A total of 797 students from three subsidized schools in Ibiza are participating in the voluntary pilot plan of free choice of language during the current academic year. This initiative, driven by the Balearic Government and promoted by Vox, allows primary school students to choose between Spanish and Catalan as the vehicular language of their education. Throughout the archipelago, the program has been adopted by 2,328 students from 11 private and state-subsidized schools in Mallorca and Ibiza.
The plan, according to the Ministry of Education and Universities, is based on the autonomy of the centers and on the possibility of offering a more personalized education to students. Despite the backing of the Govern, the initiative has generated a wide political and social debate, with conflicting positions on its application and its effects on the education system.
Ibiza’s centers and their participation in the plan
At In Ibiza, Nuestra Señora de la Consolación school leads the adhesion to the program with 300 students, followed by Can Bonet in Sant Antoni, with 147 students, and Mare de Déu de les Neus, in Sant Jordi, with 150. In most of the schools that have opted for this plan in the Balearic Islands, the adhesion rate is 100%, with some exceptions, such as San Alfonso Maria de Ligorio (90%) or Sant Vicenç de Paül (73%). At the Santa Mónica school, the percentage is reduced to 20%, since the offer is only aimed at students in the fourth year.
The future of the program and political controversy
The Minister of Education and Universities, Antoni Vera, has assured that the pilot plan is being applied “to perfection” and has advanced that next year it will be extended to more schools supported with public funds. Vera stressed that the program is not linked to the negotiations with Vox for the autonomic budgets, but responds to the will of the Govern to promote the “vehicularity of the two official languages” in the education system. From the opposition, MÉS per Mallorca has accused the Government of “attacking the language in the education system” and has demanded the withdrawal of the plan, calling it a “fraud” to the voters as it was not a promise included in the electoral program.
A model with the possibility of expansion
Despite the controversy, the Balearic Government insists that the choice of the vehicular language is a right of families and that the program will be maintained in future calls. If its expansion is confirmed, more schools in Ibiza could join in the 2025/26 academic year, thus increasing the educational offer based on free linguistic choice. Participating schools must ensure that at least 50% of the teaching hours are taught in Catalan, complying with the Minimum Decree. In addition, they will offer students the possibility of taking subjects such as Mathematics and Knowledge of the Environment in the language of their choice, either Catalan or Spanish.
