Voluntaris per la Llengua
Voluntaris per la Llengua is a Catalan language learning programme. The program involves volunteers having a minimum of 1 hour per week for 10 weeks of conversation in Catalan with another person who wants to learn and practise Catalan.
Structure
Consorci per a la Normalització Lingüística is a public body formed by the Generalitat de Catalunya and by the town councils and local entities to expand the use and knowledge of Catalan in Catalonia. The program seeks the promotion of the social use of the Catalan language in all fields. The Consorci was created in October 1988. The Consorci began its activities on September 1, 1989. It was formed by the Executive Board of the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Generalitat, 19 town councils and the Diputació de Girona. The Consorci is currently made up by 80 town councils, 37 district councils and the Diputació de Girona
The Consorci is governed by the Plenum, the highest governing body, and the Board of Directors which implements the agreements of the Plenum. The centre councils are the management bodies on a territorial level for each Language Normalisation Centre. The Consorci is deliberately decentralised based on 22 language normalisation centres. In total there are 37 regional Catalan services, 33 local Catalan services and 45 Catalan offices.
Personnel
The Consorci has a fixed workforce of 409 employees, distributed between 368 language normalisation specialists and 41 administrative workers. It moreover has a temporary workforce of 250 specialists hired between the months of October and June, who attend to the demand for Catalan courses for adults during these periods.
Teaching of Catalan
Catalan courses for adults are divided into: Beginners’ level (aimed at non-Catalan speakers), Intermediate level intended for people with a good command of the oral language and aimed at developing comprehension, speaking and writing skills, and Advanced level. Specific training is designed for groups such a shopkeepers and local police or professional groups with their own specialised language such as legal language.
Distance learning is provided for the intermediate level based on self-learning aided by a tutor.
The Consorci has 10 Catalan self-learning centres in Barcelona which provid the services of a tutor to guide the learning process.
The "Digui, digui" course is for non-Catalan speakers broadcast by local radio and television stations. "Català en curs" is a course offered for Catalan speakers in the local and regional press.
Language consultancy
There is also language consultancy offered to the public, including: attention to specific questions, specific terminology, translation of texts from Spanish to Catalan, information on computerised tools such as Catalan spell-checkers.