Learn Hardcore Croatian: Učitelj ponosno kaže da svaki učenik napreduje, a svaka učenica ima svoj stil. - The teacher proudly says that every male pupil is making progress, and every female pupil has her own style.

Verbs like reći / kazati (to say), misliti (to think), znati (to know), nadati se (to hope), etc. often take a da-clause.
The da-clause functions as the object of the verb kaže (what does he say? → that every student is making progress).

Unlike English, the da is almost always present in this kind of structure; you don’t usually drop it the way English sometimes drops that (“He says (that)…”).

Why is there no comma before da, but there is a comma before a?

In standard Croatian punctuation:

You do not usually put a comma before da when it introduces an object clause:
- Učitelj ponosno kaže da svaki učenik napreduje.
You do put a comma before the conjunction a:
- …, a svaka učenica ima svoj stil.

The reason:

da svaki učenik napreduje is tightly connected to kaže; it’s one whole “what he says” unit, so no comma.
a is a coordinating conjunction joining two independent clauses:
- Učitelj ponosno kaže da svaki učenik napreduje
- svaka učenica ima svoj stil
  These are separated by a comma before a.

What is the difference between svaki učenik and svaka učenica? Why does svaki change to svaka?

Svaki / svaka / svako means every / each, and it must agree in gender, number and case with the noun:

svaki učenik
- učenik = masculine singular → svaki (masculine singular nominative)
svaka učenica
- učenica = feminine singular → svaka (feminine singular nominative)

Basic pattern in nominative singular:

Masculine: svaki učenik
Feminine: svaka učenica
Neuter: svako dijete (every child)

So the form changes because the noun’s grammatical gender changes.

Why are učenik and učenica in the nominative case? Could they be in some other case?

They’re in the nominative singular because they are the subjects of their verbs:

svaki učenik napreduje → every (male) student progresses
Subject = svaki učenik
svaka učenica ima svoj stil → every (female) student has her own style
Subject = svaka učenica

In Croatian:

Subjects normally appear in nominative case.
You would see a different case if they were objects, for example:
- Vidim svakog učenika. – I see every male student. (accusative: svakog učenika)
- Pomažem svakoj učenici. – I help every female student. (dative: svakoj učenici)

Why does the verb napreduje end with -e, and ima ends with -a?

Both are 3rd person singular present tense, but they belong to different verb types:

napreduje comes from napredovati (to make progress)
- 1st sg: napredujem
- 2nd sg: napreduješ
- 3rd sg: napreduje
ima comes from imati (to have)
- 1st sg: imam
- 2nd sg: imaš
- 3rd sg: ima

So:

svaki učenik napreduje – every student progresses / is progressing
svaka učenica ima – every female student has

The different endings reflect different conjugation patterns, not a difference in meaning like “is” vs “does”. Both are just “he/she/it [verb]”.

Why does the verb stay singular (napreduje, ima) when we are talking about many students (every student)?

Because in Croatian (and in English), “every / each + singular noun” takes a singular verb:

Croatian:
- svaki učenik napreduje
- svaka učenica ima svoj stil
English:
- every student progresses
- each girl has her own style

Grammatically, the subject is singular (“each individual student”), even though logically it refers to many individuals. So the verb must agree with the singular form.

What exactly is ponosno here? Why not ponosan?

ponosno here is an adverb, meaning proudly.

ponosan = adjective “proud” (masculine)
- Učitelj je ponosan. – The teacher is proud.
ponosno = adverb “proudly”
- Učitelj ponosno kaže… – The teacher proudly says…

So in this sentence you’re describing how he says it (manner of the action), which requires an adverb, not an adjective.

You could say, for example:

Ponosan učitelj kaže da… – The proud teacher says that…
Here ponosan is an adjective modifying učitelj (a proud teacher).

Can the word order be changed, like Učitelj kaže ponosno da svaki učenik napreduje?

Yes, Croatian word order is fairly flexible, especially for adverbs like ponosno. All of these are grammatically possible:

Učitelj ponosno kaže da svaki učenik napreduje.
Učitelj kaže ponosno da svaki učenik napreduje.
Ponosno učitelj kaže da svaki učenik napreduje. (less neutral, more stylistic/emphatic)

Differences are mostly in emphasis and style:

Učitelj ponosno kaže… – neutral, the most natural version; smooth rhythm.
Učitelj kaže ponosno… – slight extra focus on how he says it.
Starting with Ponosno gives more dramatic emphasis: Proudly, the teacher says…

All still mean the same basic thing.

What is the function of a here, and how is it different from i or ali?

a is a coordinating conjunction with a mild contrast / “while” / “whereas” nuance. Rough guides:

i = and (simple addition)
a = and / while / whereas (contrast, or change of perspective)
ali = but (stronger contrast/opposition)

In this sentence:

…da svaki učenik napreduje, a svaka učenica ima svoj stil.

a suggests: “on the one hand… on the other hand…”. The teacher is making two related but slightly different statements: about progress (for everyone) and about individual style (for each girl).

If you used:

i svaka učenica ima svoj stil – more neutral “and”, just adding another fact.
ali svaka učenica ima svoj stil – “but every female student has her own style”, sounds like opposition or surprise.

Why is svoj used instead of njezin (her) in svaka učenica ima svoj stil?

svoj is the reflexive possessive pronoun (one’s own). It’s used when the thing possessed belongs to the subject of the clause.

svaka učenica ima svoj stil
→ every (female) student has her own style
Here, the style belongs to the subject (svaka učenica), so svoj is correct.

Compare:

Učitelj kaže da svaka učenica ima svoj stil.
Still svoj, because the stil belongs to svaka učenica, the subject of that clause, not to the teacher.
Učitelj kaže da svaka učenica voli njegov stil.
Now njegov = his, referring to the teacher’s style, not her own.

If you said svaka učenica ima njezin stil, it would sound like “each student has her (some other woman’s) style”, not “her own”.

Why does svoj look like the masculine form when it refers to učenica (a female)?

svoj doesn’t agree with the owner, but with the thing owned.

In svaka učenica ima svoj stil:

Owner (subject): svaka učenica – feminine singular
Owned thing: stil – masculine singular (accusative)

So svoj must agree with stil, not with učenica:

masculine singular accusative: svoj (stil)

If the possessed noun were feminine, you’d see the feminine form:

svaka učenica ima svoju torbu – every female student has her own bag
(torba = feminine → svoju)

So the form of svoj always matches the gender, number, and case of the noun it modifies.

Why does the sentence use the present tense (kaže, napreduje, ima) instead of a future or progressive form?

Croatian often uses the present tense to express:

General truths / habits / ongoing situations
- svaki učenik napreduje – every student is (in general) making progress
- svaka učenica ima svoj stil – each girl has her own style (a stable fact)
Reporting speech in a vivid, immediate way:
- Učitelj ponosno kaže… – The teacher proudly says…

There is no separate “present continuous” form like English (is progressing). Croatian just uses the present (napreduje) and context tells you whether it’s:

a general statement, or
something happening around now.

So napreduje can mean “progresses” or “is making progress”, depending on context.

Could you drop da and say Učitelj ponosno kaže: svaki učenik napreduje… instead?

Yes, but that changes the structure:

With da (indirect / reported speech):
- Učitelj ponosno kaže da svaki učenik napreduje…
  → “The teacher proudly says that every student is making progress…”
With colon / quotation (direct speech):
- Učitelj ponosno kaže: “Svaki učenik napreduje, a svaka učenica ima svoj stil.”
  → “The teacher proudly says: ‘Every student is making progress…’”

If you remove da without turning it into a clear quotation with punctuation, it sounds incomplete or ungrammatical. So:

You either keep da for reported speech,
Or you remove da and switch to a quoted sentence with a colon and/or quotation marks.