In compliance with a long-term Program at CULS in Prague, the original Department of Pedagogy was transformed into the Institute of Education and Communication CULS in Prague (IEC) on 1st June 2005. The new Department of Pedagogy became one of she established departments. The original Department of Pedagogy, as part of the Rectorate was founded in 1964 on the basis of the long history of agricultural teacher training in the Czech Republic. It was focused on the training of vocational subject teachers in secondary vocational schools and apprentice training centres, for agriculture, forestry and other related fields of study.
Focus:
The Department of Pedagogy (DoP) provides education partly in accredited study programs guaranteed by IEC (pedagogy specialization), and partly in education in some other accredited subjects in study programs of other Faculties and the Institute of Tropics and Subtopics. This includes PhD students, regarding their preparation in pedagogy and the presentation of information. Research and foreign activities are also focused on these areas of education, including the range of agrarian subjects.
Educational activity:
Department of Pedagogy provides education in accredited Bachelor study programs: Specialization in Pedagogy – vocational subjects teaching; Practical training for teaching; provides education courses for other Faculties such as Consultancy as a subject for the Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources; and Didactical and Presentation Skills for PhD students. The Department also participates in education of lifelong learning programs, and programs of further training of pedagogical employees, which are organized by IEC.
Research activity:
Department of Pedagogy continues the extensive research activities of the original Department of Pedagogy. Research activities of IEC are focused at the national and international levels on pedagogical problems of secondary and tertiary education, and pedagogical competences, and the formation of new study programs. Funding for research programs includes the grant agency of CULS projects, the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Agriculture and, on the international level, European grant agency projects. Research findings are disseminated among the pedagogical community in national and international workshops, seminars and conferences and requested lectures at foreign universities.
International contacts:
Department of Pedagogy continues numerous abroad activities of the original Department in the areas of pedagogy, research and student mobility. Reciprocal exchange of staff involves lectures at foreign universities, and by foreign academic staff in the IEC. Bilateral agreements are made in the framework of Socrates-Erasmus program in cooperation with institutions in the Netherlands, Finland, France, Spain, and Great Britain. Cooperation with Slovak universities is increasing. In research, the Department mainly conducts Comenius and Leonardo projects.
Other activities:
Department of Pedagogy ensures cooperation with other departments and organizes international conferences centred on education in the agricultural sector. It participates in CULS development projects in various countries, for example Namibia and Moldova.