Teaching English in the Czech Republic

Teachers' advice / Czech Republic

My name is Tanja. I'm a 29 year-old Dutch girl. I came to the Czech Republic about 3 years ago. I had developed a project for children at a grammar school and lived in Jablonec Nad Nissau for two months to monitor my own program. I went back to the Netherlands and after my graduation party I decided to try my luck in Prague. Prague was fine, but I figured it would be even more relaxed to live in the mountains, so I moved to a town close to Karlovy Vary (nearby the German border) Last year I opened my own little private English language school here. I have about 50 students. (between 10 and 69 years old) and live very happily.

Of course, there are (and hopefully always will be) lots and lots of cultural shocks when you live in another country. Here are the three things that have affected me most:

First of all I think people, in general of course, are very closed. They would not easily make complaints or openly disagree with you. They often think their own thing and complain about it to other people, rather than facing a conflict. This is actually one of the hardest things for me to handle, because I was taught, both at home and at school, to have a strong opinion about everything.

Secondly I think that, compared to Holland, people are very old-fashioned here. In Holland I was pretty normal. Now, all of a sudden, I am a feminist, because I want to carry my own bag and I let my boyfriend iron my clothes. The role patterns between men and women are strictly set here and you surely get comments when you act differently. What I can appreciate is that ladies always enter a room first, except for the pub. A man enters the pub first, because there might be a fight going on. He basically has to check out if it is safe to go in :-) But being old-fashioned also shows in education - clothes - etc.

How people behave and react has got, of course, a lot to do with the history of the country. I had to learn a lot about the history of this country in order to understand and respect the differences.

What I like much more here than in the Netherlands is that hardly anyone is rushing anywhere. Life is more relaxed. (maybe, in the end also because not everyone is so desperate to tell you his opinion about things :-)

Anyway, some tips that might help you if you are interested in teaching in the Czech Republic:

* read about the history before you leave and be careful to start a conversation about communism. People tend to be easily offended or they feel ashamed.

* buy a small pocket 'how to say it in Czech'. The moment people find out your Czech is even worse than their English, they lose a lot of their fear to speak and most probably start in English themselves. (if not... you still have the book :-)

* don't think you are cool/nice when you give big tips. People hate it.

* in Prague, there is no need to arrange a job before you leave. When I got to Prague I opened a phonebook and called 5 schools and had 4 jobs... It is better to work at private schools. They say teachers don't get paid well, but I think they don't work much either!! An average day is from 8 to 1300 or 1400. Between every 45 min. lesson there is, at least, a ten-minute break. Once you get more settled you would have enough time to do some extra teaching here and there, but your social and health insurance are covered right from the start.

* living in Prague is a bit more complicated. It starts from 6.000 crowns (200 Euro) and you probably have to share a flat with one or two people for that kind of money. It took me about 1 week to find something, but people say I got lucky. Adverts are in the daily newspapers, but it is better to try your luck on the Internet. I got my room because my flatmate was interested in having to speak English at home.

* I think as a teacher of the English language you can basically find work all over the Republic and outside Prague cost of living is lower and in my opinion more pleasant, but less 'exciting'.

* public transport in Prague is fantastic. Get yourself a monthly (or annual) pass and travel everywhere in comfort (even at night)

* just be friendly and people will invite you home and let you taste typical Czech food: strawberry dumplings with cream, zeli - vepro - knedliky (mjamm :-)

I guess I can write for hours, but in the end you have to experience things yourself anyway, right?

Finally I would like to add that if you either have some more questions or if you are interested to come and have a look/teach here in Nejdek, feel free to write me! My students and I would be happy to hear from you!
Tanja, 28/11/05
M.R.Bot@seznam.cz
I am a retired business woman and after some courses in teaching ESL and receiving a certificate I took a position in Prague at a language school run by the State. I found the students in general very inattentive, some were disruptive (maybe because I was older) but I knew two Australians who had the same experiences as I did. The hours offered for working were changed to less hours and the pay was not good - you really need some extra money to cover your expenses. There is always a great possibility for private lessons but they don't pay too much. Nobody helped me to find accommodation (my son works in Prague and finally found me a small apartment). If you are a foreigner the landlords will always increase the rent - unless the school has accommodation for you. Many of the positions are outside the city.

There is not much to do, however, unless you find a position in a city, and besides Prague, there are not too many of them. I stayed 8 months and then returned home. Of course if you are a young person it might be a different experience. The Czechs don't care for Americans very much and blame us for all the evils in the world!!! Prague is a beautiful city full of history, they have modern cinemas and the public transportation is excellent. If you have any questions you can email me at liverpoolmomtwo@msn.com"
liverpoolmomtwo@msn.com, 13/01/06
I was in Prague 93-95 on a crap salary with quite a bit of free time and an open mind. I still have a sympathy for Czechs and things Czech. Cheap life if you keep out of the centre and the ex-pat haunts. Lots of good music and cultural life and some great people if you can ignore the drunks and keep a positive outlook and learn to get your tongue around consonant clusters and haceks.

Moravia was even better.

Slovakia has pluses and minuses over Czech. I also have fond memories of Slovakia and Slovaks. Real snow - one crystal seen with a blue-sky-backdrop. Hills and forests - great territory for cross country. Czech beer #1... Czech and Slovak food the worst of anywhere I have lived. But if you are not worried about paying a mortgage or an ex-wife back home, you can have a rewarding time in the former CZ.

Czech students? - pussycats. Don't teach anywhere else if you cannot manage hesky czesky."
Siddharta, 16/06/06
Before you teach in the Czech Republic, be prepared. Czech students know how to study languages, and compared to English speaking people have a good knowledge of their own language! They can easily see through "teachers" who do not know how to really teach, and the country is full of these people who give native speaker teachers a bad name.

Do not work without proper documentation, permits etc. You could well find that you will not be paid, as only cowboy schools will employ people illegally. Non-EU citizens can be deported for working without papers, which takes months to sort out before arriving. For example, Canadians have to wait 4 months for clearance.

Like every country there are good and bad people, but in general if you respect the people and the culture, they will do the same to you. Good teachers are respected and can earn good money.

Regarding red tape, just smile and try not to get angry in state offices."
Laurence, 05/08/06
Hi, I've been living in the UK for the last two years but my nationality is Czech. I have to strongly disagree with ~Siddharta~ that we have the worst food (or whatever...). In fact, everyone I've talked to from the UK fell in love with Czech food. It's very different from the English food but for you -siddharta- and others who probably expected to pig out on chips or burgers - should have stayed home!!!"
Adela, 28/02/07
I worked in the Czech Republic for a few months near the polish border. The pay was low and I was made to sign a contract which stated that I was a cleaner! This was so the school could avoid tax. I was never paid correctly or on time, also when lessons were cancelled I was not paid even when I was sitting in the room not knowing that the class was cancelled. Most Czech people seem to dislike foreigners and people will try to rip you off all the time from taxi drivers to schools and shopkeepers. However, the landscape of the Czech Republic is amazing but Prague is the most over rated destination in the world and is a long way from being one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. It has a small nice part and a good metro system for a city of its size but much of it is a dump and rough. The small good part is nothing spectacular unless you are from the USA."
Anonymous, 18/10/07
The wages are very very low. I spent more than I earned. Rent in Prague is very expensive if you are not Czech! Tax is around 30 percent. The wages and working conditions are poor, Prague is quite rough but has a good cheap metro. This is a place people go because they have to get TEFL experience."
Thomas, 22/03/08
I worked for a large school in Prague and I would say, go to the Czech Republic with savings because your pay will all go on rent and food. I worked split shifts which felt like working 14 hours a day!
Good luck"
Caldon, 09/06/08
I have lived and worked (teach 2 different languages) here in Prague for a little over 2 years. A lot of what the others have written is true. However, about salaries: Yes, it is not fantastic - but you need to bear in mind that the average Czech salary is about 20.000KÄ. This is enough to not only pay rent (unfortunately, usually in a shared flat) and food and transportation costs (some schools subsidise this, mine doesn´t), but also entertainment and travel costs.

The biggest complaint heard from foreigners who live here - particularly language teachers - is that it isn´t enough to travel or save. Bollocks! You CAN save money AND travel, but it all depends on your lifestyle. Here in Prague, most expats are the type who go out and party every night, spending hundreds of crowns on beers, food and cocktails. As with anywhere else in the world, if you carry on like that every day, then of course, all extra money will go down the drain and you won´t have any savings. Many non-EU expats in particular, want to travel all over Europe. Understandable. But it costs money, so apart from getting pissed every day, they spend the rest on travelling. I have been able to travel but I keep it to a minimum and plan my trips carefully. I also don´t go out and spend all my money on beer and food. I cook at home, eating out once in a while, and I limit my beer intake -- because beer here is really cheap, if you don´t hang about expat places which many do. A typical Czech pub sells really cheap beer and bad wines (once in a while, though, you do come across a decent glass of red or white). If you stick to Czech food or Italian (Czechs love Italian-style foods), then you can also eat on the cheap. But a great many expats favour those places dear to their hearts like pseudo-Mexican or the (slightly) higher-end restaurants in or close to the centre.

Life in Prague is nice and it can be enjoyed. The Czechs who live in Prague are, like any city anywhere, full of harried, stressed, rude people. But on the other hand, there are also plenty of nice, friendly, polite Czechs including those in the service industry or those in shops. Speak Czech -- doesn´t have to be fluent or perfect, I am still trying to learn the language! - and it will go a long way. Learn how things are done here, for example, saying a greeting when entering an establishment, saying goodbye when leaving, asking - in Czech - if the person speaks English. Be firm but polite, observe the formalities, show an interest in things Czech, and when the people start to talk about how life used to be like when it was a communist government, be ready to listen. Contrary to what some may say or think, a lot of Czechs do like talking about life before the Velvet Revolution. It is not an easy country to know and it takes some time to get to know the people and understand the culture. But if you really are interested in learning and knowing, then it can be a very enriching experience.
Paddington, 06/08/09

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