“This is a course for first-year students. And for the past ten years, I’ve given my first lecture on Mondays at nine in the morning, so I have the honour of being the first lecturer the vast majority of students meet at the university. I try not to overwhelm them with terminology and information, but to welcome them to MU, the Faculty of Science and Brno,” says Chattová, who works at the Department of Botany and Zoology.
“It’s almost a magical moment when you walk into a lecture hall for the first time and there is complete silence. The students wait quietly to see what happens, and then I watch them warm up to me as they learn that I’m a normal person like them and I treat them like adults, and they learn that they can come up to me during a break and ask me anything.” She adds that, it’s nice to follow people as the semester progresses, as they open up in lectures and lab exercises, talk to each other and form friendships that can last a lifetime.
Students often come to her for advice during the semester, even with questions that have nothing to do with the subjects she teaches. “If I can and know how, I’m always prepared to help them. I’m happy that I have a great relationship with them and that they trust me,” says Chattová, holder of the MU Rector's Award.
She started giving lectures 15 years ago, when she was a doctoral student. In that time, she has discovered a number of things that have changed her approach to teaching. “What taught me the most was becoming a mother. Only then did I understand that the only way to do it right was through understanding and empathy. It is important to remember that students are people like you and can have a bad day. They may be unprepared for the class because they are dealing with other issues in their personal lives.”
Chattová notes that the Covid-19 pandemic also had a significant impact on young people. Of course, students come and go all the time, but the impact was most pronounced in those who came to university after the pandemic. “They are afraid to ask. Young people used to have no problem raising their hand during a lecture to say they didn’t understand something, but now they prefer to queue up outside my door during the break so they can ask me privately. If they were to ask openly, my answer might also benefit their colleagues,” the botanist sighs.
The pandemic has also affected her practical lab exercises. Many of the students come from secondary schools where they only had lab exercises online, so basic things like using a microscope or sample preparation can be difficult for them. “The way I deal with it is that I’m there to show them everything and explain it as simply as possible. And my teaching has improved overall.”
Chattová also takes seriously the feedback she receives from students, which she says is overwhelmingly – and sometimes even too uncritically – positive. “If there are any suggestions or
critical comments, I try to take them on board,” she says, adding that she values the warm relationships she has with her students, especially those whose theses she supervises.
“I’m afraid that one day I’ll lose this connection, that I’ll become too distant from the younger generations and won’t be able to talk to my students about personal things as a friend, that we won’t understand each other. Sometimes it happens even now, such as when I hear a new expression they’re using on a daily basis. Recently, I was caught off guard by the word ‘tryhardit’, derived from the English ‘to try hard’,” adds Chattová with a laugh.