Abstract:

The foreign language teaching at 6 non-philological faculties of Pardubice University, the Czech Republic is traditionally provided by the Language Centre staff. The individual faculties have different foreign language teaching policies. Some support continuous language learning throughout the whole bachelor studies, while others limit their language education only to the first year. Generally, there is insufficient foreign language curriculum for master and PhD. students, and an urgent need for a higher level of foreign language competence among university employees as well as a need for standardization of the language curriculum framework. This is especially clear in the case of subject content and language assessment and testing.

The presented project named UNICOM runs from January 2012 to December 2014 and reflects the above described needs. It is divided into six key activities: Language Teaching Innovations, Excellence and Individuality Sustainment, Creation of a Bi-lingual University Environment, E-Learning Implementation, ICT Utilization and Professional Development. The target groups include university students (both undergraduates and postgraduates) as well as university academic and administrative staff.

The project raises the number of foreign language subjects in Master and PhD studies and extends the offer of foreign language seminars targeted at all of the above mentioned groups. The seminars and workshops focus on academic writing, presenting and teaching in English, intercultural competence, and also on the extension of ICT skills. Simulated student conferences and poster sessions provide students with needed soft skills and the ability to convey research outcomes. The project also innovates subject content taught at the University through implemented e-learning and ICT tools. It provides standardized university terminology in Czech and English and translation of key university documents. All the above mentioned steps support internationalization and the mobility of all target groups of the project.

The authors focus especially on two key activities of the project and their outcomes: Firstly, implementation of LMS, creation of e-learning courses including e-testing and progress and final assessment and e-portfolio promotion incorporating self-reflection. Secondly, there is a focus on professional development of university staff comprising long and short term courses and seminars. Practical insights and project risks will also be mentioned.

Keywords:

Language teaching, language learning, innovations, standardisation, ICT, e-learning, professional development.