekend workshops with these students.
In March 2022, the French Section organised the 4th edition of the international art competition "Impression - the Rising Sun" for the Day of Francophonie, as this painting by the French painter Claude Monet celebrates its 150th anniversary. 47 schools took part in the competition with 1300 works not only by pupils from the Czech Republic but also from France. The opening was attended by the Director of the Alliance française, F. Brossollet, and a video greeting was sent by the Director of the French Institute in Prague and the Council for Culture and Cooperation of the Embassy of France in the Czech Republic, S. Mrozek. (More information on the school's website.)
At the end of June, 10 of our pupils flew to Brittany, France, for summer internships and will spend the whole holiday in the French environment, helping in the city's information centres, scooter rental, campsites, restaurants, etc. Here they will improve their language skills and experience what it is like to be without direct contact with their immediate family for a long period of time. We know from experience that pupils return from these placements with greater self-confidence, both in their command of French and in their independence.
In the area of French language, four of our pupils are studying abroad - in France. One pupil has successfully completed a year of study in the "Year in France" programme, another pupil will continue her studies in a lycée in Annecy, France. Two pupils have successfully completed their first year at the prestigious SciencesPo college in Dijon, France.
From the above information, it is clear that the financial support of the Statutory City of Ostrava for the teaching of the French language is very important for us, because it helps us to support the teachers of the French language, the preparation of the pupils and the support of the activities we prepare for the pupils. In this way we would like to thank the Statutory City of Ostrava for the subsidy, thanks to which we are able to develop foreign language and bilingual education at our school.
Ing. Monika Kocháňová, Director
email: kochanovam@jazgym.cz
phone: 734 412 664