Language, marginality and education: A gitano case study

Resumen

Given the works of Skutnabb-Kangas(1981) Fishman & Keller(1982) and others on the education of linguistics minorities in different parts of the world, it would appear proper to include, in the on-going discussion through journals and other publications, an account of the education status of yet another much neglected minority -the Rom, or Gypsies, as they are commonly know in English. The present study attemps to give a microcosmic view of the common rubric for the Rom in Spain.It is concluded that although modem-day Gitanos are linguistically and otherwise more integrated in Spanish aociely than in previous times, they remain, for the most part, educationally and socially marginalized. This conclusion raises the general question: Is it language differences alone that keep marginal group (e.g. indígenas in Latin America. Chicanos in the United States, etc.) from attaining educalional and social equality or does their marginal status depend on other, more structural factors as well? The Gitano experience seems to indicate that the latter is the case.

Abstract

Given the works of Skutnabb-Kangas(1981) Fishman & Keller(1982) and others on the education of linguistics minorities in different parts of the world, it would appear proper to include, in the on-going discussion through journals and other publications, an account of the education status of yet another much neglected minority -the Rom, or Gypsies, as they are commonly know in English. The present study attemps to give a microcosmic view of the common rubric for the Rom in Spain.It is concluded that although modem-day Gitanos are linguistically and otherwise more integrated in Spanish aociely than in previous times, they remain, for the most part, educationally and socially marginalized. This conclusion raises the general question: Is it language differences alone that keep marginal group (e.g. indígenas in Latin America. Chicanos in the United States, etc.) from attaining educalional and social equality or does their marginal status depend on other, more structural factors as well? The Gitano experience seems to indicate that the latter is the case.