The judicial process to clarify whether the death of Mango founder, Isak Andic, was an accident or a homicide is advancing. This Monday, the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) confirmed that the judge from Martorell investigating the case has accepted the Public Prosecutor's Office's request to reconstruct the fatal fall, which took place on December 14. The businessman fell during a hike in Montserrat, accompanied only by his son, Jonathan Andic, who is currently the only person under investigation for the case. On the other hand, the magistrate has summoned Jonathan's sisters (and the businessman's daughters), as well as the family's therapist, for questioning, as confirmed by Europa Press.

When you enter the classroom, it's hard to know exactly what level of Catalan is being taught. In less than half an hour, they go from clarifying when a perquè is written together or separately to explaining how to justify that there is a left-hand topicalization in a sentence — when an element of the sentence is moved to appear later and give it more emphasis — as well as deciding whether a verb is copulative or if a sentence is missing the pronoun that refers to the circumstantial complement of place. In fact, the way the session is conducted resembles a review class, were it not for the fact that we are in a classroom on the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF) campus and that the person at the blackboard is Aina, a fifth-year degree student.

New movement in the Department of Education. The ministry led by Esther Niubó has signed up the until now first deputy mayor of Rubí, Víctor García Correas, to join the Secretariat for Educational Improvement, as reported by Ràdio Rubí and confirmed by sources from Education to ARA. However, the new signing on Via Augusta has generated controversy and has been criticized by La Intersindical, as last year the person who was also responsible for Education in Rubí made statements against Catalan in a municipal plenary session and apologized shortly after.made statements against Catalan in a municipal plenary session and apologized shortly after.

The controversy surrounding the pilot test to integrate police officers into Catalan schools continues. This morning, the Minister of the Interior, Núria Parlon, admitted that the plan is in "paralysis", but minutes later, from the same Ministry of the Interior, it was clarified that the words had been "decontextualized" and that the pilot test "continues with the changes that were initially made". However, they did clarify that no new centers will be added "until a clear evaluation of how it has culminated is obtained". In this regard, sources from the Interior point out that the conclusions will be available during the first quarter of 2027. "It will be then when the future of the proof of concept will be decided", they assure.

"I have an average of 9 throughout high school and this has been the worst exam of my life," assured one of the students last week after leaving the exam – which some described as "terrible" – in mathematics of this year's PAU. Next to her, her teacher assured that this year's test "was affordable, but it asked things differently than how it had been done in class" and also said that nerves had to be taken into account. While waiting to see what happens with the grades of this exam, this scene can be an example of how the difference between the average high school grade and that of the general phase of the PAU is further away each year.

Housing problems, saturation of public services, road collapse, closure of local businesses, and a rampant increase in low-skilled and poorly paid jobs. This is the result of the "anything goes" and "only growth and making money matters" mentality behind the exorbitant explosion of tourism in the Balearic Islands, but also in cities like Barcelona or Florence. How to regulate tourism – without giving it up, but also without dying from success – and how to minimize the damage of one of the global industries are the topics addressed by Guillem López Casasnovas, Professor of Economics at Pompeu Fabra University (UPF), and Joana Maria Seguí, geographer at the University of the Balearic Islands, at the event From Paid Holidays to Tourismphobia, organized by the newspaper ARA and the Institute of Catalan Studies (IEC) and moderated by the deputy director of ARA, Elena Freixa.

End of the 2026 PAU exams, marked by the coincidence with the Pope's visit to Barcelona and the premiere of new detectors for electronic devices —mobile phones, watches, and smart glasses, etc—. Despite this novelty, the Minister of Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat, assured this Thursday that no electronic "device" has been detected in the random checks carried out throughout the tests.

Religion and God are not only marking this Wednesday's news with the visit of Pope Leo XIV, but they have also made an appearance in this year's PAU philosophy exam. Students who chose this subject – the history test was also held first thing – had to analyze how the statement "God is dead" would be evaluated from the perspective of two prominent Western philosophy authors. "It was an easy question because we had all worked on it," admitted a student from the Premià de Mar institute when leaving the test at UPF.

Joy and some relief at the end of the first PAU exam of this 2026. After the pressure of whether reaching the tests would be complicated due to mobility restrictions for the Pope's visit and the teachers' strike, most students have come out satisfied from the Spanish language and literature exam. "It was very chill —easy to pass—", one of the students taking the selectivity at UPF replied to her teacher. An exam in which reading comprehension was based on the adaptation of the text The Utility of the Useless. Manifesto, in which the Italian philosopher Nuccio Ordine reflects on how in recent decades humanities have been considered "useless", even in state budgets.

"We don't build with bricks. The raw material with which we work and obtain academic results is very variable. 30 years ago this material was quite stable; ten years ago it was stable enough, but now nothing is stable." This is how Jordi Satorra, president of the directors' association Axia and a teacher for 24 years, defines the emergency situation of the Catalan education system.

"Educational dignity has won" and "It wasn't about money. We are fighting for a new educational model". These have been the messages of the two main banners of this Friday's teacher mobilization. The first was the banner at the head of the demonstration that gathered around 15,200 teachers in Barcelona's Lluís Companys promenade, according to the Guàrdia Urbana, and up to 90,000 according to the unions. A banner that, unlike those of recent demonstrations, was entirely yellow – the color in defense of public schools – and without the name of any union. The second banner is that of the stage in Parc de la Ciutadella, where the demonstration ended with speeches and a booing of teachers at the spokesperson for the USTEC union, Iolanda Segura, after the organization campaigned for a yes vote on the agreement with Education and in its own consultation, 65% of teachers voted against it.

Two hours after learning that 39,500 teachers have voted against the preliminary agreement between unions and Education, the minister Esther Niubó, appeared to explain that the measures of the pact would go ahead. "The commitment to implement this agreement is there," she defended, and recalled that "only" USTEC has said it will not sign the agreement, while Professors de Secundària, CCOO, and UGT will. The minister explained this after an emergency meeting with President Salvador Illa.

The day has arrived. After 72 hours of voting, teachers revealed this midday that they reject the preliminary agreement of the majority unions and Education. They did so in a consultation in which more than 60,000 teachers participated (approximately 60% of the teachers and professors in the public education system). Of these, 65.1% rejected the agreement and, therefore, have committed to continuing to mobilize. In contrast, those who viewed the preliminary agreement favorably remained at 34.9%.

After the preliminary agreement on Friday night between the majority unions and Education, teachers are called from this Monday to express their opinion on the pact, which foresees a gross monthly salary increase of 450 euros over four years. The consultation, which has been sent to teachers' corporate email, started at 12 noon and will last until Thursday at the same time. By 8 p.m. on the first day, more than 17,000 teachers out of a census of 94,490 had participated, 18%. Teachers must vote whether to accept the agreement, as proposed by USTEC, or to continue with the strikes planned until the summer holidays, the option defended by CGT, Intersindical and COS. In fact, these three unions have promoted new actions. This very Monday, about 200 teachers carried out a slow march in Montserrat and occupied the atrium of the Basilica of Santa Maria de Montserrat to hold an assembly and debate the preliminary agreement with Education. It is an unusual image, as a demonstration had never entered this space before. Around four in the afternoon, they ended the protest. In parallel, tonight about 300 teachers have set up a camp in front of the Territorial Services of Education in Girona and, later, organized a debate on the preliminary agreement, called by the Coordinator of Educational Assemblies.

The Minister of Education and Professional Training, Esther Niubó, speaks to ARA a few hours after the signing of the pre-agreement between her department and the majority unions in the sector after eight negotiation meetings.

Applause and silence. After twelve hours of negotiation and up to eight meetings between the Department of Education and unions, the person in charge of delivering the good news was none other than one of the building's security guards. "I think so...", he said hesitantly, when journalists approached him as he left the room where the Minister of Education, Esther Niubó, and the unions were negotiating. After 16 days of strike this course, finally, the majority unions and Education have reached an agreement, which will now have to receive the endorsement of teachers in a consultation.

The key day of the negotiations between Education and unions has ended in a complete breakdown. After a meeting –the seventh– that lasted more than six hours, the unions locked themselves inside the department and demanded that the Minister of Education, Esther Niubó, intervene in the negotiations. A few minutes later, at a quarter to ten at night, Niubó, who was already in the building, appeared and entered to speak with the union representatives, but only stayed for a few minutes. Union sources indicate that she asked them to "reflect" and urged them to talk on Friday at 10 a.m. In response, the unions calling the strike –USTEC, Professors of Secondary Education, CGT, and Intersindical– have assured that they will spend the night at the department. Furthermore, they have called for a demonstration in front of the ministry, where about ten people have gathered.

The sixth meeting between education unions and the Government has ended, once again, without an agreement after a session that lasted more than three hours. Although the Department of Education made a salary offer that would mean, in four years, teachers earning about 355 euros more per month than now, the unions have considered the proposal insufficient and have dug in their heels against the Government also regarding staff reinforcements aimed at improving inclusive education.

The Government and education unions seem to be starting to understand each other after the in extremis meeting this Tuesday, a few hours before the new strike day, which remains for this Wednesday despite the -discreet- progress in negotiations. "Finally, we are speaking the same language with the Department of Education. We have been able to talk within the framework of the salary proposal we sent a few days ago," celebrated USTEC spokesperson Iolanda Segura upon leaving the meeting. From the Government, the Secretary of Educational Improvement of the Department of Education, Ignasi Giménez, has noted a "significant rapprochement" with the unions and explained that, among other things, the Department of Education has put on the table a new salary supplement of around 40 euros that would be linear, meaning it would reach all teachers, and would be collected this same year. "It doesn't reach 40 euros," admitted Giménez, who explained that they are studying if it could be extended over the years. For now, at this time, this offer would represent an investment of around 80 million euros.

The pilot plan to place agents of the Mossos d'Esquadra in Catalan schools has not been well received. It has been rejected by educational unions, but also by the majority of the centers where it was planned to be implemented.The trial has also generated internal criticism within the Catalan police regarding the way it has been designed and communicated. Among the few centers that have agreed to be part of the pilot plan, some are located in El Prat de Llobregat. In fact, sources consulted by ARA admit that, when the plan began to be considered, certain centers in this municipality were used as an example to justify the trial, although the list of schools and institutes for the pilot plan was provided by the Department of Education.