Croaticum – The Center for Croatian as a Second and Foreign Language

            Croaticum was founded in 1962 as the Croatian Language Course for Foreigners. Originally affiliated with the Department of Phonetics, the course became a unit of the Department of Yugoslav Languages and Literatures in 1966. In 1986 the Croatian Language Course for Foreigners was expanded into the Preparatory Year of Study, which offered two semesters of intensive Croatian language classes, as well as lectures on Croatian cultural heritage by experts in different academic fields. The primary purpose of the Preparatory Year of Study was to ensure that foreign students were linguistically qualified to study at Croatian universities. Beginning in 1993, three levels of language instruction were offered (beginner, intermediate, and advanced), each of which was divided into upper and lower groups. In 2003 the Preparatory Year of Study was renamed as Croaticum – Croatian for Foreigners, and four years later, in 2007, the center was given its current name, Croaticum – Center for Croatian as a Second and Foreign Language.

            Croaticum offers six levels of language instruction (beginner 1A, upper beginner 1B, intermediate 2A, upper intermediate 2B, advanced 3A, and upper advanced 3B, all of which correspond to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) in classes that usually have fifteen students. The number of students in the beginner classes never exceeds twenty.

            Croaticum caters to a variety of students with different needs. They differ according to their first language, country of origin (over the years, we have taught students from 120 countries), age, and reasons for studying Croatian. Some of our students major in Croatian and other Slavic languages at foreign universities and have received grants from the Ministry of Science, Education and Sport. Others are foreign students specializing in other academic fields who have the status of guest students at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences or have scholarships from the University of Zagreb. We also teach Croatian to descendants of people who emigrated from Croatia and settled in other countries, who have come to Croaticum either supported by scholarships from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration or on their own budget. Our students also include people in business who would like to better acquaint themselves with the country in which they work, as well as those who are linked to Croatia through marriage or other life situations.

            The quality of our courses is due in large part to our top-quality textbooks, manuals, and teaching materials. Based on the needs of each level of instruction, but also depending on the interests of the students in each group, our lectors create their own materials, which they then share with their colleagues.

            In 2006 Croaticum published the textbook, workbook, and CD Hrvatski za početnike I (Croatian for Beginners I), a joint effort of authors Marica Čiliš Mikulić, Milvija Gulešić-Machata, Dinka Pasini, and Sanda Lucija Udier. Hrvatski za početnike is based on its authors’ many years of experience teaching Croatian as a second and foreign language at Croaticum, and is aimed at beginner level students of Croatian (A1, A2, and A2+ on the CEFRL scale). In 2008 a second textbook was published: Razgovarajte s nama! Hrvatski za više početnike (Let’s Talk!: Croatian for Advanced Beginners), by authors  Marica Čilaš Mikulić, Milvija Gulešić Machata, and Sanda Lucija Udier. Also accompanied by a workbook and CD, this textbook is aimed at our advanced beginner level (CEFRL levels A2 and B1). Two more books by Croaticum faculty members are in the process of being published, a textbook to be used in our lower intermediate  classes (B2+  on the CEFRL scale) and Prag za sporazumijevanje na hrvatskom jeziku (Threshold for Understanding in Croatian). Both books are the result of collaborative efforts by Croaticum faculty members.
Language teachers at Croaticum also conduct important research in the growing field of Croatian as a second and foreign language. The findings of these studies form a foundation for the production of teaching materials and the development of classroom methods.
Croaticum also functions as a training center for all Croatian lectors who are preparing to teach at foreign universities. Every year Croaticum and the Ministry of Science, Education and Sport jointly organize a two-day conference for Croatian lectors abroad at which all of these lectors come together, discuss their various experiences, and receive further education through lectures and workshops on academic and work-related topics.
Since 2005 courses at Croaticum have been offered through a program consisting of semestral courses, as well as one-month classes, the Little Summer School of Croatian, and individual tutoring. (Further details about each of these course types are available under other headings on this web site.)
The central part of the Croaticum program are its semester-long courses, which coincide with the university calendar. These courses are taught during the Winter (October-January) and Summer (February-June) semesters of each academic year. Each group meets five days a week for three 45-minute periods of language exercises and one period a week of phonetic exercises. In addition, students in the most advanced groups (3A and 3B) attend lectures in Croatian culture given by experts who teach at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and elsewhere in the fields of history, geography, Croatian literature, history of art, ethnology, and film.

All course formats at Croaticum include continuously organized extra-curricular activities in which students actively participate so that they can learn Croatian language and culture in a practical way. These activities include guided tours of Zagreb or excursions to culturally and historic locations in the Zagreb vicinity as well as more distant destinations. In addition, every semester Croaticum organizes a one-day field trip during which students travel to national parks and Croatian towns such as Poreč, Motovun, Hum, Varaždin, and Baška. These excursions are actually language classes in the field. The students prepare presentations on specific topics which they present before others. For those interested in the arts, group visits to galleries are organized. In addition, intermediate and advanced students are given the opportunity to attend theater plays and movies, while beginner-level students have the option of watching films with English subtitles. Every semester Croaticum also invites Croatian writers to come and speak to the students. The following writers have been guests of Croaticum: Miro Gavran, Miljenko Jergović, Edo Popović, Simo Mraović, Roman Simić Bodrožić, Ivana Simić Bodrožić, and Julijana Matanović. Actor Filip Šovagović and the director Dalibor Matanić have also been guests at the center.

Croaticum also organizes Croatian language proficiency examinations for non-native speakers  who are either prospective students at higher education institutions in the Republic of Croatia, or foreigners who need proof of proficiency for permanent residence or some other purpose.