New Conversation: Higher Education in Hungary
In October 2024, JPHE Senior Editor Michael Shaughnessy and Johannes Addido interviewed Dr. Zoltan Glovickl, a Hungarian higher education professional, about about teacher training in his country and the need for more research about effective teachers and educational leaders. Dr. Glovickl's disciplines include: educational policy, education theory, language education, cultural history and classical philology. His profile is at : linkedin.com/in/zoltan-gloviczki-b6a48780.
To learn more about Dr. Zoltan Glovickl, go to: https://folyoiratok.oh.gov.hu/szerzok/gloviczki-zoltan.
While this ideas are published in Hungarian, with the help of Google Translate other scholars can learn about his perspectives and ideas on pedagogy and teacher training.
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Interviewers: Can you tell us a bit about yourself- your education and experiences.
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: I have been a Secondary grammar school teacher for about 20 years, a teacher trainer at different universities for the past 28 years. I graduated from classical studies and pedagogy. I am currently a professor and rector of Apor Vilmos Catholic College, and president of the Hungarian Rectors' Conference Committee for Teacher Training and I am the father of five children, including two teachers.
Interviewers: What are the main challenges you face in the current teacher training programs in your country, and how do they impact the effectiveness of new teachers in the classroom?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: In Hungary, for historical reasons, tens of thousands of teachers will retire within a few years. Fortunately, many people apply for teacher training, but in order to replace them, more and more abbreviated training or retraining must be introduced, which are not always suitable for high-quality professional preparation.
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: Meanwhile, up-to-date retraining and further training of colleagues in the field have not yet been implemented. Moreover, teacher training is the most conservative element of the entire education system, mainly due to the growing gap between the academic expectations of universities and public education.
Interviewers: How do you perceive the role of supervision in supporting teachers? What specific areas do you think need more focus or improvement?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: In Hungary, supervision and any other external control and intervention were suspended between 1985 and 2013, given that public opinion linked them to the surveillance methods of the communist system. After a break of several decades, the introduction of supervision encountered very serious resistance. The last ten years were not enough for the external feedback system to have a meaningful impact on the work of teachers, either within the school or at the national level. The most important step may be to spread the culture of supervision itself.
Interviewers: What teaching methods and materials have you found to be most effective in your classroom, and what challenges do you encounter when trying to implement them?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: In Hungary, there are many modern developments in the field of teaching materials and methods. Tenders and national incentives support innovative teachers. At the same time, a very big obstacle is the high degree of centralization of teaching materials and textbooks, which, despite the possibilities, create the impression in teachers and managers that it is better to stay within the traditional framework.
Interviewers: Is there a noticeable teacher shortage in your country/region? If so, what factors do you believe are contributing to this shortage?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: Yes, there is a significant shortage of teachers. The primary, but superficial reason for this is extremely low pay, in which serious progress has been made at the moment. The effect of this can be seen in the applications. A more serious problem, however, is the already mentioned generation gap. The consequence of this is that the large number of fresh students is not a sufficient supply either. It is not a happy solution, but we have to agree with the appearance of the detours outlined in the first point.
Michael Shaughnessy: What support systems are in place for teachers facing difficulties in their roles, and how effective do you think these systems are in addressing their needs?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: Since 2013, a significant and high professional level national system has been established to support teachers. Support specialists can be requested from regional centers to help schools or individual teachers. The utilization of the system is low, and the external support is suspicious for the colleagues for the aforementioned reasons.
Interviewers: Do you train teachers to work with children with special needs?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: In Hungary, there is an outstanding level of training for teaching children with special educational needs, even at the international level. Our university does not currently train such specialists, but in the training of normal teachers, we place great emphasis on the issue of children with atypical development.
Interviewers: Where does your funding come from and is it sufficient?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: In Hungary, both state and church higher education institutions receive funding from the central budget, in proportion to our student population. This support provides a suitable background for our work.
Interviewers: How do you screen individuals for your teacher training program?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: There is an input suitability screening, but due to the already mentioned teacher shortage, we only take into account those who are clearly unfit for the task due to mental or other reasons. We have no way of quality screening at the national level anywhere.
Interviewers: How has technology impacted your delivery of services?
Dr. Zoltan Glovickl: The COVID era also helped to introduce several online solutions in Hungary. However, in my opinion, it is part of the essence of teacher education that its quality is determined not by technology, but by personal relationships.
