Learn Hardcore Croatian: Učiteljica kaže da je svaki napredak važan. - The teacher says that every bit of progress is important.

In this sentence, učiteljica tells you the teacher is female. You generally can’t say a completely gender‑neutral teacher the way you can in English; you choose učitelj or učiteljica depending on the person’s gender (or the form you want to emphasize).

Why is the verb kaže and not something feminine like kaža?

In Croatian, verb forms in the present tense do not change for gender, only for person and number.

On kaže = he says
Ona kaže = she says
Učitelj kaže = the (male) teacher says
Učiteljica kaže = the (female) teacher says

So kaže is just the 3rd person singular present form of reći (to say), and it stays the same regardless of whether the subject is masculine or feminine.

What does da do in kaže da je svaki napredak važan?

Da here is a conjunction meaning that, introducing a subordinate clause, just like in English:

Učiteljica kaže da… = The (female) teacher says that…

The whole part da je svaki napredak važan is a that‑clause (reported/indirect speech).
So the structure is:

Main clause: Učiteljica kaže (The teacher says)
Subordinate clause: da je svaki napredak važan (that every bit of progress is important)

Why is it da je svaki napredak važan and not da svaki napredak je važan?

This is mainly about the position of je, which is a clitic (weak, short verb form).

In Croatian, clitics usually go in second position in their clause. In the clause:

(da) je svaki napredak važan

the order is:

da (introducer of the clause)
je (clitic verb)
svaki napredak (subject)
važan (adjective / complement)

Putting je later, as in da svaki napredak je važan, sounds ungrammatical or at best very unnatural in standard Croatian. Learners have to get used to clitics clustering early in the clause.

Why is važan masculine if učiteljica is feminine?

The adjective važan (important) here belongs to the verb je and describes the subject napredak, not učiteljica.

In the subordinate clause, the subject is svaki napredak (every progress).
Napredak is a masculine noun in Croatian.
Therefore, the predicate adjective must be masculine: važan.

So we have:

svaki napredak (masc.) → važan (masc.)

If the subject were feminine, e.g. svaka lekcija (every lesson), you'd say:

Svaka lekcija je važna.
(lekcija is feminine → važna feminine.)

Why do we say svaki napredak in the singular, when progress in English is uncountable?

English progress is usually uncountable, but Croatian napredak is a countable noun.

svaki napredak = every (single) bit/step of progress
napreci = plural form, “progresses” or “advances”, but less common in everyday speech here

Using svaki + singular is completely normal for every in Croatian:

svaki dan = every day
svaki čovjek = every person
svaki napredak = every bit of progress

What case is napredak in, and how can I tell?

Napredak is in the nominative singular.

You can tell because:

It is the subject of the subordinate clause: svaki napredak je važan.
Its form is the basic dictionary form: napredak (no extra ending that would indicate accusative, genitive, etc.).
The pattern is: [subject in nominative] + je + [adjective agreeing in gender/number/case].

So: svaki napredak (nominative singular, masculine) → važan (masculine singular nominative).

Why is there no word for the or a before učiteljica and napredak?

Croatian has no articles like a/an or the.

Učiteljica can mean a teacher or the teacher, depending on context.
svaki napredak is interpreted as every (bit of) progress without needing an article.

Definiteness and specificity are usually understood from context, word order, or additional words, not from articles.

Can I say Učiteljica kaže: svaki napredak je važan instead of using da?

Yes, but it changes the style slightly:

Učiteljica kaže da je svaki napredak važan.
→ Indirect speech (reported speech): The teacher says that every bit of progress is important.
Učiteljica kaže: svaki napredak je važan.
→ Direct speech, like quoting her exact words: The teacher says, “Every bit of progress is important.”

Both are correct; the first is more neutral and more common in narrative or reporting. The second feels more like a direct quote.

What is the difference between kaže and govori?

Both relate to speaking, but they’re used differently:

reći → kaže = to say, to tell (focus on the content of what is said, often shorter, more specific)
- Učiteljica kaže da… = The teacher says that…
govoriti → govori = to speak, to talk (focus more on the act of speaking/talking, possibly ongoing)
- Učiteljica govori polako. = The teacher speaks slowly.
- Učiteljica govori o napretku. = The teacher is talking about progress.

You could say Učiteljica govori da je svaki napredak važan, but kaže is more natural when you highlight the exact statement.

Could I change the word order to Učiteljica kaže da je važan svaki napredak?

Yes, that is grammatically correct.

da je svaki napredak važan
da je važan svaki napredak

Both are fine. The second version can put a bit more emphasis on važan (important), or on the contrast (as in it’s important, every bit of it), but the meaning is basically the same. Croatian allows some flexibility in word order for nuance and emphasis, as long as clitics like je stay in the proper position.

Why is kaže in the present tense and not a past form like je rekla?

Both are possible, but they mean different things:

Učiteljica kaže da je svaki napredak važan.
→ Present tense: She says (in general / now) that every progress is important. It can also express a general truth or what she regularly says.
Učiteljica je rekla da je svaki napredak važan.
→ Past tense: She said (at some point in the past) that every progress is important.

In your sentence, kaže presents it as a current or general statement, not just something she said once in the past.