Authors

Kateřina Malá¹;  ¹ Masaryk University, Czechia

Discussion

The number of foreigners in the Czech Republic is increasing, with a rising trend in the number of newcomers each year. Currently, due to the situation in Europe, Ukrainians make up the largest group of foreign nationals, but people are also arriving from other countries, most frequently from Slovakia, Vietnam, Russia, Romania, Poland, Bulgaria, Germany, Mongolia, Hungary, and others. Data indicates that approximately 10% of the population in the Czech Republic likely speaks a language other than Czech as their mother tongue. As a result, new places and events are emerging in the Czech Republic, where Czech national values and traditions are blending with those from abroad. With the increase in foreigners coming to the Czech Republic, there is also a growing need to provide Czech language courses for non-native speakers. 

In recent years, many textbooks focused on teaching Czech as a second language have been created. Given the limited experience in teaching Czech to non-native speakers before 1989 and the scarcity of research, these textbooks take very different approaches. The presentation on the topic “Vocabulary as an Obstacle in Combining Czech Language Teaching Materials as a Second Language” will begin by briefly introducing the A1-level Czech language textbooks used in this research. 

The next section will focus on the vocabulary presented in the glossaries of these textbooks and the differences among them. Due to the varied approaches, the topics in the textbooks often do not align, and the vocabulary presented does not allow for the effective use of various textbook sources and approaches in the teaching process. Finally, there may also be challenges in defining thematic areas for the A1 level and determining the primary vocabulary that a speaker should master at this level. 

Differences will be highlighted, particularly with vocabulary on the topic of “city,” though additional thematic areas will also be used for demonstration. Just as different nationalities should ideally aim toward cooperation, textbook creators might consider whether their publications could be more easily integrated with existing materials. Greater compatibility between materials could simplify the educational process for students learning Czech as a second language and for their lectors.