Linguistic and cultural rights of immigrant students in Catalonia: perspectives and practices of educators in four elementary schools

Abstract

A growing and increasingly diverse immigrant population in Spain, and in particular in the region of Catalonia, places new and challenging demands on the educational system. In this study, we use a minority language rights framework to examine how Catalan educators conceptualize the linguistic and cultural rights of immigrant students, and the instructional and organizational practices they use to respond to the needs of these students within Catalan immersion programs. Interviews with teachers and principals and observations in classrooms and schoolyards were carried out in four elementary schools in two urban areas in Catalonia. Findings indicated that educators were adhering to a policy focus on the goal of social cohesion through Catalan language use and instruction; however, neither instructional strategies for non-native speakers of Catalan, nor use of their home languages for instructional support, were much in evidence. Although occasional efforts were reported to recognize students’ home cultures in celebrations and activities at school, educators tended to view the home cultures in largely deficit terms. De facto segregation in schools serving almost exclusively immigrant students was identified by educators as a challenge both for elementary school instruction and for subsequent social integration of immigrant youth into Catalan society.