The Teachers of English for Future Europe (TEFE A+) Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) has received the Profformance+ International Higher Education Teacher Award – Best of the Czech Republic, acknowledging its innovative contribution to international teacher education.
Developed jointly by six European universities – Aston University (United Kingdom), Comenius University (Slovakia), Eötvös Loránd University (Hungary), Public University of Navarre (Spain), University of Passau (Germany), and the University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice (Czech Republic) – the TEFE A+ BIP prepares future teachers of English for international teaching practice through an intercultural, reflective, and collaborative approach.
The award was presented on 16 October 2025 in Budapest, where Dr Alena Prošková, Vice-Dean for Teacher Education, Accreditation and Quality Control at the Faculty of Arts, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, accepted the prize on behalf of the Czech team.
“The TEFE A+ BIP shows that internationalisation in teacher education can be both meaningful and competence-based,” said Assoc. Prof. Rostislav Smíšek, Vice-Dean for International Relations, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Czech Republic. “It represents a shared European classroom where future teachers learn to teach across cultures.”
This distinction represents the shared success of the TEFE A+ consortium, celebrating the collaboration of teacher educators, mentors, and student teachers across Europe. The programme is now also featured in the Profformance+ Teaching Excellence Database as an example of good practice in European higher education.
TEFE A+ BIP Wins International Recognition with PROFFORMANCE Award
The TEFE A+ Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) has been awarded the PROFFORMANCE International Higher Education Teacher Award 2024/25. This recognition is an important milestone for our consortium, highlighting the commitment, creativity, and collaborative spirit that has driven our work in the field of teacher education and internationalisation over the past five years.
The TEFE A+ BIP brings together student teachers, teacher educators, and educational stakeholders from across Europe to explore International Teaching Practice (ITP) as a powerful approach to innovative teacher education. By combining digital, physical, and intercultural learning components, the programme offers a practice-oriented model for embedding internationalisation into teacher education systems in inclusive, accessible, and meaningful ways.
This award recognises not only the innovative design and pedagogical impact of the BIP, but also its contribution to a broader European dialogue on how to prepare teachers for increasingly interconnected classrooms and societies. It is a tribute to the hard work of the TEFE A+ consortium and acknowledgement that we are advancing in the right direction.