Martina Jarkovská

To Join Small-Scale Forest Owners’ Associations or Not? Motivations and Opinions of Small-Scale Forest Owners in Three Selected Regions of the Czech Republic

This article analyses motivations and attitudes of small-scale forest owners in the Czech Republic towards joining associations. The research is a follow-up to a field investigation performed within the National Forest Programme II for 2007–2013 in the Vysočina region in 2010. The present research was carried out in the Pilsen region in 2012 and the Central Bohemia region in 2015, applying the same method of investigation as in 2010—a questionnaire survey. The findings are based on the results of all three surveys and supported by the analysis of legal and forestry-related documents concerning financial subsidies for forest owners’ associations. The study has revealed reluctance of small-scale owners to join associations. Their lack of motivation is caused by insufficient funding from the government supporting the administration and management of associations. The reluctance also results from the request for associations to be legal entities, which most applicants do not meet as they are either not registered or are registered under unsuitable legal forms. Between 2011 and 2013, no contributions were paid by the government to associations, and no new small-scale forest owners’ associations were formed. To increase associations, we propose that the government should provide sufficient funding not only for the administration and management of associations but also for the process of establishing associations and initial investments. It is also necessary to make major innovations in legislature regarding the transition of ownerships to more convenient legal forms.

Using E-Learning in Teaching Economics at Universities of the Czech Republic

The rapid development of information and communication technologies (ICT) allows their use in all areas of human activity. An increasing number of university students is also reflected in the conditions of the universities in the Czech Republic. However, current financial possibilities of the educational and research capacities of departments do not suffice to a rapid increase in the number of students. A solution can be the introduction of ICT into a teaching process; computers save time for both the teachers and students while enabling intensive use of space and simplifying the administration of tests. The paper aims to express the impact of using ICT on level of knowledge, respectively classification of university students enrolled in course Economics on the example of e-learning system Moodle. A partial aim of the study is the generalization of experience with learning management systems and the expression of their positives and negatives. As shown by our research the introduction of smart education from 2006 to 2015 first led to a drop and subsequently to an improvement in the quality of the students’ performance.