The History of Education in Catalonia: Liberal Tradition and Conceptual History

Abstract

In this article the authors reconsider the relationships and links between intellectuals from Barcelona and Madrid within the framework of the liberal tradition and from a perspective that draws on the history of education as a reference. They comment on the connections and exchanges generated through the Free Education Institution, in a voyage in both directions, outbound and inbound. They also emphasise the importance of historians such as Vicente Cacho Viu who was always concerned about boosting relationships between the two points, between the centre and Catalan nationalism, seen as an element of modernisation for Spain. Against this background, they raise the possibility of a conceptual history of education that contributes to the analysis of “educational reform” from a plural approach that addresses aspects related to the external context, the institutional context and the educational programme. The intention behind all of this is to keep open intellectual dialogues between Catalonia and the rest of Spain, particularly Madrid, at a time fraught with tension and sometimes mutual suspicion and incomprehension.