Language immersion in the multi-system education in Andorra

Abstract

The aim of the article is to present the multi-system education in Andorra and the related language immersion. The observations made during the author’s participation in an academic seminar in Andorra and acquiring literature on the subject enabled her to explore the originality of the country’s educational system, consisting in the freedom of choice among three different systems: the Andorran, French or Spanish school, and, as a consequence, in language immersion. Choosing a school, parents and students are guided by such criteria as the distance between the school and the place of residence, the language of instruction, the possibility of continuing education abroad. The variety of educational systems results from the history of the Principality of Andorra. The first schools were founded by the French and the Spanish, who competed for influence in a given area. The innovative Andorran school was created only in 1983, and since that time it has been thriving and has the highest number of students. The author poses a question about the relationship between the educational system and the Andorrans’ national identity, as well as about the possibility of cooperation between the systems.