"If you have knowledge, let others light their candles at it." Margaret Fuller

As teachers, our fundamental goal is to impart knowledge to our students. It is a responsibility that requires much planning and patience, but many find rewarding. When teaching English to foreigners this goal is best achieved by applying the PPP (Present, Practice, Produce) method, which is particularly effective when learning new grammar and vocabulary. Sometimes though, especially with students of higher levels, I find that you can't beat natural, free-flowing conversation. As a result, I have adopted a combined approach to teaching, incorporating both structure and fluid communication in my lessons.

A great benefit of this approach is the exchanging of knowledge between both teacher and student. In the last four months my knowledge of the Czech Republic and even the world has improved considerably, with students sharing information on a range of topics such as history, politics, lifestyle and the ever-useful 'tips' on places to visit. For the most part, students are only too happy and often rather 'chuffed' to impart their knowledge - particularly with an inquisitive person like myself!  It is something I am most grateful for and feel very fortunate to experience in my current European surrounds.


Czech 2010 National Elections

With the Czech National Elections having taken place over the weekend, discussions with some of my students over the last couple of weeks naturally turned political - and I have to admit I rather enjoyed them! I am by no means a politician or economist but I do like to be aware of what is happening around me. Back home whenever an election was called I would of course take an active interest, but the constant bombardment of campaigning would eventually begin to irritate me. However living in a foreign country, where I speak very little of the language (I am learning Czech but I am a beginner!) it was a little weird and somewhat unnatural not being able to fully understand what was happening. There were of course obvious signs of campaigning - various billboards, posters and closer to the election day people actively out campaigning - but a lack of language equates to a massive barrier. So I was only too happy to discuss politics with students who were willing (and they were!) and as a result feel much more well-informed.


Election Outcome

So what was the outcome of the election? It was predicted that the Socialist Česká strana sociálně demokratická or ČSSD would control government and while they did have the highest percentage of votes (22.08%), they do not have a majority (100+ seats) in the Parliament. Even with their combined 'alliance' with the Communist Komunisticka strana Cech a Moravy or KSCM (11.27%) , it is not enough to hold Government. What is looking more probable is the coalition of the 'right-side', which is comprised of the Socialist's major rival in the 2010 election race - the Democratic Obcanska demokraticka strana or ODS (20.22%) and newly formed parties Tradice Odpovednost Prosperita 09 or Top 09 (16.7%) and the Veci verejne or VV (10.88%). ODS leader Peter Necas has thrown his hat into the Prime Minister's ring and, with the support of the other coalition leaders, it is likely he will take out the position.

As mentioned before, the Socialist ČSSD (led by leader Jiri 'The Bulldozer' Paroubek) were predicted to win with a percentage of around 30%. They ran a rather negative campaign, attacking rivals and attempting to persuade voters with promises of extra welfare payments and decreased living costs such as free doctors visits. On the other hand, the right-sided parties ran rather honest campaigns, instead focusing on cutting spending and adopting more 'responsible' spending policies in order to combat the current European economic climate. 

European Economic Climate

The European climate is currently a rather unstable one, with Euro heavyweights Germany and France effectively having to help 'bail-out' countries such as Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain due to bad economic policy. Greece's economy in particular is largely suffering due to excessive spending (i.e. in the civil servant sector - civil servants were receiving an extra 13th and even 14th months salary!) and inaccurate reportings of debt levels to the European Bank. And Europeans are obviously feeling the crunch. Usually inclined to vote towards the 'left', a large number of European Governments are currently right-aligned.

The impression I got from many was that if ČSSD were to control government then the Czech Republic may face a similar fate to Greece. Various forecasts suggested that the Czechs were perhaps getting caught up in the promises being made by the Socialists, which made many very nervous. However the actual outcome reflects that Czechs have appeared to put economic stability ahead of personal interest. 

Certainly when I returned back to Prague from a weekend trip away (I was 'sadly' not present for the voting!) I felt a collective sense of relief among those I spoke with. While official negotiations are still taking place, it seems as though after some time of political unrest there may once again be some stability in the Czech Government. This follows a year when embarrassingly during their allocated holding of the EU Government, their own National Government was overthrown by the disgruntled Socialists.

Of course though, only time will tell. Universally politicians don't have the best track record of following through with their promises, but we will inevitably see how it all plays out!

Australian in Prague