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Good morning, good
afternoon, good evening!

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There's no telling when
you're watching this video,

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so I'll say it all just in case!

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My name is Ira, Elbira
and, once again, I will delve

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into Basque culture
and history with you.

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Also, I love today's
topic, because I myself am

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part of the history
of Basque education!

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Education is a very broad topic,
as varied and deep as a forest.

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Consequently, the history of
Basque education also has endless

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itineraries and ramifications.
Today we analyze three milestones.

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1) Foundation of Basque-language
schools, or ikastolas

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First of all, let's address
primary education.

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After the French Revolution,
Education was recognized in Europe

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as an inalienable
right of every child, and

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the education systems were
established and consolidated.

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During the 19th and 20th centuries,
Western schools offered just one

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single main form of
education in each state.

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This means that, at that
time, teaching in schools

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of the Basque Country is
conducted in Spanish and French.

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Remember that the Basque Country
is divided into two different states,

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so despite its historical
Western background,

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it is governed according to the
regulations of the states France and Spain.

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To understand it better,
let's analyze them separately.

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In the early 20th century,
the Basque nationalist

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movement was gaining momentum
to the south of the Pyrenees,

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and attempts were made
to offer education in Basque,

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for example, in
Donostia in 1914.

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Ahem...

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I should point out that WE made
some attempts, since I myself created

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one of the first ikastolas at
the time of the Second Republic,

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on Ikatz kalea/street
in Donostia.

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As I already advanced, I
was myself part of this story!

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During the Second Spanish Republic, we
developed innovative pedagogic approaches.

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Just so you know,
Montessori is not something

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of today, and we didn't
have the cute games

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and furniture advertised on Instagram.
For all the efforts, the Spanish Civil War

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thwarted and quashed
any initiatives to stimulate

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and teach Basque
language and culture.

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In the first years of the
dictatorship, no choice

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existed but submit to the
Francoist educational system.

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In the 1960s, however,
a broad movement

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in favour of the Basque language
and culture germinated. We aspired to

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give a boost to teaching as
the main form of transmission.

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This way, the first ikastolas were born
underground, both in empty premises

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and in parents' homes, under their
initiative and relying on their financing.

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The ikastolas were
promoted by the middle class,

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so most ikastolas emerged
in an urban environement.

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The first ikastola was established
in 1965 in Bilbao, followed by others

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such as the opening
of Orixe Ikastola in 1968

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in Donostia, with the implication
of me and other teachers.

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Activism was the cornerstone of these
early ikastolas: fathers and mothers

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organized countless initiatives
and festivals to finance them,

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they had to generate abundant
didactic material from scratch,

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betting on an education characterized
by a Basque vision and a new pedagogy.

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Teaching schools
were also created.

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At the end of Franco's dictatorial
regime, the ikastola movement became

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fashionable and, after Franco's death, the
pro-Basque motivation grew considerably.

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We have mentioned, to begin
with, the creation of ikastolas,

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but thousands of parents who organized
in favour of the right to study in Basque

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achieved also the possibility to
study in Basque on the public network.

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From 1983, three models were
implemented, known as A, B and D.

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Soon on the possibility of studying in
Basque was opened in the public network,

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and shortly after also in the
Christian schooling network.

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These models also spread to
Navarre, as we will explain later.

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In 1993, many ikastolas
went public, but others

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continued to be part of
the Ikastola Federation.

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In the Basque Autonomous Community
at least, the possibility of learning

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Basque from an
early age is available.

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Nowadays, anyone is eligible to learn in
Basque from nursery school to university.

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At this point, we
must clarify that

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in both the Northern Basque Country and
Navarre the situation is not quite the same.

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You may have heard by
now the misadventures and

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and headaches related
to the issue of territoriality.

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The right to study in Basque in
the Basque Country to the north

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of the Pyrenees is not
presently guaranteed.

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That is why the network Seaska
continues carrying out titanic work

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in favour of Basque-language
education: selling corncakes

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in the festival Herri Urrats
is definitely not enough!

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Additionaly, the Northern Basque
Country shows very good organization

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and the movements Baxoa
Euskaraz or Azterketak Euskaraz

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are a good example of this.

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Finally, the case of
Navarre is pretty special.

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The territory is divided into different
areas, which means that the right to

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study in Basque on the public network
is not guaranteed throughout the region.

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"No one told us how difficult it
is to be a Basque(-speaker)!"

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Also here, the ikastolas do a
huge amount of work in favour of

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teaching in Basque, and
families and citizens alike

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keep demanding the possibility of
studying in Basque in the public system.

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O, I'm afraid I dwelt
a bit too long on this

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discussion about the
ikastolas and the public model.

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Let's tackle higher
education now!

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2) Academic network

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Presently, several universities cater
to the pursuit of studies in Basque,

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I will quote them
all to you right away.

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This university network was generated
and bolstered over the 20th century,

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not that it emerged out
of nowhere. Prior to their

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establishment, other
such institutions existed.

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The University of
Oñati is the oldest

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in the Basque Country:
our original "Hogwarts".

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It was founded in 1540,
followed later by all the rest.

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The Bilbao Business School,
for example, was founded in 1818.

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Until Franco's death, no
Basque public university existed.

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In 1973, the UEU, the
Basque Summer university,

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was established in Donibane
Lohizune (Basque for Saint-Jean-de-Luz).

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Aimed at promoting the establishment
of a Basque University. It began to

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organize higher education
courses and seminars in order

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to achieve what at that time
seemed nothing but an utopia.

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The University of the Basque Country/Euskal
Herriko Unibertsitatea was created

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faculties officially in 1980,
which integrated several

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and universities
already in operation.

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The University of Deusto
has forged its own path.

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It was founded at the initiative of
the Jesuits in 1886, and began to

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adopt Basque for
education in 1975

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with the creation of the
Basque Culture Seminar.

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For its part, the Bayonne and
Basque Country Institute of Technology

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was created in 1985, offering presently the
possibility to carry out Basque Studies.

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With regard to the Public
University of Navarre,

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it opened it doors in 1987. Now, only 10%
of its studies can be pursued in Basque.

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Finally, Mondragon Unibertsitatea
is our youngest university.

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It emerged from the cooperative
movement in 1997, and includes

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the Higher Polytechnic
School of Mondragon,

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ETEO Business School and
the Teacher Training School.

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Lastly, please follow me back
to our first Basque university:

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the Basque Summer
University has turned 50,

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a pioneer in offering
online master's degrees.

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Basque academy has
come a long way from

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"the Hogwarts" of Oñati to
the provision of studies online!

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3) Non-formal and Basque

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Let's end with fun, of course!

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I have spoken to you at length
about school and university,

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but during and after the dictatorship,
leisure activities in Basque

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grew more and more
relevant for the transmission

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and support of informal
relationships in Basque.

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I'm sure you also remember some
songs from the summer camps...

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Let's see, let's see.

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Come on, anyone in the
audience up for a song?

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Local leisure groups and
the Basque Summer Camps

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were essential so that children
and youth could interact in Basque.

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These summer camps, called Euskal
Udalekuak, emerged in the 1960s

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the ikastola movement, opening
the opportunity for many children

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to spend their spare time in Basque.
They are still up and running today!

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Come on, Elbira, you've
talked enough for today!

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See you around!!!