Introduction

Since 1978, Catalan and Spanish both have co-official status in Catalonia, and all children have to master both languages by the end of compulsory education. From 1978 until 1995, the actions of the Catalan Department of Education in pursuit of achieving acquisition of both languages by all pupils can be divided into three periods. Immersion programs are present in the second and third, although, as I will later explain, there is a difference between the programs in these two periods.

The Catalan immersion program is designed for majority-language students – Spanish speakers – to attain bilingualism. As with other immersion models, the Catalan immersion program emphasizes the communication of meaningful content through the new school language – Catalan – rather than focusing on the teaching of the second language itself. The Catalan immersion program is not simply an opportunity for individuals to learn two languages. Rather, it is part of the project of reinstating Catalonia's heritage language as a language of normal use in its territory. One of its most specific characteristics is found in just this dual personal and collective dimension.

This chapter begins by describing the linguistic, cultural, and political situation of Catalonia before and after 1978, when the Catalan Statute of Self-Government was proclaimed. It then provides an overview of the three phases in extending Catalan into the school system from 1978 to the present time. From this perspective, the paper considers some of the important characteristics of Catalan immersion programs.