# School languages in Spain



## TSN.IMM (May 13, 2013)

Hi all,

I am considering moving to somewhere along the Med coast of Spain with my family. We have 2 kids will go to school soon and we want to send them to state school, but prefer school with Spanish rather than Catalan. Also we like to live in city with good public transport + train, air connection. It seams that only around Alicante or Malaga? Anybody here know for sure if school in Alicante teach in Spanish or not? Any suggestion on specific places I should look at, please?

Thank you


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

TSN.IMM said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I am considering moving to somewhere along the Med coast of Spain with my family. We have 2 kids will go to school soon and we want to send them to state school, but prefer school with Spanish rather than Catalan. Also we like to live in city with good public transport + train, air connection. It seams that only around Alicante or Malaga? Anybody here know for sure if school in Alicante teach in Spanish or not? Any suggestion on specific places I should look at, please?
> 
> Thank you


I don't think you will have much luck. 

Towards Barcelona, they will be taught in Spanish and Catalan and then further south it will be Spanish and Valenciano.

Some schools have streams where you can opt for either language but in our experience, the children are still taught in a mixture of the two.

In my opinion, it's not that bad as they will complete school fully able to speak and write in at least 3 languages and possibly more (English, Spanish and then one of the others). In our school, they also teach German and Chinese.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

snikpoh said:


> I don't think you will have much luck.
> 
> Towards Barcelona, they will be taught in Spanish and Catalan and then further south it will be Spanish and Valenciano.
> 
> ...


certainly an hour-ish north of Alicante all the schools each in Castellano & Valenciano - we come under the province of Alicante for education

some schools will lean more towards one than the other - but all children will study in both

my older daughter is fluent in English, Castellano & Valenciano - my younger less so in Valenciano, she can do her schoolwork in it, but doesn't really like to speak it...

my older daughter also studies German, Latin & Greek


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## TSN.IMM (May 13, 2013)

I'd love to see my kids learning and speaking as many languages as they can, especially the language of people where we live. But I am not in favor of too much emphasizing on local minor language such as in Barcelona. So as long as the school teach Spanish as primary language, then it's OK.


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

Where we are they are taught Andaluc, simply because it is the dialect spoken. We have friends from Madrid who find Andaluc almost impossible to understand. Our son (nearly 4) is fluent in English and now learning Spanish and has a good vocabulary already. Later he will learn German...


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

TSN.IMM said:


> I'd love to see my kids learning and speaking as many languages as they can, especially the language of people where we live. But I am not in favor of too much emphasizing on local minor language such as in Barcelona. So as long as the school teach Spanish as primary language, then it's OK.


I wouldn't consider Catalan too much of a minor language - especially when you consider so many people speak it. It's problem is that it isn't a national language, so it doesn't achieve international recognition in the same way as say Swedish, even though roughly the same number of people speak those languages. Besides, surely speaking Catalan, Castilian and English is better than speaking just Castilian and English?


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Chopera said:


> I wouldn't consider Catalan too much of a minor language - especially when you consider so many people speak it. It's problem is that it isn't a national language, so it doesn't achieve international recognition in the same way as say Swedish, even though roughly the same number of people speak those languages. Besides, surely speaking Catalan, Castilian and English is better than speaking just Castilian and English?


Apparently there are about 7 milion speakers of Catalan in places like Andorra and Alghero (yes, I had to look it up too) besides Catalonia. There are 410 million native speakers of Spanish, plus those who speak it as a second language so even if you don't count Catalan as a minor language it's certainly not major.
Also, if the flags of the OP are anything to go by, the children may well already speak 3 languages, may already come from a mixed cultural/ language/ country background, and Spain might not be their last port of call, perhaps it's understandable that they are looking at a one language area 
Anyway, what ever the reasons are, that's what they have requested information on and the answer remains that if they are interested in state school education that is not the right area of Spain to choose. Also stay away from the Basque country in the north and Galicia. Asturias is OK, central Spain and Andalusia - well, maybe...


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

thrax said:


> Where we are they are taught Andaluc, simply because it is the dialect spoken. We have friends from Madrid who find Andaluc almost impossible to understand. Our son (nearly 4) is fluent in English and now learning Spanish and has a good vocabulary already. Later he will learn German...


Andaluc???


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## mickbcn (Feb 4, 2013)

TSN.IMM said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I am considering moving to somewhere along the Med coast of Spain with my family. We have 2 kids will go to school soon and we want to send them to state school, but prefer school with Spanish rather than Catalan. Also we like to live in city with good public transport + train, air connection. It seams that only around Alicante or Malaga? Anybody here know for sure if school in Alicante teach in Spanish or not? Any suggestion on specific places I should look at, please?
> 
> Thank you


If your son go to Catalonia or Valencia,he will learn 2 languages at same time,catalan or valenciano and spanish.Here in Catalonia the level of spanish is similar or even little superior than other regions who only learn spanish (source of the spanish government),however some people dont want that their sons learn catalan,).I don't know why..hehe.


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## mickbcn (Feb 4, 2013)

TSN.IMM said:


> I'd love to see my kids learning and speaking as many languages as they can, especially the language of people where we live. But I am not in favor of too much emphasizing on local minor language such as in Barcelona. So as long as the school teach Spanish as primary language, then it's OK.


Catalan is the language of Catalonia, then the people who come here must learn catalan,like if you go to Szech Republic, Hungary,Holland,Finland,Danmark,Sweden,Belarus,Norway,etc,etc,etc,in this places you must learn this languages, many of this languages have less speakers than catalan,catalan/valenciano have little more than 13 milions of speakers, is few if you compare with english,spanish or chinesse, but is OUR LANGUAGE.and we are very proud of speak it,like i can imagine you are very proud to speak your language.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

I have to admit that when we first moved here I questioned the relevance of my 'foreign' children having to learn the local language as well as Castellano

I thought it would be hard enough to learn just one new language

in fact it seems to have made no difference - they learned both new languages side by side - & athough my younger daughter is reluctant to actually _speak _Valenciano, she can, though admittedly not as well as Castellano & English

but then, some of her local Spanish classmates speak Valenciano better than they speak Castellano - Valenciano is the language of the home

it has opened doors for them - they are 'locals', especially my older daughter who has NO English (as a first language) speaking friends

& just the fact that they have learned more languages makes learning yet _more _easier

& yes... I can understand it too - I just haven't quite got to the 'speaking' stage (yet)


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## TSN.IMM (May 13, 2013)

mickbcn said:


> Catalan is the language of Catalonia, then the people who come here must learn catalan,like if you go to Szech Republic, Hungary,Holland,Finland,Danmark,Sweden,Belarus,Norway,etc,etc,etc,in this places you must learn this languages, many of this languages have less speakers than catalan,catalan/valenciano have little more than 13 milions of speakers, is few if you compare with english,spanish or chinesse, but is OUR LANGUAGE.and we are very proud of speak it,like i can imagine you are very proud to speak your language.


I know how Catalan people are proud of their language, and if we come to live in Barcelona, we definitely will make our kids learn to speak Catalan. (But BTW, do we have choice?) 
@Pesky Wesky: Thank you for understanding and answering my question. However, I found that there are some schools in Alicante do teach Spanish as the first language. Just don't know if they are good school.

@thrax: Never heard of Andaluc though. You must be kidding me, right?


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

TSN.IMM said:


> I know how Catalan people are proud of their language, and if we come to live in Barcelona, we definitely will make our kids learn to speak Catalan. (But BTW, do we have choice?)
> @Pesky Wesky: Thank you for understanding and answering my question. However, I found that there are some schools in Alicante do teach Spanish as the first language. Just don't know if they are good school.
> 
> @thrax: Never heard of Andaluc though. You must be kidding me, right?



thrax isn't _exactly _joking....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5po3PmnpMxc


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

xabiachica said:


> thrax isn't _exactly _joking....
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5po3PmnpMxc


I don't doubt the debate behind _Andaluz: language, accent or dialect_??
My question was about Andalu_*c*_ which I have never heard of, and nither has Google, so is it a typo or what?


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Pesky Wesky said:


> I don't doubt the debate behind _Andaluz: language, accent or dialect_??
> My question was about Andalu_*c*_ which I have never heard of, and nither has Google, so is it a typo or what?


I figured it was a typo - the 'c' isn't that far from the 'z' ...............


unless thrax knows something we don't


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

TSN.IMM said:


> I know how Catalan people are proud of their language, and if we come to live in Barcelona, we definitely will make our kids learn to speak Catalan. (But BTW, do we have choice?)
> @Pesky Wesky: Thank you for understanding and answering my question. However, I found that there are some schools in Alicante do teach Spanish as the first language. Just don't know if they are good school.
> 
> @thrax: Never heard of Andaluc though. You must be kidding me, right?


I think you should find out what percentage of the timetable is taught in Spanish and which subjects...


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Pesky Wesky said:


> Andaluc???


To be fair Thrax is in Axarquia and they speak an even weirder form there than here of Andaluz or, more correctly, Andalu' In this village it is Castillero.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> thrax isn't _exactly _joking....
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5po3PmnpMxc


What's wrong with that? it is perfectly intelligible just as Valenciano, Catalan and Galego (or Gallego in Spanish). In fact all of those are more intelligible than the way many English kids speak nowadays. Note that I did not include Basque which I would never even try to understand.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

baldilocks said:


> What's wrong with that? it is perfectly intelligible just as Valenciano, Catalan and Galego (or Gallego in Spanish). In fact all of those are more intelligible than the way many English kids speak nowadays. Note that I did not include Basque which I would never even try to understand.


nowt wrong with it - I only posted it to show that it exists


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

TSN.IMM said:


> I know how Catalan people are proud of their language, and if we come to live in Barcelona, we definitely will make our kids learn to speak Catalan. (But BTW, do we have choice?)
> @Pesky Wesky: Thank you for understanding and answering my question. However, I found that there are some schools in Alicante do teach Spanish as the first language. Just don't know if they are good school.
> 
> @thrax: Never heard of Andaluc though. You must be kidding me, right?


Friends of mine from Madrid send their kids to a castillano speaking school in Alicante. No idea how good it is, but it makes you realise that the Spanish themselves have this problem too. If you have kids brought up speaking one of Spain's languages it is hard to relocate to a part of Spain where another language is prevalent. I think the government is trying to re-enforce Castellano as the lingua franca in Spain, but I'm not sure how far it will get.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Pesky Wesky said:


> I don't doubt the debate behind _Andaluz: language, accent or dialect_??
> My question was about Andalu_*c*_ which I have never heard of, and nither has Google, so is it a typo or what?


When asked if I speak Spanish I always reply that I speak it fluently but rather badly, having had no formal lessons, or any lessons at all, really. As a former language teacher I know I would be a difficult pupil. I prefer to learn by listening and repeating....
To me, Andaluz seems more a sloppy way of speaking rather than a language or dialect. Rather like Estaurine English with its 'innits' and similar.
I learnt what Spanish I know from listening to friends and local speakers, all Andalucia born and bred. It's very easy to slip into that slovenly way of speaking and saying _comprao_ instead of _comprado_, _ma meno_ instead of _mas o menos. _et el.
It's like English people saying _you was_ and _I seen..._

So much easier for me to converse with 'real' Spanish speakers....not including Catalan, though, Mick. That's a 'real' language.


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