Education "in" a regional or minority language: the case of Catalan in Spain

Abstract

Catalonia has developed a model of schooling in which Catalan is the medium of instruction and both Catalan and Spanish are compulsory subjects. In 2020, the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia ruled that at least 25% of teaching must be delivered in Spanish in all schools in Catalonia, raising the issue of whether this obligation conforms to the undertakings chosen by that Spain under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. To clarify, we first need to answer the following question: what does “education in a regional or minority language” mean? This paper provides an answer to this question based on the interpretation of the Committee of Experts of the Charter, and addresses two side issues: whether education in a regional or minority language can be compulsory for all pupils, and under what scenarios would it be legitimate to enforce the use of the State’s official language in schools where a regional or minority language (RML) is the medium of instruction. A conclusion is reached that may offer guidance for future discussion on the role of the State’s official language(s) in RML-medium schools.

Keywords

• european charter for regional or minority languages
• catalan language
• medium of instruction