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Eurydice

EACEA National Policies Platform:Eurydice
Teachers and education staff

Czechia

9.Teachers and education staff

Last update: 12 March 2024
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Overview

 

Early childhood care

Employees (childcare workers) who have different qualifications in the field of pedagogy, health and social services, or a nanny for children under school age qualification and a nanny for children in a children's group are allowed to work in children's groups (dětské skupiny; for children from 1 year of age to the beginning of compulsory schooling). Concrete qualifications are set by the Act on Care Services in a Children's Group.

 

Schools

Staff in schools (with the exception of higher education institutions) consists of education staff and other staff (non-education staff).

A member of education staff is a person who carries out direct educational and training activities or special educational or educational-psychological activities (in summary educational activity) and provides education and training on the basis of the Education Act. He/she is an employee of a legal entity which carries out activities of a school or school facility or is a state (government) employee or the school head (the last one mentioned does not have to be a school staff member in the case of private schools, where a school head can be named by the authorised representative of a given legal entity). Direct educational activities are (according to the Act on Education Staff) carried out by:

Pre-primary teachers at nursery schools (mateřské školy) most often obtain their qualification in four-year secondary school programmes completed with the Maturita examination (ISCED 354) or in shortened study programmes completed with the Maturita examination (ISCED 354) and at tertiary level (ISCED 645 or 655). Primary teachers (the first stage of basic schools – základní školy), teachers of general subjects and teachers of theoretical vocational subjects at upper levels are required to have a Master's degree (ISCED 746 or 747). The teachers of the general subjects more often obtain the teaching qualification in the concurrent study; the teachers of the technical and vocational subjects in the consequent study. For teachers of practical education and practical training professional education at a lower level is sufficient. Teachers in tertiary professional schools (vyšší odborné školy) are required to have professional qualifications whereas a teaching qualification is not prescribed. For other education staff practicing direct educational activities there are specified qualifications prescribed by law.

An amendment to the Education Act in force since 2016 concerns the integration of pupils with special educational needs into mainstream schools (so called the inclusive education amendment). It emphasized the importance of teacher's assistant profession.

In-service training of education staff includes study programmes for unqualified teachers leading to formal teacher qualification, programmes leading to other qualifications (such as school counsellor – výchovný poradce qualification) or professional development courses (continuous education). It is delivered within the lifelong learning system at higher education institutions, in establishments for in-service training of education staff or other institutions accredited by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, or this type of education can be gained through self-study, non-formal education, or sharing experiences.

Education staff in public schools are most often employed on a regular basis. The employment contract is concluded between the teaching candidate and the school and the applicants – are recruited on the basis of an open recruitment structure. Their statutory salaries are calculated on the basis of salary scales and additional allowances. The work week is 40 hours long, part of which is constituted by direct educational activities. Weekly range of direct educational activities for different categories of education staff is set by government regulation. All education staff professionals are entitled to 8-week annual leave.

 

Higher Education Institutions

At higher education institutions (vysoké školy) teachers have academic ranks (academic staff):

  • a professor (profesor)
  • an associate professor (docent)
  • an extraordinary professor (mimořádný profesor)
  • a senior assistant (odborný asistent)
  • an assistant (asistent)
  • a lecturer (lektor)
  • academics involved in science, research and development who also perform teaching activities (vědecký pracovník, výzkumný pracovník and vývojový pracovník)

Qualification requirements for each position are set by each higher education institution and recorded in their internal regulations. The titles docent and profesor are granted based on the relevant provision of the Higher Education Act. Academic staff are obliged to engage in professional development according to their work description (see below); this duty can be explicitly set out in codes of ethics which were adopted by a number of higher education institutions.

Academics in public schools are employed on a regular basis. They are recruited on the basis of public advertisement via a competitive examination. The criteria for organisation of a competitive examination are the responsibility of the institution. The salary of academic staff is determined in the institution's internal salary regulation. The work week is 40 hours long. In addition to educational activities, an academic also carries out scholarly, research, development and innovation activities or other creative activities. The scope of educational activities is not regulated by applicable legislation. Paid annual leave is 8 weeks. Also other specialists employed on the basis of fixed-term contracts can carry out teaching activities.

Legislative framework

 

Early childhood care

The process of gaining a qualification is set by the regulations on the specific professions. Qualification requirements for professionals working in children's groups (dětské skupiny) are stipulated by Act on Care Services in a Children's Group, the concrete way how to acquire the qualification is included in the regulations on the specific profession. In the area of labour law regulations, employment of the staff is covered by the Labour Code. No special conditions valid for these types of employments apply as they do not provide education, health care or social services under the relevant law.

The legislation listed in the following section "Schools" prescribes the relevant education for staff in children's groups with pedagogical qualifications.

The qualification requirements for healthcare professionals are set by the Act on Non-medical Healthcare Professions, and the Act on Conditions for Acquiring and Recognition of Professional Qualification and Specific Qualification for Performance of Healthcare Profession of Physician, Dentist and Pharmacist; and the Decree on the Study Programmes Requirement for Non-medical Healthcare Professions.

The Act on Social Services and the implementation regulation stipulates the qualification requirements for social workers (sociální pracovníci) and social services professionals (pracovníci v sociálních službách).

 

Schools

Qualification and continuing education of teachers of all educational levels (apart from higher education) follow the Act on Education Staff.

The basic legislative framework for the preparation of teachers and other education staff is the Higher Education Act of 1998. Faculties of education control the study content and organization by their own rules. The authorization of a higher education institution to carry out study programmes under the conditions laid down by the Higher Education Act results from the institutional accreditation or the accreditation of a study programme. See also Legislative framework in Chapter 7.

If the graduation programme meets professional requirements to hold a regulated profession, the accreditation of a study programme shall be granted by a recognition body stating that the graduates of the study programme will be adequately prepared to practice this profession. In the case of regulated profession of a teacher (as well as educational care staff with educational qualification, special educational needs specialist, psychologist, teacher responsible for leisure activities and teacher's assistant) this standpoint is issued by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport). In 2017 MEYS issued a methodological instruction the Framework Requirements for Study Programmes to Obtain Professional Qualification to Practice Regulated Profession of Education Staff. By completing the programme, graduates obtain a qualification that allows them to hold regulated professions of education staff. The framework requirements are intended to express the balance between the basic components of training of particular categories of education staff. Part of the requirements is a study plan, i.e. a list of subjects with necessary number of credits and hours. The ratios of each component of the study are expressed in percentages, credits and hours according to the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System. A similar system is also good for authorization resulting from institutional accreditation.

Teacher training which is not provided in higher education institutions but at lower levels of the education system is regulated by the Education Act and related decrees (see also Legislative framework in Chapter 6).

Further education through which teachers acquire the status of qualified teacher, qualified special educational needs teacher or other necessary qualifications is covered by the Decree on In-service Training of Education Staff.

Basic terms and conditions for employment including working hours and pay are set out in the Labour Code, which contains provisions on public sector employee salaries. Other provisions relate to wages in general and apply also to the remuneration of teachers in private and denominational schools and of academic staff. The minimum salary rate is set out by the Government Regulation on the Minimum Wage.

Remunerations and working conditions of education staff at schools and school establishments founded by the Ministry of Education, regions, municipalities or voluntary associations of municipalities are invariably regulated by the Government Regulation Defining on Work Catalogue of Employees in Public Service and Administration; by the Government Regulation on Pay Terms of Employees in Public Services and Administration and by the Government Regulation on Determination of Direct Educational, Special Needs, and Educational and Psychological Activities of Education Staff.

Decree Which Settles Work Rules for the Staff of Schools specifies duties of both employees and employers related to employment, workload, vacation and study leave and supervisory duties.

 

Higher education institutions

Qualification requirements for academic staff are governed by internal regulations of individual higher education institutions (vysoké školy). The minimum academic admission requirement is a Master's degree. Conditions for appointing professors (profesor) and associate professors (docent) are regulated by the Higher Education Act. Generally, employment of academic staff is covered by the Labour Code, some conditions of employment are stipulated by the Higher Education Act, and details are regulated by internal regulations of the higher education institutions registered by the Ministry of Education.