The streets are full of "The dignity of education", written on huge banners. This is what the demonstrations and teachers' strikes are demanding. The resounding no to the agreement reached by the union representatives, with the loud booing of the representative to tell her "We are the ones who are in the classroom" and "It was not a matter of salary", reveals to us the moment we are in. No, it wasn't about working conditions alone, because what teachers want is to be able to exercise their profession properly. They have said it very clearly: well-being is not solely a matter of working conditions; what is being claimed is to exercise the profession with dignity.The teacher unrest is now compounded by a fracture in union representation. Who represents the teachers? Jordi Muñoz's analysis is very accurate regarding the loss of institutional mediations, which in the case of education translates into a crisis of the school itself as an institution: when the classic forms of representation and conflict management falter, the school's capacity to sustain a shared framework of meaning, authority, and professional trust also becomes more fragile. Jordi Muñoz's analysis regarding the loss of institutional mediations, which in the case of education translates into a crisis of the school itself as an institution: when the classic forms of representation and conflict management falter, the school's capacity to sustain a shared framework of meaning, authority, and professional trust also becomes more fragile.

"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.

The educational situation in Catalonia is complex, generating intense emotions, firm positions, and frustration. In this context, it is important to remember a key idea. When emotional tension increases, the capacity for reflection and the quality of decisions decrease. In conflict situations, the brain's amygdala, responsible for emotional reactions, activates defensive responses, while the prefrontal regions, responsible for critical thinking, planning, and complex decision-making, reduce their effectiveness. In other words, when we feel threatened or neglected, we listen worse, nuance less, and find less space to build agreements. Therefore, reducing tension is not weakness, but a possibility for dialogue. Stable agreements are not usually born from emotional escalation, but from the recovery of a minimum of trust that allows us to listen to the other without giving up our own positions.However, it would be a mistake to reduce the current debate to issues of ratios, salaries, or resources for diversity support, even though their importance is undeniable. These elements are essential for a quality education, but they do not, on their own, explain the complexity of the current moment or resolve all its tensions. Collective humility is needed to recognize that education is a living system where pedagogical, social, cultural, economic, technological, and emotional factors interact. There are no single causes or simple solutions.In this context, the curricular debate should also become a central element. We live in a dynamic and changing world, and education must serve to empower society in its leading role in these changes. We often simplistically, and too often partisanly, oppose memory and skills, knowledge and creativity, content and motivation. But the human brain does not work like that. Scientific evidence shows that creativity requires prior knowledge, that critical thinking requires information, and that problem-solving depends on mental schemes built through learning. Therefore, mnemonic learning remains relevant. The problem is not memorizing, but doing so without understanding. The great challenge is to place knowledge in meaningful contexts, connected with current reality and the interests of the students. Creativity does not replace knowledge, but it is key to reorganizing it and making it operational. That is why it is equally essential.

"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.

Teachers and professors rejected the agreement between the unions and the Department of Education and the strikes will continue. In fact, this morning, a group of teachers occupied the building of the territorial services of the department in the Zona Franca of Barcelona, in the first of the mobilizations that will continue from here until the end of the school year. All of this is very bad news because everything that interrupts the daily life of the school ends up harming the students' education. And with a child poverty rate (under 18 years old) of more than 30%, if school fails, almost everything fails. Consider that there are thousands of Catalan children who, besides learning, go to school to eat a hot meal.A 65% of teachers who participated in the consultation (which was 60% of the total staff) voted against the agreement reached by the majority unions and the Government. Therefore, the responsibilities for the situation are widely distributed, between the Government and the unions.To begin with, the Government made a complete mistake the day it signed an agreement with UGT and Comissions, which are not the majority unions, as if to suggest that the teachers' protests had already ended or no longer had any reason to continue. That was an almost reckless error, because it angered the teachers even more. And USTEC, which later signed an improved and expanded agreement, has now been disavowed by its own people. In other words, as Murphy's Law states, if something can go wrong, it will go wrong, and today we are in an unknown situation, and in a conflict whose end is not in sight.And for that very reason, it would now be very important not to make any more mistakes so that we don't all get hurt any further. Because look, we have problems in this country (as in all countries in the world), but that of education is the most serious problem that Catalonia has. The most serious. Because it affects the present and the future of the country, it affects millions of people, in their training, their critical thinking, their possibilities for personal development, their professional future…Not being wrong means the direct involvement of the President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa. It means that the opposition should be very selective in its wear and tear on the Government and that we should all try to reach agreements for the country. Because the person responsible for the current situation is the current government, with Councillor Niubó at the helm. But that schools in Catalonia are not doing well is not new. There are responsibilities of all the parties that have governed in the deterioration. We are facing the deep malaise of an education system in emergency and I fear, I notice, how would I put it... that we are facing it with old negotiation categories from the government as an employer and the unions, but that no one with authority is bringing wills together to define the problem, much less the solutions.

Tension cannot be maintained indefinitely. The teachers' vote against the agreement reached by the unions and the Government must give way to a new phase. It is urgent to find a way out that does not involve union confrontation.

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%.

A national police officer shoves and throws to the ground a person who was peacefully protesting in Valencia. He does so like a bad policeman, with disproportionate force for the situation, which was a protest by teachers who were going to block a street's traffic. A bad policeman and a bad person: he makes her fall like a coward, from behind, without the woman being able to see him coming, and from the blow he delivers, he breaks her nose when the woman hits the ground with her face. But even more outrageous is the response of the police unions to the Spanish government delegate, Pilar Bernabé: “You will not investigate anything [...]. You already assume someone's guilt [...]. If you go out to block streets, you expose yourself to being kicked out.” In reality, there is not much to investigate, because the policeman's guilt is demonstrated in the video. And it is one thing to expose yourself “if you go out to block streets” and another is to have to endure the gratuitous violence of someone who feels impunity because they are uniformed.There are police officers who complain about the same thing: that the times when people saw a police officer and obeyed without a word are already history, that now people confront them and have violent attitudes, because it's not just that they no longer instill fear, but they have also lost authority. But then comes the vicious cycle: for them to be believed, the verbal and physical attitude of some officers is increasingly surly, and even more preemptively aggressive, by default, to begin by demanding respect, which only increases the distance between two worlds that barely touch or know each other anymore, such as that of citizens and that of the police, because people only see police officers passing by locked in cars and we assume they are behind the street surveillance cameras. And thus, another link between citizenship and public authorities is being severed.

Teachers' protests have been going on for months at various points in Catalonia, with blockades on the country's main roads and numerous slow marches through the capitals of each province. Although some of these blockades and obstructions have seen tense scenes with drivers who were trapped, the vast majority of mobilizations have passed without incident. All, however, have been closely monitored by agents of the Mossos d'Esquadra, deployed to ensure that there were no significant disruptions. These agents, normally public order officers, have had the directive during the latest protests to be especially sensitive to these mobilizations, according to sources consulted by ARA.

On the second day of the consultation on the agreement with the Department of Education, one-third of teachers have already cast their vote. Specifically, more than 32,000 teachers—out of a total census of almost 97,000 people—have voted in the consultation which will close on Thursday at 12 p.m. Meanwhile, teacher protests continue, albeit with much less mobilization capacity. This Tuesday, the strike called in Barcelona had a 12.2% turnout, according to data from the Department of Education.

The indefinite strike of teachers in the Valencian Community is heading into its fourth week with growing tension and almost blocked negotiations. Also with a standoff with the Spanish government delegation, which has initiated the procedure to open disciplinary proceedings against the National Police officer who this Sunday assaulted a teacher who was demonstrating at the gates of the Ministry of Education to ask the regional government to accept the teachers' demands. In the video shared on social media, the woman, a 68-year-old retired teacher, is seen walking down the street amidst the protests. Then, an officer, whose head is covered with a helmet, runs towards her, pushes her violently from behind, and knocks her to the ground.

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.

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 Assembly of Correcting Teachers of the PAU Exams of the Valencian Country, comprising 250 teachers, has announced that it is considering not appearing for the constitution of the tribunals for the university access exams, resigning en bloc on the day they are formed – June 2nd – or adopting "more forceful" actions regarding the qualifications. The announcement coincided with a new meeting between the Generalitat and the unions to try to put an end to an indefinite strike that has entered its third week and on Tuesday had a 16% follow-up. Despite the duration of the protest, the meeting only served to advance in the reduction of bureaucracy.

Today we will have new revelations about the judicial investigation into the lobbying activity of former Spanish president Zapatero, because the judge will deliver to the parties everything that is in the initiated summary. And, of course, with new revelations the pressure on Sánchez's government to step down will increase. On this front there is a significant novelty: the PNB, through its president, Aitor Esteban, said yesterday that it would be “irresponsible” for Sanchez to want to exhaust the legislature in 2027, that is to say, that in view of everything that has emerged (the Zapatero case, but also the Cerdán and Ábalos cases) it would be imprudent to want to go beyond this year.What Esteban is telling Sánchez is that he should not abuse his patience and the deadlock in which the parties that voted for the socialist president's investiture find themselves: it is unlikely that the PNB, Junts, and not to mention the so-called "plurinational lefts" will vote for Feijóo as president of the government with Vox in a motion of censure, but if corruption continues to tarnish Sánchez, it is the Spanish president who should be obliged to call early elections. After all, Sánchez came to power with a motion of censure after corruption drowned Rajoy and the PP government.As always happens in these cases, now there are voices demanding that the law better define the limits between lobbying and falling into the crime of influence peddling. And the convenience of rescuing the airline Plus Ultra during the pandemic is also reviewed in hindsight, because it was not essential for air traffic between Spain and Latin America. If it wasn't, why did they rescue it? The PSOE is crossing its fingers so that the judge hasn't found anything else and can recover the discourse of "lawfare" (a possibility that, given what we have seen in the Spanish justice system, would not be so dismissible), but everyone you talk to tells you that, at the very least, Zapatero acted very much on the edge.While the socialists are crossing their fingers that nothing else comes up, in our country, tomorrow there will be another meeting between the Government and the education unions. The teachers' strikes are more than a stone in the government's shoe, they are a boulder in the road that doesn't let it continue to move with confidence and optimism after having been able to present a budget that will be approved. We are at the end of the sports seasons, and Catalonia has lost a team in the First Football Division, Girona. After having reached the Champions League, it drops to the Second Division: the team could not withstand the departure of key players who had made a name for themselves. Not all news is bad. Two Catalans succeeding in the world: the Barça women's football team, which tonight was received in Barcelona by 10,000 people after having won the Champions League, the fourth in the Club's history, in a perfect season that includes all three Spanish titles. And wait, because Alexia Putellas, after Saturday's Champions League, could very well win the Ballon d'Or again. For the visibility of professional women's sport, the service Barça is providing is extraordinary. And Pep Guardiola, who yesterday was bid farewell at City's stadium after 10 years as its manager. The mark Guardiola has left on football can only be defined by "a before and an after"; this can be said of very few managers in history. By the way, both celebrations, that of the Barça players and that of the Santpedor coach, were united by the estelada:

New –and third– consecutive key day on Barcelona's Via Augusta. This Friday at noon, education unions met again with a new proposal from the Department of Education on the table, but the meeting did not end with an agreement and positions have moved further apart again. However, the Government and trade union organizations will meet again on Tuesday. Upon leaving the meeting, the spokesperson for USTEC, Iolanda Segura, said that the proposal presented to them by the department "is not an acceptable proposal" and that they had already rejected it. Segura complained that the offer had not been framed within the negotiation framework that the unions presented on Thursday and once again issued an ultimatum: