Study information

Content:

  1. Bc., Mgr. and PhD. study programmes
  2. Teachers life-long education
  3. Organization of the study at KAJL

 

1) Bc., Mgr. and PhD. study programmes

 

     Additional information

    Teachers´ office hours

    Teacher´s office hours until the end of the exam period (10 February 2023)

    doc. PhDr. Božena Horváthová, PhD.

    •  Tuesday: 11.00-12.30 (via MS Teams)
    •  Thursday: 11.30-13.00 (in person at the faculty)

      doc. Mgr. Erika Juríková, PhD.

    •  Friday 11:00-12:30 (in person or online)

        prof. PaedDr. Silvia Pokrivčáková, PhD.

    • general issues: Tuesday 12:00 - 13:30 (online or in person at the faculty, it is necessary to make an appointment in advance by e-mail)
    • final thesis consultations: Tuesday 16:30 - 18:00 (online via MS Teams, please register via the Thesis Consultations team)

    Assoc. Anna Stachurska, PhD.

    • Monday 14:00 - 15:30 (online, it is necessary to book in advance by e-mail)

    Mgr. Zuzana Sucháňová, PhD.

    • Tuesday 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. (by appointment online or in person
    Teaching practice (study programmes AJJ & AJK)

    Teaching practice (AJJ & AJK)

    Professional practice (study programmes AJaK)

    Professional practice (AJaK)

    State exams guidelines

    Content:

    1) Bc state exams

    •   Creating and defending the bachelor thesis

    2) Mgr state exams

    • Creating and defending the diploma thesis
    • Oral state exams

     

    1) Bc state exams

    Creating and defending the bachelor thesis

    The Bc state exam consists of the defence of the bachelor's thesis.

    A bachelor thesis is a scientifically-qualifying written work that provides new knowledge beneficial to a particular study programme/field. The format and style of the bachelor's thesis shall respect the conventions of the relevant discipline (linguistics, literary studies, cultural studies, and didactics). Through his/her bachelor thesis, the student demonstrates his/her ability to work with various scholarly and scientific sources and carry out his/her research project with the support and guidance of a supervisor.

    1. Selection of the topic of the bachelor thesis. Bachelor thesis topics for students in the penultimate year of a given degree will be published by the relevant department in the timeframe set by the faculty's timetable in MAIS.
    2. Topics in MAIS shall be listed by the supervisor, indicating at least the Slovak and English title of the thesis and instructions for its preparation (the aim of the thesis, recommended methods and expected contribution of the thesis to the field of study).
    3. Students choose the topic of their bachelor thesis no later than the end of the month following the publication of the topics in MAIS.
    4. The student applies for the chosen topic directly in the MAIS portal.
    5. The supervisor who posted the thesis accepts or rejects the student's application (also in MAIS) within five working days.
    6. The student can propose a topic of his/her interest which must be approved by the Head of the relevant department. The student must also consult the topic with the potential supervisor. If the supervisor agrees, the supervisor will upload the assignment himself/herself in MAIS, for which the student applies and proceeds as in points 2 to 5.
    7. Preparation of the bachelor thesis. The bachelor's thesis is prepared by the student under the supervision of a supervisor. The student and the supervisor communicate with each other through individual consultations. The manner and frequency of the consultations shall be determined by mutual agreement between the student and the supervisor.
    8. The essential elements the thesis must fulfil are specified in the Directive of the Rector of the University of Trnava on bibliographic registration, originality control, accessibility, preservation and basic elements of final, rigorous and habilitation theses and dissertations.
    9. Based on accreditation criteria, bachelor theses at KAJL are prepared in English.
    10. The student must prepare the thesis independently under the supervisor's guidance and must observe all rules of academic/scientific ethics. All sources must be properly acknowledged in the text and in the list of references used. When using copyrighted materials, the student must follow the applicable legislation (copyright law). Violation of the rules of scientific ethics, plagiarism, and the preparation of the thesis with the help of other persons (e.g. agencies collecting sources and data) are grounds for not recommending the thesis for defence.     
    11. Submission of the bachelor thesis. The submission of the thesis is considered to be the uploading of the thesis to the Central Thesis Registry (EZP). After uploading the thesis, the student must print twice the license agreement, the analysis sheet and the originality check report (without the section "Plain text document for checking").
    12. The Dean of the Faculty may determine that the student must also submit a specified number of copies of the thesis (in hard copy or on CD ROM). These are to be handed in by the student on the date and at the place specified in the PdF TU academic year timetable.
    13. The electronic version in the EZP and the printed versions must be identical. In case of differences, the electronic version in the EOP is considered to be decisive.
    14. We expect our students to choose environmentally friendly practices when printing and binding their bachelor's thesis - we recommend printing on recycled paper, double-sided text, and using the environmentally friendly printing mode. For binding, we recommend choosing eco-friendly string binding and recyclable cardboard envelopes.     
    15. Assessment and defence of the bachelor thesis. The supervisor grades the thesis with a supervisor's report, published in the central thesis register five working days before the defence. The thesis shall be graded with the grading grades A to FX.
    16. The bachelor thesis shall be assessed by one opponent, who shall prepare a written opinion on the thesis, which the student shall have the right to get acquainted with at least five working days before the defence via the central register of theses and dissertations. The bachelor's thesis shall be evaluated by grading grades A to FX.
    17. If both the supervisor and the opponent have graded the Bachelor's or Master's thesis with a grade FX, the thesis is not forwarded for defence, and the student must revise and resubmit it within the deadline set by the Faculty's timetable.
    18. The student must be given sufficient time to read the evaluations and prepare his/her defence (minimum of 5 working days). In advance, he/she may consult his/her answers to the questions in the evaluations with the supervisor or the opponent.
    19. Dates for the defence of bachelor theses are set by the Dean in accordance with the academic year timetable.
    20. The overall defence of the Bachelor's thesis shall take place in front of the committee and shall last 40 minutes. The defence is conducted by the chair of the bachelor thesis defence committee. The defence of the bachelor thesis shall be public.
    21. The student first briefly presents his/her thesis to the members of the committee who have not had the opportunity to read it in advance (max. 7-10 min.). The presentation's main focus is to introduce the aims of the thesis, justify the methodological approach of the research and present the results achieved.  For the sake of better acquaintance with the thesis's content by the committee members, it is advisable if the student brings at least one copy of the thesis to the defence, even if this is not explicitly required in the study schedule.
    22. The supervisor and the opponent will then present their evaluations (5 minutes max. each) and ask the student questions.
    23. The student responds to the testimonials (10 min.). The student may prepare the defence on paper or in a presentation or may use supplementary materials (sources, research tools and data).
    24. Then the chair of the committee opens the discussion on the defence (max. 10 min.).
    25. After the discussion, the chairperson will close the public part of the defence. In the non-public part, the committee evaluates the student's performance (quality of the thesis and defence, factual accuracy, presentation skills and his/her ability to respond adequately in the academic discussion). Following the guidelines of the Faculty´s Study Order, the result of the defence will be evaluated by the committee with classification grades A to FX.

     

    2) Mgr state exams

    Introduction

    State examinations at the Master's level consist of a thesis defence and an oral state exam. The thesis is a larger scientific qualification written work intended to provide new knowledge that benefits a particular programme of study/field of study. The format and style of the thesis shall respect the conventions of the relevant discipline (linguistics, literary studies, cultural studies, and methodology of teaching). The student's thesis demonstrates his/her ability to work with various scholarly and scientific sources and carry out his/her research project with the support and guidance of the supervisor. The aim of the oral state examination is to test the student's theoretical knowledge acquired during the Master's studies.

    The aim of the oral state examination is to test the student's theoretical knowledge acquired during the master's studies and his/her ability to synthesize and use it in solving specific pedagogical situations. During the state examination, the student demonstrates his/her ability to think about a problem in a broader context and to synthesize the acquired knowledge from several subjects. The oral examination is not a repetition in content or form of a partial examination in a subject that the student has taken during his/her studies.

    Creating and defending the diploma thesis

    1. The thesis topics for students in the penultimate year of study of a given degree are published in the timeframe set by the faculty's schedule in the MAIS.
    2. Topics in MAIS are listed by the supervisor, indicating at least the Slovak and English title and instructions for preparing the thesis (the aim of the thesis, recommended methods and expected contribution of the thesis to the field of study).
    3. Students choose their thesis topic no later than the end of the month following the publication of the topics in MAIS.
    4. The student applies for the chosen topic directly in the MAIS portal.
    5. The supervisor who offerred the thesis accepts or rejects the student's application (also in MAIS) within five working days.
    6. The student can propose a topic of his/her interest, which the Head of the relevant department must approve. The student must consult the topic with the prospective supervisor. If the supervisor agrees, the supervisor will upload the assignment himself/herself in MAIS for which the student applies and follow the same procedure as in points 2 to 5.
    7. Preparation of the thesis. The thesis shall be prepared by the student under the supervision of the supervisor. The student and the supervisor communicate with each other through individual consultations. The manner and frequency of the consultations shall be determined by mutual agreement between the student and the supervisor as appropriate.
    8. The thesis must fulfil the basic elements specified in the Directive of the Rector of the University of Trnava on bibliographic registration, originality control, accessibility, storage and basic elements of final, rigorous and habilitation theses and dissertations.
    9. Based on the accreditation criteria, theses at KAJL are prepared in English.
    10. The student must prepare the thesis independently under the supervisor's guidance and must observe all rules of academic/scientific ethics.
    11. All sources must be properly acknowledged in the text and in the list of references used. When using copyrighted materials, the student must follow the applicable legislation (copyright law). Violation of the rules of scientific ethics, plagiarism, and the preparation of the thesis with the help of other persons (e.g. agencies collecting sources and data) are grounds for not recommending the thesis for defence.  
    12. Submission of the thesis. Submission of the thesis is considered to be uploading it to the Central Thesis Registry (EZP).
    13. Once uploaded, the student must print twice the licensing agreement, the analysis sheet and the originality check report (without the "Plain text document for checking" section).
    14. The Dean of the Faculty may determine that the student must also submit a specified number of copies of the thesis (hard copy or CD ROM). These are to be handed in by the student on the date and at the place specified in the PdF academic year timetable.
    15. The electronic version of the thesis in the EZP and the printed versions must be identical. In case of differences, the electronic version in the EZP shall be considered the decisive one.
    16. We expect our students to choose environmentally friendly practices when printing and binding their bachelor's thesis - we recommend printing on recycled paper, double-sided text, and using the environmentally friendly printing mode. For binding, we recommend choosing eco-friendly string binding and a recyclable cardboard envelope.     
    17. Evaluation and defence of the thesis. The supervisor will classify the thesis with a supervisor's report, which will be published in the central thesis register at the latest five working days before the defence. The thesis shall be graded with the grading grades A to FX.
    18. The diploma thesis is assessed by one opponent, who draws up a written opinion, which the student has the right to get acquainted with no later than five working days before the defence via the central register of final theses. The thesis shall be assessed by grading grades A to FX.
    19. If both the supervisor and the opponent have classified the thesis with the grade FX, the thesis is not forwarded for defence, and the student has to revise and resubmit it within the deadline set by the faculty's timetable.
    20. The student must have sufficient time to read the evaluations and prepare his/her defence (minimum five working days). He/she may consult his/her answers to the questions in the evaluations with the supervisor and/or the opponent in advance.
    21. The department sets dates for thesis defences by the academic year timetable.
    22. The overall defence of the thesis shall take place in front of the state exam committee and last 40 minutes. It is public.
    23. First, the student briefly presents his/her thesis to the members of the committee and the audience who have not had the opportunity to read it beforehand (max. 7-10 min.).
    24. The presentation's main focus is to introduce the thesis's aims, justify the research's methodological approach and present the results achieved. For the sake of better acquaintance with the thesis's content by the committee members, it is advisable if the student brings at least one copy of the thesis to the defence, even if this is not explicitly required in the study schedule.
    25. The supervisor and the opponent then present their evaluations (5 minutes max. each) and ask questions.
    26. The student responds to the reviews (10 min.). The student may prepare the defence on paper or in a presentation or use supplementary materials (sources, research tools and data).
    27. Then, the committee chair opens the discussion of the defence, which lasts max. 10 min.
    28. After the discussion, the chair closes the public part of the defence. In the non-public part, the committee evaluates the student's performance (quality of the thesis and defence, factual accuracy, the student's presentation skills and his/her ability to respond adequately in the academic discussion). Following the guidelines of the Faculty´s Study Order, the result of the defence will be evaluated by the committee with classification grades A to FX.  

    Oral State Exams

    1. The Department publishes the state exam questions by 15 January. Students can send their comments to the programme guarantor until 31 January. No modifications are permitted after 1 February.
    2. The state exams are in front of the committee; they are open to the public and are managed by the committee chair.
    3. The student draws one question and then has approximately 10 minutes to prepare an oral answer.
    4. The answer must be prepared in writing - on paper stamped with the department's stamp. This written preparation is handed in by the student after the answer and is part of the state examination report.
    5. The time for the answer is limited to 10 minutes.
    6. There are always at least two students in the board room - usually, one student answers and the other prepares to answer.
    7. At any time during the answer, the members of the committee may ask additional questions related to the topic chosen by the student.
    8. The assessment of students is not public. The committee evaluates the student's performance (factual and terminological correctness, presentation skills, ability to formulate an opinion, to justify it and to respond adequately in an academic discussion) according to the study regulations of the Faculty of Arts of TU. The committee will evaluate the result of the defence with grades A - Fx. The results are communicated to each student individually.

    We wish you a smooth thesis writing preparation and successful state exams 😊

     

    State exam for pre-primary and primary teachers (UPV & PEP)

    State exams in English UPV and PP students

    Overview of KAJL courses (compulsory, compulsory elective, elective)

    KAJL courses

    Libraries, sources, databases

    Libraries - information about the libraries that the department recommends students to visit. Online catalogs, e-books...

     

    2) Teachers life-long education

    Rigorosa exams (PaedDr.)

    Rigorosa exams - Teacher Education (PaedDr.)

    Rigorosa exams (PhDr.)

     

    Extension studies

    Extension studies

    Life-long education courses

    Our life-long education courses

    Complementary pedagogical education (DPŠ)

     

    Teachers´ attestations - 1st and 2nd level

     

       

    3) Organization of the study at KAJL

    KAJL offers a highly participative, flexible and innovative learning environment, which is both supportive and intellectually stimulating. We teach through a combination of the following teaching techniques:

    • Lectures are large sessions led by lecturers (typically Professors or Associate Professors). A lecture introduces key topics and provides an outline for gathering more detailed information about your subject.
    • Seminars are larger group sessions (normally up to 25 students) that allow for more intensive discussions on lecture information.
    • Practicals (exercises) are hands-on sessions where students develop new subject-related practical skills focusing on individual or group projects, data collection, problem-solving, presentation and evaluation/ reviewing skills.
    • Independent learning is at the heart of university study. It is learning outside lectures, seminars and practicals. It can include reading various materials around a topic for an assignment or searching for and following up on an author mentioned in a lecture. Its purpose is to expand students´ knowledge in certain areas. It does not mean each student needs to study on their own – we advise our students to cooperate with each other, to create informal studying groups, share ideas and discuss the topics to improve their understanding.
    • Supervised practice is the part of the study programme where students observe, teach, or work under supervision.
    • Study trips are trips or tours organized outside a university, taken by a group of students to study something related to their study programmes. Annually, our department organizes several study trips to various Anglophone countries (e.g. the UK, Malta, and the USA).
    • One-to-one consultation provides an opportunity for an in-depth discussion with the teacher regarding students´ specific tasks, learning needs or assessment issues. Typically, students use consultations with their tutors when preparing for their presentations or writing their final theses.

    Studying at our department means more than sitting in our lecture theatres and reproducing what you have learned from your teachers. Our students are expected to adopt a new approach to their education that differs from what most of them experienced at secondary schools. Along with the supervised classes where they interact and work collaboratively with their classmates under the teacher’s guidance, our students are encouraged to become proactive learners who can enhance and enrich their education. To meet the demands of the university degree, students need to manage their own time and develop independent learning skills. We support and guide how to study most effectively and succeed in the university environment.

    A significant number of our courses are still provided in a blended form (combining in-person classes with online sessions in MS Teams and MOODLE and intensive individual study).