The proposal of a new linguistic model for primary education in Spain, with shared objectives and adaptable to the different autonomous regions : foundations, framework and references in Europe

Abstract

The aim of this work is to propose a linguistic model for primary education to be applied in Spain. In our country, the linguistic models applied in preschool and primary education vary considerably between the different autonomous communities and have also unequal outcomes. Besides, these models often change every few years with shifts of autonomous governments, as well as the national education laws. In this paper, we are going to argue the need for a stable linguistic project that follows common foundations and patterns throughout the country, which has language learning as a priority and that is also adaptable to integrate the co-official languages that some regions have. This work consists of two parts: in the first one, we will deal with some topics that will serve to contextualize and justify our proposal. First, we will talk about the growth of English and the need to learn languages in a globalized world, to continue taking a look at the diverse linguistic context in Europe and the need of preserving regional or minority languages. We will follow with an analysis of the European inhabitants’ ability to speak different languages, discussing some significant differences between EU countries. Also, an overview about the advantages of learning various languages will be provided, seeing then how can states promote this learning, defining ‘language policy and planning’ and commenting on some of the goals it can has based on the linguistic context in which they apply. Different European and Spanish linguistic models of education will be analysed to provide enough basis and examples before proposing ours; besides referring to the historical and legislative context in Spain, which contributes to instability and temporality of our educational laws and outcomes. To finish with this theoretical part, we will address the topic of the inclusion of culture in language learning. In the second part, the model itself will be proposed and explained, exposing the decisions made in different areas, such as the teaching of English and the integration of coofficial languages in the school; reasoning the motives that lead to those decisions and relating them with examples and information seen in the first part of the work.