Partners
The Association of Preschool Education (APV)
is a voluntary interest association of citizens and legal entities operating in the Czech Republic. It was founded in 1991 in Prague.
We deal mainly with pedagogical-psychological, health, social, ethical and ethical-educational aspects of the educational effect on the child in the preschool period.
We aim to improve the awareness of the pedagogical and parent public and cooperatives with other partner organizations in our country and abroad.
Through our representatives in advisory bodies and commissions of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, it participates in the preparation of legislative materials for preschool education.
Within these goals, APV instigates professional discussions on the problems of current preschool education, contributes to the verification of the implementation of new approaches in the practice of preschool education, participates in the preparation of new models of preschool education and affects the parent public and public opinion, thus protecting the rights of the child. APV focuses on educating and influencing other pedagogical staff in preschool education, cooperates with experts in other interdisciplinary professions that deal with preschool children.
APV regularly organizes professional and additional educational events – discussion meetings on current issues, meetings with renowned experts, professional workshops, it supports study, publishing and promotional activities, performs consulting and information services.
APV is a professional partner of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports for the area of preschool education. APV representatives are permanent members of the advisory bodies of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, the control committee of the OP VVV, the platform for inclusive education.
APV has 200 members from kindergarten teachers and other experts who address the issue of preschool education.
As part of preschool education, we regularly implement meetings with kindergartens and institutions dealing with preschool issues, conferences, courses and professional workshops.
Among APV priorities is to strive to promote the principle of humanization of preschool education. This means proceeding from personality-oriented theories, which in their models approach the child and his/her developmental needs.
Within humanization, we also want to strive for the democratic character of preschool education based on partner relations of the family and educational organization. We want to strive for an overall increase in the level of preschool education and for a higher prestige of the teaching profession in this field.
EXPOL PEDAGOGIKA s.r.o.
The EXPOL PEDAGOGIKA Ltd. (“Expol”) is a professional publishing house active in the field of education and training. The Expol is part of the Stuttgart, Germany based Klett Group. The Klett Group is one of the leading education-dedicated enterprises in Europa.
The Expol was founded in February 1997 as a textbooks publishing. The Expol is for 25 years one of the largest textbook publishers of the Slovak Republic. In its portfolio it has more than 2250 titles, textbooks and workbooks with the approval clause of the Ministry of Education designed for primary schools, schools for children with special needs, secondary vocational schools, and high schools.
Through state investment to public schools Expol currently has 11% of primary schools market, 94% of schools with children with special needs market, 58% of high schools market and 28% of secondary vocational schools market.
The Expol is also preparing support educational materials – methodology for teachers for individual textbooks. Since 2017, the Expol has been organizing training seminars for teachers with a focus on working with individual textbooks and support materials. During COVID pandemic Expol started preparing webinars, podcasts and online training programmes for teachers, which have become new products to our portfolio of services.
The Expol in co-operation with Publishing house Raabe has launched new digital tools for educating directors, teachers, public and preparing digital products for children, pupils and students: Raabe Akadémia and Raabe Digital. Raabe Akadémia offers on-line tailor-made training programmes with the aim of supporting education, enriching and extending the knowledge of teachers, directors, public which is especially important in the era of online learning in the fast changing world.
Raabe Digital offers interactive digital products: inovative textbooks, workbooks, tests and other products which can not only be used in on-line teaching and learning process, but also copy the needs of modern education of the 21st century.
Currently we employ 15 full-time staff members. All our employees have many years of experience in preparing teaching and learning materials. The Expol has a broad base of external collaborators, experts in the field of education and training, which has long been involved in the development of its titles. External collaborators are usually experts for particular topics with many years of experience and they are well-known and accepted in this field.
Expol is stable and responsible company which, together with its employees and co-workers constantly developing new textbooks and teaching materials for teachers and for better education in Slovakia.
Materska skola, ul. Klasterecka 1557, 432 01 Kadan, prispevkova organizace
The kindergarten was founded in 1962. A logopedic class was opened in 1986, and the school has been offering support to children with speech disorders since then.
In our kindergarten, we create an environment to get the most of each child’s potential with regard to their individual abilities, both for children who need support measures and for gifted children. We have been providing individual support to children with impaired communication skills (in the so-called logopedic class) for a long time. We apply activities in which children show their own initiative, are active, when learning takes place on the basis of their own manipulations, solving intellectual and practical problem situations. We respect and create conditions for spontaneous play. We know that children need direct contact with nature for their full physical, mental, social health and cognitive development. That is why we include various activities in the garden, but also in the near and far surroundings.
Children are co-creators of changes. We continuously involve them in the planning of activities and lead them to self- assessment. The teacher prefers the role of a guide (encouraging children to look for a variety of appropriate ways) to an “instructor” (passing on finished “wise” conclusions).
Teachers monitor the specific needs of individual children or families. Educators regularly inform parents about the child’s individual progress (consultation days according to mutual needs – teacher – parent). We offer cooperation on the basis of equal partnership, mutual openness between teachers and parents, providing mutual information. We support activities to deepen the interaction between parents and school (joint workshops and celebrations). We support parents in actively participating in kindergarten events (entering the class and children’s games, sharing the calendar of events, individual interviews, in the form of surveys and questionnaires, the “contact us” form on the website, subscribing to receive news by e-mail etc.).
Our main principles include:
• support of creative approach, direct interaction of children with nature and natural elements,
• we provide teachers with the opportunity for continuous professional development through peer support, sharing examples of good practice within the school, between schools, through IT technologies and participation in courses
• we provide parents with individualized support (logopedic prevention, consultation hours, information about events in the kindergarten).
There are 9 teachers working in the kindergarten, including the head teacher and 3 teaching assistants. All the teachers are professionally qualified, 4 of them with a university degree (preschool pedagogy, special pedagogy, school management, teaching assistant), 2 teachers studied special pedagogy with a focus on logopedy and pedagogical diagnostics, 1 teacher graduated from a higher vocational school with a focus on preschool pedagogy. 78% of teachers meet the conditions for the implementation of preventive speech education (they have obtained a certificate for the implementation of primary logopedic prevention). All the teachers continue their self-education and, according to the needs of the school and individual priorities, they participate in accredited seminars and offers with different specializations, suitable and necessary for their work. We provide education to 72 children in 3 regular classes (partly of mixed age) and 14 children in one special class (intended for children with impaired communication skills).
Nakladatelství Dr. Josef Raabe, s.r.o.
was established in 1996 and has proved itself as a leading provider of a variety of education products, focusing on the development of learning materials for school leaders, teachers and students.
Our team comprises of 18 experts in the field of education and training, PR and publication development. Our main objective is to be a professional and reliable partner in addressing the specific needs of principals, teachers and other professionals in the field of education.
The active collaboration with key stakeholders in education and training lead to the Nakladatelstvi Dr. Josef Raabe s.r.o. following achievements and activities:
– More than 630 specialised publications;
– A network of more than 900 experts – authors, editors, lecturers and reviewers;
– A portfolio of continuous training courses and accredited programs for school principals and teachers.
We work in close cooperation with leading professionals in the field of Education, Human Resources and Labour Law, in order to ensure high efficiency and practice-oriented materials in the field of school management. One of our major successes during the last few years, is the development of a training materials portfolio for educators. We offer accredited programs for teachers in first and second level of elementary/primary education, as well as for school managers. We also facilitate targeted discussions between education leaders and other professionals on top-agenda issues at national and European level, through organising professional conferences and workshops.
We successfully performed the GSS and WELCOME project, funded under Erasmus+.
GSS project (2015-2018) was aimed at increasing ECEC teachers’ competencies to evaluate and address adequately children’s level of skills and maturity prior to entering into primary school education, thus ensuring a smooth transition. The project was evaluated as best practice example, i.e., – 94/100 – during the final evaluation.
The WELCOME project was aimed at fully integrating children with diverse learning needs through inclusive comprehensive approach to include addressing teachers’ needs for resources and competencies to manage successfully a heterogeneous class/group in mainstream preschool institutions. The project was evaluated as best practice example, i.e., 98/100 – during the final evaluation.
UNIVERZA V MARIBORU
The University of Maribor was founded in 1975. With its 17 faculties, the University Library of Maribor and student residences, it is the second largest and second oldest university in Slovenia with a long tradition. The University of Maribor (UM) is a successful scientific institution whose primary mission is to disseminate and enrich knowledge. It is rapidly developing new areas of activity, testing new study methods and seeking new ways of connecting with the environment.
Strengthening our role as a research university is one of our priorities. UM encourages interdisciplinarity. UM faculties cover natural sciences, mathematics, engineering, medicine, biotechnology, social sciences, humanities and other sciences. By creating a working environment that fosters academic freedom, UM aims to promote excellence in science and the arts.
The awareness that a university is made up of people is present at all levels of education and research. This is why particular attention is also paid to involving students in research and decision-making bodies, and to working with industry, both in the transfer of knowledge and technology into practice, and in connecting and networking students and graduates with employers in the context of the transition to the labour market. The University of Maribor is an institution that offers many opportunities for career development. Graduates, researchers and professors are successful and well-known in Slovenia and abroad.
UM is a central development institution, establishing links with the economy and, together with its partners, creating a sustainable development hub for the wider region. We are rapidly developing new areas of activity, testing new study methods and finding new ways of connecting with the environment. The 17 faculties offer 179 study programmes for more than 14,000 students, of whom around 10% are international students. UM employs around 1,000 higher education teachers.
The faculty involved in this project is the Faculty of Education, which develops study programmes for early childhood educators and teachers at different levels and is engaged in scientific research work in the field of teaching at different areas and levels.
The Faculty of Education runs study programmes at first, second and third level, with around 1 300 students studying each year. The programmes offered at the Faculty of Education University of Maribor are Early Childhood Education, Basic Education, Music Pedagogy, Art Pedagogy, Sports Training, Inclusion in Education and Educational Sciences.
Vrtec Ivana Glinska
Kindergarten Ivan Glinšek is an independent public kindergarten. We work according to a national document (Kindergarten Curriculum). The vision of the kindergarten is the values that connect us. We do what we know best. We enrich each other with mutual cooperation and respect. We give children the best part of ourselves. Our motto is: “Kindergarten of friendly people, where our health and laughter are glowing on our faces.” We provide a professional and stimulating creative environment. We enable monitoring and development of all children’s abilities through play, project learning and learning in nature. We offer parents support and help with socialization to build a healthy and stimulating preschool period together. We are aware that the foundations we build in preschool are a great investment for the future of our children. We believe that we will be even more successful in the project together with our partners from the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
We have 526 children, aged between 1 and 5 years attend the kindergarten. In 6 units and 8 buildings, we have 36 groups led by 83 teachers. The principal is Ester Mlaj, university graduate pedagogue. The kindergarten also has supporting none- academic staff, including: cooks, technical staff (janitors, cleaners) and the administration (accountant, bookkeeper, secretary, social worker).
We offer two education programs. The first is the basic daily program, which lasts from 6 to 9 hours. As part of the daily program, we also have the option of afternoon and shift programs. The second program we offer is a shorter program for children aged 6 who did not attend kindergarten in the preschool period and is funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport, and lasts 4 hours a day within 240 hours of the annual scale (some of these children often show different cognitive development levels than those who have attended kindergarten). Our programs are led by educators who also prepare enrichment activities – sports games, science projects, book education, children choir, dance, chess, foreign languages (German and English), puppet shows, etc. Educators also receive additional education and training in Slovenia and abroad (Erasmus exchanges – Finland, Italy, Spain).
In Slovenia, we provide quality pre-school education. We also work with external collaborators and the local environment. With the children we visit the Maribor Puppet Theater, the NOM Museum, the Maribor Art Gallery and the Maribor Experimental Center. We organize dance, foreign language, skiing and skating courses for preschool children. We also want to highlight the preparation of food for all the children involved in our own kitchen. We are aware that food is an important factor in health, especially in childhood, when children grow and develop and need a quality food intake for good physical development. We do not use artificial additives when designing menus, only natural dried and fresh spices. We prepare all food in our own kitchen with food from integrated and organic production. We offer children in kindergarten three independent and quality meals: breakfast, lunch and brunch. During the day, children always have fresh fruit, unsweetened tea and water available. Once a week we prepare traditional Slovenian dishes and meatless dishes. We prepare individual diet meals for children who have a medically indicated diet. Bringing food to the kindergarten in accordance with Slovenian legislation and recommendations is not allowed.
Zakladna skola s materskou skolou Kalinčiakova, Bratislava
The history of the Kindergarten ZS Kalinčiakova is relatively short, it has been operating at the school since 2015. It is located in the building of ZŠ Kalinčiakova 12 in Bratislava – Nové Mesto district. The school is situated between Bajkalská, Trnavská and Kalinčiakova streets with a separate sports complex with separate access for children and parents to kindergartens. It has continued the traditions of the school, which has its focus on the development of sports and physical activities. It is established following the motto “through Sport to Education”, in the spirit of fair play and Olympic ideals to the foundations of knowledge of oneself and the whole world. We are very much focused on the development of children’s physical wellbeing throughout the day.
The location of the kindergarten, its interior equipment and the school’s sports complex are a prerequisite for the comprehensive development of children’s personalities. Our aim is to lead children to exercise, sports and a healthy lifestyle.
We have facilities for sports, a running track, a large football pitch with artificial turf, a small football pitch with natural grass, a warm-up room, a gymnasium and other areas for sports and physical activities. The kindergarten has additional facilities. The kindergarten is on the premises of a primary school.
The kindergarten program is based on the school’s philosophy.
The kindergarten provides education for children from the Bratislava – Nové Mesto district for which it is the area. We have a total of 76 children. The kindergarten staff consists of 7 teachers, a special educator-logopedist, a teaching assistant and two cleaners.
The school cooperates with various organizations, especially with the Olympians Club Bratislava.
A key area of activity for both the school and the kindergarten is the development of children’s motor skills. We strive to build a good team with positive human qualities at a high professional level.
Zakladni skola a materska skola Libesice, okres Louny
The school has existed in Liběšice since the first half of the 17th century as a German school. The Czech school was established in 1921 in connection with the establishment of the Czechoslovak Republic. At present, the school consists of a kindergarten and first grade of the primary school. Pupils leave our school after finishing the first grade of primary school, and that is why we also try to prepare them for a successful transfer to the sixth year of Žatec schools, some of the more talented pupils go to mathematics classes and to an eight-year grammar school. In addition to the typical equipment, we also have an interactive board, iPads, outdoor areas with play elements and a newly built sports field for the education.
Our organization has a total of 14 employees. There are 4 teachers in the kindergarten, including an assistant.
Our school follows a framework educational program that is valid for all schools in the Czech Republic. We have developed our own vision of the school and the school educational program (ŠVP). Within the ŠVP, we develop a classroom educational program (TVP) individually for each school class. We update the TVP according to the situation and condition of the school class with regard to pedagogical diagnostics, for example according to the number of children and pupils, with regard to children/pupils with special educational needs, according to the needs of children from socially disadvantaged families and children of foreigners.
The kindergarten follows its school educational program called “We play from autumn to summer”, which contains 11 topics per year and is focused on the comprehensive and harmonious development of each child’s personality. Here, children develop their physical, mental and social skills and abilities through play.
In our school, the teacher understands each child as a unique individuality and is a supportive and motivating partner. The school creates the most natural psycho-social environment, based on age-mixed (heterogeneous) classes and the natural integration of children with special educational needs. The main methods of educational work of the school include play, experiential learning and drama. Through teaching methods, teachers aim to ensure that children experience and get to know the world in an active and creative way, while having enough space for specifically children’s spontaneous activities.
The main activities and methods of the school’s educational programme include typical teaching methods (verbal, demonstrative, skilfully practical). Activating methods (discussion, problem solving, situational, staging). Complex methods (group teaching, partner teaching, individual and individualized teaching). Project teaching (learning in life situations, teaching supported by ICT). We try to approach each child individually, empathetically and create a favourable climate not only in the classroom, in the whole school and in cooperation with parents and the public. In our work, the cooperation is important for us, not only at the level of the child and the teacher, but also between teachers and parents, between individual teachers and with other school staff.