Resumen de Small languages and school: the case of Catalonia and the Basque Country

Ángel Huguet Canalis

• From a legal and institutional point of view, the current situation of the various languages in Spain has a dual basis: the recognition of the country's multilingual and multicultural character in the Spanish Constitution, and the country's organization into autonomous communities.

  Such a constitutional framework has made it possible for bilingual education to develop remarkably during the last twenty years in Spain. The fact that the autonomous communities have languages of their own and have exclusive authority over education has generated an important number of bilingual educational programs. Therefore, it may be said that, unlike other territories, both Catalonia and the Basque Country organize their education on the basis of bilingual-education criteria.

  In the light of these facts, we analyze the legal basis and the social context in which minority languages are dealt with in the curriculum. Special emphasis is placed on the Catalan and Basque cases. The steps undertaken are assessed and some challenges for the future are put forward.