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The linguistic interdependence hypothesis posits the existence of language features common to different languages. This set of characteristics, known as Common Underlying Proficiency (CUP), is a powerful facilitating agent in second language acquisition. Fluid intelligence (Gf), on the other hand, is the construct that encompasses those cognitive resources devoted to general learning, and its involvement in second language acquisition is unproven. The aim of this study is to determine the direct and interactive effect of L1 knowledge and Gf on second language acquisition in language immersion learners across different linguistic domains. The study analyzed the proficiency of 131 Romanian students in Spanish and Catalan, the official languages of Catalonia. Mixed-effects regression models were used to analyze lexical, morphosyntactic, and orthographic aspects. The results were obtained using mixed-effects regression models, revealing a particularly noticeable interdependence effect in lexical, morphosyntactic, and orthographic aspects, with differences between Catalan and Spanish. Furthermore, Gf had an impact on the morphosyntactic component with similar intensity for both languages but did not moderate the interdependence effect. The study discusses the possible causes of these effects, as well as their psycho-pedagogical consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores factors influencing school adjustment in immigrant students in Catalonia, Spain. Low school adjustment levels can lead to failure or dropout, particularly among immigrant students. The research analyzes acculturation strategies, intergroup contact, perceived discrimination, and origin's impact on school adjustment. Students from African, Latin American, and European backgrounds completed a questionnaire, revealing four acculturation strategies: marginalization, assimilation to Catalan culture, integration, and assimilation to Catalan and Spanish cultures. A k-means cluster analysis identified these patterns. Linear regression highlighted intergroup contact, integration vs. marginalization, and integration vs. assimilation to Catalan culture as significant predictors. Higher intergroup contact scores correlated with improved school adjustment, while adopting integration or assimilation to Catalan culture predicted better adjustment compared to marginalization. Understanding and addressing these factors is vital for enhancing immigrant students' educational experiences and reducing the risk of academic challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Youth in Catalonia are caught in the middle of a hotly contested political conflict over the region's possible independence from Spain. Focusing on a large sample of secondary school students (n = 1550; 24.6% immigrants) from 30 schools, we use multilevel modelling to investigate identification with competing national identities and their implications for xenophobia. The larger social context is reflected in native students viewing Catalan and Spanish identifications as incompatible with one another, whereas this is not the case for immigrant students, who are much more likely to identify as both Catalan and Spanish, albeit at a lower level. Investigating the perceived basis of what makes someone Catalan, native students viewed their national identity to be a matter of both ascription (e.g. birth, legal status) and practice (e.g. embracing traditions, personal feelings), whereas the identifications of both Muslim and non-Muslim immigrants were exclusively based on viewing Catalan identity as a matter of practice. Conceiving of Catalan identity as a matter of practice was also linked to lower levels of xenophobia. Our findings are consistent with the conception of Catalan national identity as cosmopolitan and welcoming to immigrants, in line with outreach of the Catalan independence movement seeking to attract support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Aposta is the property of Aposta and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A growing and increasingly diverse immigrant population in Spain, and in particular in the region of Catalonia, places new and challenging demands on the educational system. In this study, we use a minority language rights framework to examine how Catalan educators conceptualize the linguistic and cultural rights of immigrant students, and the instructional and organizational practices they use to respond to the needs of these students within Catalan immersion programs. Interviews with teachers and principals and observations in classrooms and schoolyards were carried out in four elementary schools in two urban areas in Catalonia. Findings indicated that educators were adhering to a policy focus on the goal of social cohesion through Catalan language use and instruction; however, neither instructional strategies for non-native speakers of Catalan, nor use of their home languages for instructional support, were much in evidence. Although occasional efforts were reported to recognize students' home cultures in celebrations and activities at school, educators tended to view the home cultures in largely deficit terms. De facto segregation in schools serving almost exclusively immigrant students was identified by educators as a challenge both for elementary school instruction and for subsequent social integration of immigrant youth into Catalan society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Most of students opt to continue education, favouring academic over vocational pathways. • Native students are more likely to drop out of school, regardless of gender. • Non-native students, particularly boys, are less likely to follow more ambitious and higher-risk educational pathways. • Disparities in transition probabilities based on immigrant background decrease in a more balanced composition school. The transition to post-compulsory education represents a fundamental educational decision that shapes young people's social and employment opportunities. However, these choices vary depending on social factors, such as socioeconomic background, immigrant origins, and gender, among others. The concentration of non-native students in schools may also influence these educational decisions, potentially disadvantaging students from lower social backgrounds. Using high-quality registration data from a cohort of students in their final year of compulsory education in Catalonia, Spain (N=82,923), this article analyses the probability of educational continuity -academic and vocational- or dropout, with special attention to the interaction between the immigrant background of the students and their gender. In addition, the impact of the concentration of non-native students in schools on students' educational decisions is analysed. The results reveal that non-native students, particularly boys, are less likely than their peers to follow more ambitious and higher-risk educational pathways. Conversely, native students are less likely to drop out of school, irrespective of their gender. When considering the level of non-native student concentration in schools, the findings suggest that variations in transition probabilities based on immigrant background decrease in environments with a more balanced composition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Migraciones is the property of Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Instituto Universitario de Estudios sobre Migraciones and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

• High school teachers associate the languages of immigrant students with misbehavior. • Immigrant students' heritage languages get banned at Catalan high schools. • Discourse on integration in Catalan schools shows pressure towards assimilation. • Public displays of the heritage language make immigrant students appear "unintegrated". This study explores high-school teachers' discourse on heritage language use regarding their students of immigrant background in Catalonia, Spain, where both Catalan and Spanish are official languages. For this purpose, 10 high-school teachers from 5 schools with a high ratio of foreign students were interviewed. These interviews were analysed using membership categorization analysis. The results show that the perceived appropriateness of heritage language use depends on whether the students are integrated enough in the eyes of locals. Additionally, heritage language use in public is judged from the perspective of a Catalan listener and is deemed disrespectful. This is particularly salient in students of Moroccan background, where language maintenance is associated with overly strict adherence to Islam. The need for training teachers on how to properly address the linguistic and cultural diversity of their classrooms is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Language & Intercultural Communication is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology is the property of Editorial of the University of Almeria (Spain) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Educación XX1 is the property of Editorial UNED and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Educación XX1 is the property of Editorial UNED and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Educación XX1 is the property of Editorial UNED and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Canadian Issues / Thèmes Canadiens is the property of Association for Canadian Studies and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Studies examining linguistic outcomes of immigrant students in Spain are scarce and do not report on variables that influence their results. Data from Catalonia is of particular interest to understanding the complexity of the interrelationships between variables that –according to bilingual education– have an impact on learning a new language. This research study assesses the proficiency in written tests in Catalan and Spanish of 97 sixth grade immigrant students living in Catalonia, and analyses the impact of 14 variables in these students' linguistic performance through multivariate linear regression analysis. The results showed six variables that mediate immigrants' written outcomes in both languages. In particular, they stress the importance of the sociolinguistic environment (CS) and oral uses of language. The findings highlight the need to distinguish between oral skills (BICS) and academic skills related to oral language in order to understand the impact of the CS variable in the linguistic performance of immigrant students. It also suggests how the distinction can be used to incorporate psychoeducational measures to promote second language acquisition at school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

La realidad sociolingüística de Cataluña hace de este entorno un buen observatorio para el estudio de la adquisición de la lengua de la escuela del alumnado extranjero ya que, a diferencia de otros países, no acostumbra a coincidir la lengua escolar y la lengua mayoritaria de uso social. En este artículo presentamos los datos obtenidos en la evaluación de conocimiento de catalán y castellano de 396 alumnos extranjeros de tres grupos lingüísticos, árabe, español y rumano, con diferentes tiempos de estancia al finalizar sexto de primaria, así como los efectos que tienen la lengua familiar y el entorno sociolingüístico en la transferencia de habilidades lingüísticas entre las lenguas que este alumnado aprende en la escuela, catalán y castellano. Las conclusiones señalan que cuando existe continuidad entre la lengua escolar y la lengua del entorno se favorece la transferencia de habilidades lingüísticas con propósitos académicos.The sociolinguistic reality of Catalonia (Spain) makes it an ideal observatory to study immigrant students'' acquisition of the school language. This is because, unlike what happens in other countries, the language of instruction is not necessarily the language most used in a social environment. The paper analyses the data obtained from testing the knowledge of Catalan and Spanish of 396 immigrant students, belonging to three language groups (Arabic, Spanish and Romanian), who at the end of 6th grade primary school had been living in Catalonia for different lengths of time. We also studied the effects of immigrant students'' home language, sociolinguistic environment, and length of residence on the transfer of linguistic skills between the languages they learn at school, i.e., Catalan and Spanish. Findings suggest that the transfer of language skills for academic purposes is facilitated when the school language and the language of the social environment coincide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cultural diversity in the classrooms is a relatively recent phenomenon in Spain, but teachers and students alike have had to go through an adaptation to the new sociological situation brought about by the immigration wave of the last ten years. Schools, especially public ones, have incorporated a great number of students who were born and have spent most of their lives abroad, and who therefore bring a set of values, cultures and languages that may differ from the dominant ones in the local communities. This paper reports on the results obtained through a questionnaire focused on language learning and interculturalism issues and which was addressed to both in-service and pre-service secondary education teachers and implemented in two Spanish bilingual towns: Vitoria-Gasteiz in the Basque Country and Lleida in Catalonia. Although the participants agreed on the importance of intercultural education, differences were observed between in-service and pre-service teachers on a practical-idealistic dimension, and language teachers displayed more positive views towards interculturalism than teachers of other subjects. La presencia de diversidad cultural es un fenómeno relativamente reciente en las aulas españolas, por lo que durante los últimos diez años tanto el profesorado como el alumnado han tenido que experimentar un proceso de adaptación a esta nueva situación sociológica. En las escuelas, especialmente en las públicas, se ha ido produciendo la incorporación de un gran número de estudiantes nacidos (y que han pasado la mayor parte de su vida) en el extranjero, y que por lo tanto llegan con una serie de valores, lenguas y culturas que difieren de los dominantes en la comunidad receptora. En este estudio se presentan los resultados obtenidos por medio de un cuestionario centrado en el aprendizaje de lenguas y en cuestiones relativas a la interculturalidad que fue cumplimentado tanto por profesorado en formación como por profesorado en activo de dos ciudades: Vitoria-Gasteiz en el País Vasco y Lleida en Cataluña. Los resultados ilustran las percepciones existentes hacia el aprendizaje de lenguas y la interculturalidad en las escuelas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The arrival of immigrant students in Spain has tested the capacity of the educational system to successfully address diversity, especially in the bilingual communities. Many studies have pointed out that mastering the school language is a key factor in explaining the academic performance of immigrant students (Cummins, 2000; Nusche, 2009; OECD, 2006; Siguan, 1998; Vila, Siques and Roig, 2006). According to Cummins (1981b), the development of skills related to language use in academic contexts is based on the prior development of conversational skills. Thus, in the case of immigrant students, if exposure to the new language is ensured both at school and in the social context, cognitive/academic language skills can be transferred from the first to the second language (or vice versa) thus producing positive effects on school performance. In Catalonia, in contrast to other countries that have implemented bilingual education programmes, sufficient exposure to Catalan is not guaranteed due to the sociolinguistic situation of the country. This research analyses the effects that sociolinguistic variables and individual and contextual factors have on the development of school language acquisition. Conclusions point how sociolinguistic environment affect the development of language skills of immigrant students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is about how immigrant bilingual students use their languages in the learning of mathematics. Our research has been with immigrant bilinguals in Catalonia, Spain, who arrived at a young age from South- American countries. We use a critical sociolinguistic approach, which draws on social theory in the analysis of how language is involved in the construction of teaching and learning opportunities. Our data point to the differences in the ways that the Spanish dominant bilingual students use their two languages during their engagement in mathematical activity. The shifts from Catalan to Spanish, and from Spanish to Catalan, coincide with shifts in the complexity of the students' mathematical practices. The students tend to use the two languages for different purposes, depending on the complexity of the mathematical practices, and in relation to different social settings that coexist within the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United States and Spain have had radically different immigration histories, and they also have very different education systems and policies, yet there are similarities. Despite official efforts to welcome immigrant youth, both education systems operate, paradoxically, in ways that are unwelcoming, relegating immigrant youth to the margins of school life. The authors draw on their ongoing comparative ethnographic research in high schools in California (U.S.) and Catalonia (Spain). The article highlights some contradictions between the strengths and shortcomings identified in each education system. In light of immigrant students' experiences in both countries, the authors provide suggestions for the improvement of educational practice for the children of immigrants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bearing in mind the relevance of immigration in Spain, we consider the linguistic idiosyncrasy of the autonomous community of Catalonia in the present study to describe and analyse language attitudes to Catalan and Spanish in a sample of 225 students of immigrant origin living in different parts of the region. We focus on language attitudes in so far as they promote integration in the host society at the same time that they play a major role in the acquisition of the new language. Globally, the results obtained show positive attitudes to Catalan and Spanish. This however, has to be further clarified taking into consideration the fact that, geographical origin clearly determines the attitudes showed by students. As we will see, it is in the case of learners coming from Latin America that we find the most significant differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing presence of children of immigrant families in the public school system in the bilingual region of Catalonia provides us with an opportunity to study how young multilingual and multicultural speakers construct their social competencies and their identity within the specific context of a gate-keeping social institution such as the school. The study reported in this paper approaches language learning as a process of socialisation that involves not only learning how to make sense of linguistic signs but also learning how to enact different social roles in particular institutions. The analysis focuses on the interactional profiles of two immigrant students in two types of communicative activities that are representative of the school context: responding to questions from an adult and cooperating with a peer in the resolution of a learning task. By shifting the focus of analysis from a decontextualised notion of communicative competence to the notion of 'institutionally affiliated communicative competence' and concentrating on issues such as the (1) the relationship between knowledge and participation, (2) language choice inside and outside school and (3) definitions of correctness in language use, the study reveals how the two students construct a highly 'affiliated' identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]