Editorial
This interview comes in a slightly changed format when compared to the version which introduced Jana as one of the speakers at the biggest event in Slovakia – www.ELTforum.sk. She presents her new book which is now available for anyone interested free of charge (only postage needs to be covered).

I CAN Because It’s My Life

Jana Chynoradska, Slovakia

Jana Chynoradska works for Harmony school in Trnava, Slovakia. E-mail: jana@harmony.sk

1. Can you please tell us more about your beginnings as a teacher? Have you always wanted to teach? What was your first teaching experience?

Surprisingly enough my first teacher experience was when I was 18. After I did not get to the University of Economics directly after I completed my secondary school in 1992, I got a chance to teach English at the basic school in Trnava. I shared a week load with another teacher and I must admit I loved my classes. I taught ten and twelve-year-olds. My classroom was my castle and my pupils called me “Miss Jane” and we all spoke English all the time. I was lucky enough to have Eleanor Losse with me all the time. She had her “leap year” in Slovakia and thanks to her my English improved a lot and luckily I got accepted to the Faculty of Education in Comenius University in Bratislava the following school year. I became a very conscientious student and fell in love with English totally! My original dream was to become an interpreter and during my studies I had a lot of opportunities to travel and do interpreting. I was enjoying this sort of work until one day I found myself lonely in a Danish hotel room. I started to question myself whether this was what I had been longing for. No, it wasn’t. My self was suppressed. I could not say what I wanted to do. I was just an “interpreting machine” that someone else used for their purposes. Though I do not underestimate this job, not at all and please all the interpreters forgive me, I realized my need to be creative and to express myself. Slowly I started to “play” with the idea of becoming an English teacher… I first realized that I wanted to become a teacher only after I finished my University studies in Bratislava. I can clearly remember I wrote a letter to my great teacher Gabi Lojova, current “God Mother” to Harmony, in which I thanked her from the depth of my heart that she inspired me to become a teacher.

2. When and why did you write your book “Môžem – I Can”? What is it about and who is the book for?

The 10 year old life path known as Harmony reveals its secret in a true story titled “I Can Because It’s My Life.“ It’s our common message to every teacher/trainer who, on their path of personal development have to overcome plenty of obstacles, when they need to dig deep to reveal their abilities and possibilities.

To be a teacher/trainer is a gift. It is an opportunity and a voluntarily chosen commitment to grow, develop and to contribute to the human potential development, to the development of society. To fulfil the mission is only possible when you start within yourself. I voluntarily commit to grow, develop and contribute... It’s up to us, the teachers and lecturers, whose task is to mediate the knowledge of the true values in life. It is us who have the potential to uncover these values and become their conscious bearers. The need of the age we live in whispers to us what to do in order to succeed. To fulfil our life mission. We are supposed to be creative and innovative.

What have innovations and creativity brought into my life? To the life of one of you? If you feel your curiosity is growing, please read the testimonials of the people who reveal the secret of Harmony to you in our book “I CAN because it’s my life”.

3. You started your own language school ‘Harmony’ in Trnava, Slovakia. What prompted you to do that? What are the principles or values that make it unique?

Harmony was established unexpectedly, upon the initiative of someone else. Now I know it was my unconscious desire to create. Something stronger than my consciousness brought Martin, the first student to Harmony, into my life – he served as the kick off person of everything we know as Harmony nowadays.

We have decided to pursue the way of inspiration that brings us a constant need and feel to discover something new, to create our own works of art, to bring originals to the world. Inspiration has become the key to the constant growth as much as trust that unites us and brings about the conditions for the acceleration of our endeavour.

We have opened up to the people of other nations; we are opening now to the people who exist by our side in their “worlds”. We are ready to learn and bring testimonials about the uniqueness of the teaching skills. We enter these worlds with the hope to establish a partnership that will lead us to a world full of joy, tolerance, prosperity, understanding and love.

The teacher who avows to his/her profession with pride and thus consciously takes over the responsibility for their acts towards all the people influenced by him/her, is one of the columns leading to the establishment of the value policy, on the principles of which our society has got the chance and at the same time the full right to exist.

I personally have got faith to awaken the interest of every human being, who I will meet on my learning way, to find out the greatness of their spirit. I believe in a person who knows that the sentence revealing the secret of Harmony ends up with: I can because it’s my life as I know that I act in accordance with my conscience that leads my way to establishing firm human relationships through the mediation of which I help people grow.

4. What is the main purpose of the partnership “The United schools of Harmony”?

To support other teachers on their journey of becoming managers of their own schools and at the same time unite those schools who want to grow and develop side by side with Harmony.

5. Tell us more about “LEARN&LEAD Centre of Innovation for Teachers, Trainers and Managers”. What is its purpose?

To bring the latest information on developments and emerging trends in language learning in order to find the most effective opportunities for personal and professional growth of teachers, trainers, managers and the broader general public in the EU.

6. In what way do you work with Pilgrims (UK) and GLS (France)?

Pilgrims from England are the main source of our inspiration and have been our trainers and leaders since 2007 when I first met Jim Wright, the manager of Pilgrims. They represent a unique essence of wisdom, tolerance, inspiration and humanity and have been leaders in teacher-training since 1974. Thanks to this partnership they became our key partner in the international project “Learn & Lead”(2010-2012) and along with the other partner school – GLS from France we all set up our “HR departments” called “Centres of Innovation”.

7. How can teachers be parts of a team at an organizational/institutional level and leaders in their classrooms at the same time?

Well, everything is possible if there is a will. This calls for a change in the mindsets of all the people involved in a school setting. This calls for a change at an organizational level and if there is the will on both the sides, it’s possible to create a school friendly to their teachers.

8. Do you have a life motto? Can you share it with us?

Yes, I do. Here it is: “What the mind can conceive, the team can achieve!”

Please check the Creative Methodology for the Classroom course at Pilgrims website.
Please check the How to be a Teacher Trainer course at Pilgrims website.