Fulbright Reality Czech

By Miriam Siroky (Fulbright Scholar’s daughter) Dear Diary, Today was quite an average school day. To be honest, I didn’t want to get out of bed, but I was excited to see my friends. I slowly got out of bed and ready for school, but I really didn’t really want to go outside, and started to imagine: “If only there was a zip line from my bed to the classroom…” I really have nothing to complain about, since my whole commute takes less than oneminute by foot. Only when I sleep over at a friend’s house do I have a reason to complain about how long it takes to get to school, and it only makes me grateful to live so close to school. As my feet drag me through the two doors of the school, I start to question why I’m not in bed still, since it’s only 8. As the second door opens, I go straight to my locker, where I change my shoes, and put my jacket inside. After exiting the locker room, I head up the two flights of stairs to my classroom, where I see my friends! About a minute later...

Fulbrightista v USA: Jak najít školu pro své děti? Sdílíme článek naší absolventky Hany Kolesové Your kids will probably go to public schools, which are free of charge(unlike private schools, where you need to pay tuition).  There are huge differences in quality of public schools in the USA in various town districts or towns.  If having kids, living (renting a house or appartment) in good school district is beside the commuting distance to work main important thing to consider. For you similarly as for the US citizens this is the main criteria for finding a rental place, so school rating and school boundaries are oftern link together on the home rental websites.  Every public school in USA is rated from 1-10 (10 highest) score. The scores are saying how good is the school in particular state. The score reflects the scores in read, math and science, but it also reflects how the students are making progress and how the school is able to incorpo...

by Sinia Amanonce In 1978, the Křivoklátsko Nature Preserve became a UNESCO protected biosphere. This unique mosaic of natural elements is where ETA Claire Shoshana Seid is serving her Fulbright term. In this interview, Claire talks about her pet cat, unexpected events of her Fulbright term, and how living in the Czech forests has taught her how to develop a thicker skin.  Fast Facts:  Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio Age: 23 College, Major/Minor: Ohio University Honors Tutorial College, Sociology/ Diversity Studies School in the Czech Republic: Střední škola lesnická a Střední odborné učiliště Křivoklát Favorite Czech Word: “My favorite is probably “já nevím” [I don’t know] because that’s the phrase I use the most.” Favorite Czech Food: “I only know the name in English as my students have told me, but it’s called hunter’s cabbage. Besides that I like smažený sýr [fried cheese].” Favorite Quote: “It is our duty to fight for our freedom. It is our duty to win. ...

by Chloe' Sky Danielle Mueller Danielle Mueller is serving this year as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in the little town of Sušice, Czech Republic, near the Šumava mountains. An educator with a Bachelor’s in Sociology and English, Danielle studied abroad in Prague before Fulbright. Read below to find out how many Statement of Purpose drafts Danielle had to write, how Fulbright has impacted her self-image for the better, and what unexpected faux pas she’s committed by drawing basic shapes!  Fast Facts Hometown: Cortlandt Manor, New York Age: 23 College, Major/Minor: Hobart & William Smith Colleges, Sociology and English plus completion of an Education track School in the Czech Republic: Gymnázium Sušice Favorite Czech word or phrase: “Kočička” – meaning a small cat or a pretty girl Favorite Czech food: Svíčková Favorite Quote: “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.” – J.R.R. Tolkien Tell me about yourself. ...

Maybe you’ve wondered what life is like as a Fulbright ETA but your attention span demands song and pictures and anecdotes of cumulatively no more than five minutes. Well today is your lucky day. For our Fulbright midyear conference, we were asked to prepare a five-minute photo slideshow from our first five months as English Teaching Assistants.  The result seemed like an entertaining and fairly accurate summary of my life thus far here, so I’ve finally pulled together a recording to share with all of you. Enjoy! This article is taken from the blog of Marissa Ortiz , 2012-2013 Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in the Czech Republic. 

Only a few weeks into my first-ever teaching job, I learned a valuable (and obvious) lesson: students have an incredible amount of power when it comes to dictating your mood. I was a little tired the other day and not very excited about my full days of lessons. Luckily, my students were all in a miraculously good mood which completely turned my day around. They made me have a much better day (which also made me realize that the opposite can also happen… Let’s hope that it doesn’t). For something that is so much a part of my life here,  I’ve posted very few pictures of my school/classroom/students… So, I’ve decided to show you some pictures along with a very brief explanation of pretty surface-level differences between my experiences here in the CR and my experiences from high school in rural Minnesota . I’m not very photogenic… 1. The Czech Secondary Education structure is different… I’m teaching at what would most closely resemble an American high school....