Between myth and reality: language classrooms in Spanish and Catalan social integration programmes

摘要

It is generally taken for granted that teaching the language of the region to newcomers will prevent social stratification and will enable them to participate in the society and economy. Nevertheless, there are significant drawbacks with regard to the coordination of these language classrooms. This article will problematise the fact that these language courses are equated with social integration, and it will also underline that these sites may, indeed, reproduce the unequal position of new speakers in relation to power and linguistic capital. I draw on the qualitative data collected in social integration programmes in Madrid and Barcelona between 2010 and 2014, and I will explain what kinds of linguistic resources were distributed in these classrooms as well as the positioning of these learners in relation to power.