To pets, in Catalan: the surprising sociolinguistic habit of future bilingual teachers

PalmaThe pets of future bilingual teachers have ended up occupying an unexpected role: that of perfect interlocutors for practicing Catalan without pressure, without corrections, and without possible linguistic debate. The first survey on linguistic uses of students at the Faculty of EducationThe study reveals that talking to pets is one of the few contexts where Catalan clearly gains ground. On a scale where 6 means "always" and 1 "never", the use of Catalan reaches 3.35, while that of Spanish remains at 2.96. In fact, this is one of the few areas —along with the relationship with a parent— where Catalan prevails over Spanish among students bilingual in the two official languages.

In the case of students whose usual language is Spanish, the usage score of Catalan drops to 0.74, while that of Spanish rises to 4.54. Among Catalan speakers, however, the use of Catalan with pets climbs to 5.33, and that of Spanish remains at 0.74. Regarding usage with friends, grandparents, partners, siblings, and parents, the linguistic dynamics follow the usual logic: Catalan predominates among Catalan speakers and Spanish among Spanish speakers. In the case of bilinguals, Spanish prevails in all areas except for use with pets and with one of the parents.

Negative perspectives

The Faculty of Education presents itself as a linguistic oasis within the UIB and in relation to society as a whole, but the report notes that Catalan is in decline there. Students predominantly use Spanish in personal relationships, and 67.7% believe that Catalan will be spoken less in five years' time. Despite remaining the predominant language in teaching and administrative areas, it is losing presence in informal spaces among students, in a context described as one of growing diglossia.

The study is part of a larger project by the Faculty to analyze the linguistic dynamics of the center. Regarding initial language, bilingual students predominate (34.95% among men and 38.19% among women), followed by Catalan speakers (31.07% and 32.23%), Spanish speakers (29.61% and 24.04%), and English speakers (4.37% and 5.53%). In terms of identification language, bilingualism also leads (39.15%), ahead of Catalan (30.60%), Spanish (23.51%), and English (6.74%).

More competent in Spanish

One of the report's highlighted elements is the perception of linguistic competence: out of 40 points, students score Spanish with 38.9, Catalan with 36.21, and English with 24.93. This difference reinforces, according to the researchers, an asymmetry in self-declared competence, as Spanish is perceived as the most dominant language in all skills.

Regarding usage, the report shows a strong division between academic and personal spheres. In informal settings, Spanish predominates, while Catalan maintains a presence in teaching and especially in administration, considered a “stronghold of linguistic survival”. In the personal sphere, Catalan recedes among friends, partners, and a good part of family relationships, with the exception of specific ties such as grandparents.

Despite this, 56.07% of students are committed to strengthening Catalan within the faculty. In parallel, 19.92% consider it a priority to promote English and 16.63% Spanish. The concern is particularly relevant because the Faculty trains future teachers, in a context where, according to the study's managers, Spanish is increasingly perceived as the common language among students of Magisteri. And all this at a time when Catalan-speaking schools are more necessary than ever, as an element of integration and transmission of the native language.