Department

The Department of Biology was established in 1960 at the Educational Institute in Olomouc. In 1964 the Department became part of the renewed Faculty of Education, Palacký University.

The Department of Biology, Faculty of Education, Palacký University Olomouc, guarantees and provides both theoretical and practical education in bachelor’s degrees “Natural History with a focus on education” (Bc.), “Environmental education with a focus on education” (Bc.) and “Applied ecology for the public sector” (Bc.) In the follow-up master’s degree the Department guarantees and provides both theoretical and practical education in “Teacher training in natural history for lower secondary schools” (Mgr.) and “Teacher training in natural history and environmental education for lower secondary schools” (Mgr.)

The Department also organizes teacher training courses under lifelong learning programmes (Teacher training in natural history for lower secondary schools, Teacher training in biology for secondary schools). The Department of Biology also guarantees advanced master’s proceedings in Teacher training in natural history for lower secondary schools, and was involved in the doctoral degree in Education guaranteed by the Institute of Education, Faculty of Education, Palacký University.

The educational activity of the Department and its staff focuses on teaching biology and plant growing, ecology, geology, and subject didactics for all courses mentioned above, including the part-time form of study.

 

The scientific and research activity of the staff focuses on traditional biological disciplines (botany, zoology, ecology, palaeontology, study of biodiversity) and on didactics of biology. The Department also investigates the quality of teaching natural history and biology using the 3A methodology and didactic case reports. Recently, the Department has developed research activity in cooperation with the Faculty of Science, Palacký University and some foreign institutions – use of molecular biological methods and application of molecular phylogenetics on the study of family relationships between organisms, their speciation and dissemination. Current research focuses on the evolution of bioluminescence in insects.

Molecular phylogenetics is also applied in the study of biodiversity and evolution of ecosystems, phylogenetic structure of communities, and phylogenetic diversity. In the area of zoology of vertebrates, research focuses on behavioural ecology of rodents. As far as botanical disciplines are concerned, focus is especially on dissemination and ecology of algae (especially diatoms) and bryophytes. Research activity is also concerned with palaeontology of the Younger Tertiary, specifically molluscs and foraminifera fauna and its palaeoecological interpretation.

 

The Department of Biology has established extensive international cooperation. This cooperation focuses on the area of molecular phylogenetics of insects (Imperial College London), and zoological

systematics (University of São Paulo, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro). In the area of geology and palaeontology, the Department cooperates with the Department of Geological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University in Brno, Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Czech Geological Survey in Brno, and Institute of Palaeobiology, Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw. In the field of didactics of biology, the Department cooperates with Pädagogische Hochschule Heidelberg in Germany, Department of Teaching and Didactics of Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, and Institute for Research in School Education, Faculty of Education in Brno.

 

The Department of Biology, Faculty of Education, Palacký University Olomouci
Purkrabská 2
Olomouc 779 00
Tel.: 585 635 181
e-mail: marcela.pazdirkova@upol.cz