The Basque Bilingual Education System: A Model for a Kurdish Bilingual Education System in Turkey

The main target of the study is to demonstrate how the Basque bilingual education system in the Basque Country of Spain works, and how it may be used as comparative analysis of a possible bilingual system for the Kurdish population in Turkey. Basque bilingual education models used where minority languages are prominent will be considered, taking into account their historical and political contexts. This study is also to discuss the benefits of Basque Country's bilingual education models in Turkey and what they can offer in regard to issues related to the lives of Kurds in the country. The overall design of this study uses a qualitative method consisting of data collection through a survey used to get a rich data set that explains the issues surrounding bilingual education in the Basque region. This survey involved 26 participants from K-12 teachers and scholars in the Basque Country. From the survey, the participants' answers were gathered and reviewed. Emergent themes in the survey were coded. Results indicate that currently, the Basque Country in Spain has a reputable ongoing bilingual education system. Over the last decade, the Basque region has established a model for bilingual education that offers multiple options for the linguistic study of the Basque language. Thus, as the Basque Region has an advanced and institutionalized bilingual education system, it is logical to study how minority language issues were addressed previously so it may inform the Kurdish situation. Index Terms--bilingual education, Basque Country, Kurdish, Turkish