Žerotínovo nám. 9, 601 77 Brno

phone: +420 (5) 42 128 376, http://lingua.muni.cz

The Department provides foreign language courses for non–specialist language students at all faculties of Masaryk University: the Faculties of Economics and Administration, Law, Medicine, Science, Informatics and Social Sciences, and at the Faculties of Arts and Education.

Teachers and foreign lecturers from six divisions of the Department focus on language for specific purposes and the teaching of academic skills in English, German, French and Spanish. At the Faculties of Arts, Medicine and Law, specialist terminology in Latin is taught and courses on rhetoric are held. The Department also holds Czech courses for foreign students.

The Self–Access Centre (SAC) is an important part of the Department and is situated in the main administration building of Masaryk University (the Rectorate). It has materials and teaching programmes that can be used by students and staff from all faculties for extending their knowledge of general and specific foreign language. Not only books and worksheets but also videos, CD-ROMs and satellite TV are available. The SAC provides the possibility of ”independent learning” in addition to compulsory lessons. In 1997 the Self–Access Centre was accepted into CercleS, the international organisation of university language departments, thus allowing access to the European network. In spring 1998 the Department of Foreign Languages and the SAC were featured in the CercleS Bulletin.

In their academic work many teachers are involved in post–graduate study programmes and some participate in grant–funded projects, one of which is the ”Refugee Law in Combination with Foreign Language” international project. It was devised by the division of the Department of Foreign Languages at the Faculty of Law in collaboration with the Department of International and European Law and has been recommended and approved by the Board of Directors of the Jan Hus Educational Foundation. Together with the University of Wales (UK), Masaryk University has recently submitted an application for grant support within the Socrates programme. Since 1998 the Division of the Faculty of Economics and Administration has been involved in the Tempus programme ESPRO (European Studies Programme) focusing on EU Organisation, Institutions and History, and in the Leonardo programme DELTA–ONLINE (English and German multimedia programmes and their application in the Czech Language).

The Department of Foreign Languages will co–ordinate the TESOL Teacher Education programme at Masaryk University. The purpose of the course is to encourage co–operation between Czech and English-speaking students from the USA and Canada so as to allow them to share their experience. Students who successfully complete the course work will receive certification from the University of Cambridge to allow them to teach English to adults.