What Is Discourse Hub?
Kateřina and Jamie photographed mid discourse.
Discourse Hub offers primarily Czech speakers of English with language and business mentorship, coaching, group courses, and tailored, one-to-one English lessons and consultations. Since establishment in 2022, we’ve helped hundreds of people find their English voice and confidence to attend international conferences, present in front of a live audience, pass Cambridge exams, shine in interviews, and get jobs at major companies in cities like Prague and London.
Read on to learn about Discourse Hub’s mission and who we are, how we intend to help you, and how you can connect with us for regular English input.
Jump to:
“Discourse: the use of language to communicate in speech or writing.
Hub: the central or main part of something where there is most activity.”
What Does Discourse Hub Value and Who Founded It?
Discourse Hub prefers a personal touch and values connection with its community, whether through our website, LinkedIn, newsletter, or Instagram. It’s the brainchild of Kateřina Pecinová, and co-run by Jamie Faulkner—both teachers with a university education in teaching or linguistics, and years’ of practical experience behind them.
But these credentials don’t mean that Katka and Jamie started out as experts or that they were gifted. On the contrary! Both of us were told we were bad at English, once upon time. Our hope is this will inspire you—anyone can make a journey of self-improvement (and optionally stick out their tongue at the people who doubted them).
Everything is going to be “OK”.
What Is Discourse Hub’s Mission?
The reason for creating Discourse Hub was the English teaching landscape in the Czech Republic pre-2022. There were and still are—mainstream English teaching remains largely the same today—many major English language schools offering a textbook-first education with very little talking time for students. Students often finish these courses feeling lost. They can’t:
think in English; they translate everything
pick up sounds in natural speech, like in films or music
and they most definitely cannot speak!
The problem is that these students with their textbooks, silently completing fill-the-gap exercises in the corner of a stuffy classroom, learn plenty of declarative knowledge of English (facts and information), but little procedural knowledge (skills and processes).
To use an analogy, they theoretically can drive an “English car” and have a driving license, but they don’t have a physical car in their garage to even leave the driveway…
Or maybe it’s better to say that, their teachers by neglecting to test their procedural knowledge through speaking or other forms of communication, have effectively sneaked into their garage in the dead of night and stolen their tyres while they slept.
The Limits of Declarative knowledge
Now, declarative knowledge has its place in language learning, and the above analogy is dramatic… but I do want to emphasise how talking—and all procedural knowledge—is essential.
Declarative knowledge is a fantastic way to get good at explaining grammar, describing language features (“did you know that word-final consonants in English are voiced, not like in Czech?”), and sharing with friends. But it won’t help you order a pizza, ask directions for the nearest toilet when you need it most urgently, or help you pass the speaking part of a language exam.
How many times have you asked a native speaker why a grammar feature works a certain way, but they have no idea why? It doesn’t matter if it’s something simple, like the third person singular -s in “learns”, or something complicated like the rules for the second conditional. A lot of native speakers will shrug and say they have no idea.
The reason many native speakers have this problem is because they have the opposite problem of the textbook-first students in the Czech Republic: they have plenty of procedural knowledge and only a little declarative knowledge.
So, where does that put declarative knowledge and procedural knowledge in terms of what’s most important?
How Jamie arrives for English Lessons.
What Discourse Hub Offers English Learners
If you’re going to pass English exams or get a job at an international company, you’ll need a healthy combination of declarative and procedural knowledge. Discourse Hub’s mission is to nurture both of these knowledge types by doing things differently to traditional language education—by giving you back your speaking time. Your voice.
In other words, your learning experience with Discourse hub will be completely the opposite to what you did at school while you were a teenager. You will speak, tell stories, reflect, learn, and build your English identity. You move from the audience down onto the football pitch, pick up the ball, and score an English goal.
Or to continue the analogy I made earlier, we aim to give you the theoretical knowledge to drive an English car, a license to go with it, and most importantly the car itself.
And we most certainly won’t steal the tyres while you’re sleeping.
“Po 3 letech, kdy jsem se stala mámou a z korporátu se přesunula na volnou nohu, dostala moje angličtina pěkně zabrat. Nebo spíš moje sebevědomí. Měla jsem strach mluvit a styděla jsem se za to, jak jsem se v angličtině zhoršila. Proto jsem se obrátila na Discourse Hub, aby mi pomohli posbírat ztracené sebevědomí a rozmluvit mě.”
Discourse Hub offers:
an educational blog with plenty of English reading
a newsletter to keep you updated on all things Discourse Hub
an Instagram account chock-full of culture and language learning tips
group courses to learn and meet like-minded students and professionals
one-to-one English mentoring to reach your full potential
and one-off or fixed-term consultations to help you succeed in moving countries, job interviews, presentations, or conferences
Who can Discourse Hub help:
students who have tried traditional schools but cannot talk
mothers on maternity leave who are looking to get back into work
professionals who just received a promotion or who work with an international team
students who need to pass an Cambridge First or Cambridge Advanced exam to get into university
job seekers preparing for an interview
managers and professionals looking to improve their job prospects
and any and all language lovers who want to connect and keep their English fresh
Discourse Hub has worked with:
journalists
scientists
language teachers
civil servants
doctors
lawyers
software engineers
university students and lecturers
parents on maternity leave
TV producers
marketing managers
CEOs and more
Who Is Kateřina Pecinová?
Co-founder and the brains behind Discourse Hub, Kateřina Pecinová.
Katka is an English teacher, business mentor and coach, and content creator from the Czech Republic. While she has spent most of her life in Prague and Ustecky kraj, she has also spent extensive time in Malta and the UK. She lives with her British partner in crime and her Czech/British son.
Was Katka Always the Best at English?
Katka wasn’t the top student in her English glass. In fact, after a test, her high school teacher regularly handed her paper back last. Those with grades 1 and 2, they got their papers first. Not Katka. She got 4s—and less than encouraging remarks.
While she did better at her maturita exam, her teacher said she should, “Never ever do anything with English.” (Ouch!)
And that was honestly Katka’s plan, until her dream of being a dentist became impossible. So, naturally she started studying primary education—and English—at university. But how would she cope with all that English?
Proving Her Doubters Wrongs
Katka could speak English already, and she loved British culture and films. Grammar was what she found tricky, but she knew with some focus she could improve. She didn’t let her self-doubt—or her doubters—stop her. She worked hard and her English ability sky-rocketed.
Those troublesome grammar exercises from the past troubled her no longer. She spoke fluently and made English part of her life. Then, she graduated and started working at the Sunny Canadian International School, where she worked with native speakers, both teachers and students. And as we say in English, “The rest is history.”
English isn’t only Katka’s job, it’s a lifestyle. She listen to English podcasts and music, watches films, attends seminars, visits the UK, and lives under the same roof as me, a passport-certified Englishman.
(You don’t need a English partner to become fluent. Just be consistent enough in your practice that it becomes a stable part of your lifestyle!)
Katka’s qualifications:
Masters degree in Primary Education and English
CELTA
Coaching (active mentor)
Teaching Business English
Career Highlight:
Presenting her idea for Discourse Hub at the American Embassy In Prague for Female Future Founders was one of the most challenging but rewarding moments in Katka’s career. All the planning, studying and hard work led to this moment, presenting to a room of some two hundred people, including journalists, investors and business people. When Katka coaches you on how to make a presentation, she knows exactly how you feel.
“Katka is an incredibly kind, empathetic, and amazing person, and conversations with her flow effortlessly — one hour is definitely not enough! After every lesson, I take away new knowledge, because we always focus at the end on vocabulary I’m missing or words I don’t pronounce correctly. I’m truly grateful that I found Katka! :)”
What Does Katka Enjoy Most About Teaching?
Katka enjoys seeing people speak English without fear, supporting and showing them that with consistency anything is possible—even if you have no self-belief, because she knows what can be achieved. She likes hearing about her students’ lives and learning about them. She creates a safe space to guide students, whatever the task. And you can be sure, whether your goal is to get a job or present at a conference, Katka will be in the front row of the audience, cheering you on. If you can’t see her from the stage, look for the person clapping loudest.
Who Is Jamie Faulkner?
I’m a native speaker from Essex (the county between London and the coast) in the United Kingdom, with a degree in English Language & Linguistics. As of 2026, I have nine years experience teaching and I have published some twenty short stories and a novella. Clearly I know a thing or two about English language. But it wasn’t always this way.
A Traumatic Experience
I’ve written elsewhere about my struggles learning to write as child, but I want to mention some new details here that I hope might inspire you. Here’s why you shouldn’t give up on English when it gets tough or you feel like throwing your textbook out the nearest window.
While in primary school (5 to 11 years old):
I needed extra classes to keep up with the other students
sometimes I wrote left to right, sometimes right to left
I couldn’t spell
no one expected me to achieve anything
and…
In a maths lesson one time, me and the other students who struggled were separated from the main group and put with a teaching assistant (TA). When I couldn’t do a simple sum in front of everyone, this TA asked me—again in front of everyone—if I was thick. Thick meaning stupid. An idiot.
I felt humiliated. I couldn’t speak. I was only seven or eight years old. I don’t know how I didn’t cry.
Have you ever felt like that when you needed to speak English in the heat of the moment?
To this day I cannot do maths in front of people, watching with their expectant faces. I go back to that moment in the classroom, with that stern teacher and the waiting, cherubic faces of the other children. It’s that dream where you’re on stage naked. It’s performance anxiety. Ugh!
No, give me a pen and paper and a dark corner to sit in—i’m fine. I’ll solve any maths problem needed. Just don’t watch me, all right?
In short, no one expected much from me. So I proved them wrong by:
going to a Russell Group university (York) on the other side of the country
getting a CELTA certificate in Prague
teaching others who struggle and have been bullied or told they weren’t good enough to speak English
becoming a proofreader and editor
publishing fiction at pro rates
and selling content and copywriting online
The only thing I haven’t done is stick out my tongue at that TA, wherever she is. Oh well. We can’t have everything, can we?
Jamie’s Teaching Highlight
I don’t have a single career highlight but many. Every achievement in life offers a different type of satisfaction. I could say helping someone pass an exam so they could attend Cambridge University in the UK, or helping someone prepare for job interview that led to them working in London, but sometimes seeing someone simply find their confidence is the best reward.
“Jamie has been an outstanding mentor who goes above and beyond to foster my English proficiency and help me succeed in my academic pursuits.”
What Does Jamie Enjoy Most About Teaching
Teaching and talking to strangers from different parts of the world, with different careers and experiences, allows me to live vicariously through them. I learn to see through their eyes, and I become a better person. This way we are a part of each other’s success. They get English, I get perspective. I become a better mentor for future English learners.
Who is Kika Dohnalová Šťastná?
Kika Dohnalová Šťastná likes business and above all helping people, whatever their goal.
Discourse Hub has had the pleasure of working with a handful of talented digital marketers and teachers, but none has been with us longer than Kika, a teacher with a love of business and who is unafraid of taking risks.
Was Kika always a great English speaker? Well, she graduated from secondary school with a B in English—a solid grade—yet her teacher described her exam performance as “rather dreadful”…
She felt miles away from being able to get her point across while having an English conversation and, initially, decided on a career in nursing.
Then at 19, she put her doubts behind her and moved to the UK to become an au pair, earning just £55, minimum wage!
Kika’s Journey in England
Aside from integrating into the culture and improving her English skills, Kika spent her time abroad working as a:
carer
cleaner
groom and rider at a livery
and as a supervisor for one of Britain’s leading catering companies at the historic Pump Room in Bath (Kika assures me this is definitely worth a visit if you’re a Jane Austen fan)
While working full-time doing the jobs above, Kika completed a degree in Business and Management with a major in Marketing. Outside work, she volunteered at Bath Spa Tennis Club (despite not being able to play tennis!) and trained for her first 10K race in Bristol.
But did English fluency come easy after taking part in all these activities? Kika remembers speaking quickly to get through uncomfortable conversations. Her hands would sweat and her eyes would scan the room for everyone’s judgment: she dreaded every sigh, every eye roll, and every awkward silence. Sometimes, she stayed quiet just to avoid making embarrassing mistakes.
But she realised that hiding from your mistakes didn’t help. Instead, she decided to tackle discomfort head on and learned:
every interview, staff meeting, and difficult conversation became easier
confidence doesn’t appear overnight but from showing up regularly
making mistakes and speaking anyway is the true path to fluency
and most importantly to laugh at those inevitable silly slip-ups!
Ironically, she finds speaking in front of fellow Czechs more stressful than speaking English these days. In fact, if she hadn’t found love after graduation from university, she doesn’t think she would have left the UK.
Kika’s Career and Academic Highlights
Kika’s studies and work experience in the UK and the Czech Republic have shaped her wish to help others and follow her passions. This includes:
BA (Hons) in Business and Management (Marketing)
Bachelor's degree in English Philology – English Language in Professional Communication
TEFL-certified English teacher
Certified graduate of McKinsey Forward, a competitive leadership programme by McKinsey & Company.
Professional experience in international companies, including DHL Express and Business Brokers
Translator for Dobrovský Publishing
More than 10 years experience helping business and healthcare professionals build their confidence, professional reputation and careers in international environments
“Po několika sezeních s Kikou jsem získala nejen sebedůvěru, že na to moje angličtina stačí, ale i velmi praktické tipy, co se týče formulací, výslovnosti i vedení školení; jak zapojit posluchače, kdy klást otázky a jak to celkově působí... Doporučuju všema deseti.”
What Does Kika Enjoy Most About Teaching?
For Kika, there is nothing better than meeting ambitious students and professionals who are as passionate about their work as she is about hers. And helping learners realise that English isn’t only about memorising vocabulary lists or mastering every grammar rule—it's about communicating effectively, building relationships and creating opportunities.
She enjoys showing student that confidence isn’t something you’re born with; it’s something you build, one conversation at a time—and you don’t have to move abroad to start. Watching students discover their ideas, expertise and personality matter far more than having a perfect accent.
What Can Discourse Hub Do for You?
Discourse Hub offers premium English lessons and mentorship that focuses on outcomes: taking a holiday, passing an exam, presenting at conferences, impressing at interviews and getting a job, moving country, and helping establish a new English identity.
This is achieved with guidance and mentorship, and by putting you in the spotlight so that there is plenty of student talking time. And do you know what else? We like to have fun while doing it!
Whatever topic you bring to the conversation—yoga, chess, BJJ, dancing, marketing, biology, glass float collecting (true story), climate science, philosophy, holidays, fashion, books, computers, or films, etc—there is always opportunity for the teacher and student to grow and laugh.
Discourse Hub has something for everyone.
What Not To Expect From Discourse Hub
If you’re tired of working with textbooks, we’re on the same page. Usually, we only use textbooks when there is something exam related that makes it necessary. Textbook work can be done in your free time to support you. It’s not the focus of lesson time—unless you have specific requests. We always accommodate student needs.
Don’t expect your teacher to steal all your talking time. You don’t pay us to talk at you but to have a two-way conversation with you as its focus. It’s your English therapy and time to shine. See our article on How to Choose an English Teacher.
FAQ
Does Discourse Hub Have a slogan?
Discourse Hub’s slogan is “Practise Imperfect”. This is because we firmly believe that communication is the goal of language, not perfection—and even native speakers make mistakes. Learners who only speak when their language is absolutely perfect speak far less than learners who accept imperfection. Accept imperfection and you’ll talk more and get more done. And furthermore, you’ll never feel ready. If you’re not ready now, then when? Don’t wait and don’t lie to yourself!
And if you see anyone else using “Practise Imperfect” online, it’s taken from Discourse Hub. And yes, we notice these things…
How Does Discourse Hub Measure Student Progress?
Many English schools have bland, test-based metrics to check your progress. Not us. We don’t focus on how well students can write on a piece of paper. We are action-orientated and focus on skills and outcomes. Let’s look at an example:
Instead of saying “Honza’s paper-based test shows he can now do the present perfect”, we say “Honza can now confidently perform a 10-minute English presentation in front of a live audience. He is capable of advocating for your company at the next conference in Vienna”.
Do I Need To Be a Fluent English Speaker To Learn With Discourse Hub?
No, we accept beginner and advanced students. We have native and non-native teachers ready to help you reach fluency. We are patient, friendly, and excited to see you grow. Lessons should be fun, not stressful.
Who Does Discourse Hub Teach?
Discourse Hub primarily focuses on adults, whether they’re on parental leave or an active professional, in the Czech Republic or elsewhere in the world. We accept anyone with an open mind who shares our philosophy on learning.
Does Discourse Hub Teach Company Lessons?
Yes, Discourse Hub works with companies and does company lessons, individually or in groups. The focus can be general English or business English, small talk, presentations or conferences, depending on your needs. We can invoice companies directly for your accounting purposes. Contact us to discuss the details and your goals.
