Hearing and language teachers (PDI) and speech therapists are specialist teachers who work in both the public and the concerted school. Among its functions is the direct attention to students with language and communication difficulties, but also the establishment of incremental or alternative communication systems with students unable to communicate, the assessment of new cases through the identification and evaluation of problems in the different dimensions of the language, coordination with mentors, guidance to mentors and families, support for the creation of linguistic reinforcement programs, participation in the center project, etc. a long one, and all this through the displacement of two, three or four centers.

Until recently we have been able to carry out these functions, but the situation has changed radically in the last decade; there are more and more pupils on the hearing and language lists, and if twelve years ago we had between 12 and 14 students, today that figure has doubled in the best case and in some cases even more than tripling, becoming 40. In my case, it has gone from twelve to 25 in a decade. On the contrary, the number of EHI specialists has changed very little with what that means.

There are increasing difficulties in the area of language and communication. Students with autism, in my case, when I started one, have become seven. There are cases of intellectual disability that have been increasing, language disorders, hearing impairment, maturation retardation… The studies will say why, I am not going to enter into that, but what is clear is that before our students could receive quality care and that those who had the most difficulties could receive three sessions, and today they have two part-hour sessions in the best cases, and also, in many cases, they should be shared with others.

A few years ago we already had an advisor to the Berritzegune, an old one, who did not know Euskera, but who was very good and who told us quite often these words, “the quality of the service depends on the demand” (the quality of the service depends on the demand), and the ideal attention he established in fourteen students.

Hearing and language teachers feel forgotten, abandoned. The Administration does not specify the number of students we can attend to, whether 20, 30 or 40, there are no limits. As long as they are cared for, they do not care, where are the rights of quality care that should be guaranteed?

Tutors of Early Childhood and Primary Education have a ratio of 23 students, in the case of PTs (therapeutic pedagogy teachers) have between six and seven middle students, according to the intensity that mark the difficulties of the students, but in our country there is no ratio. Why? Why doesn't the language take the weight it needs? Isn't it talking and communicating a universal right? Is it not an indispensable tool for the acquisition of knowledge?

The first stages of schooling are decisive in the evolution of all boys and girls, but especially for students with Special Educational Needs. It is something that society owes to children who have these great difficulties, we cannot put them aside and we should put all the personal and physical resources to their needs.

On the other hand, I would like to point out that this scourge that is taking place with language is not only a problem for pupils with special educational needs, but also that more and more children have difficulties in understanding and expressing themselves. The majority of students enrolled in the Community study in Model D, but the Basque country reaches primary school with an increasingly low level. In addition, in our country, we have a great handicap in non-Basque settings: the contents, the knowledge, that is, our students learn Basque, but very few master the language, being Basque the second or the third language.

Our education system continues to decline, according to external evaluations (PISA) we are getting worse and worse results. In view of the results that have been obtained in written understanding, I am led by the “Velcro theory” of the pedagogue and philosopher Gregorio Luri and the words that he often cites: boys and girls go from learning to reading at 9 years of age to learning by reading, and therefore, those who have rich linguistic competence, will have a greater chance of understanding written texts, and conversely, those who have a delay in reading.

EHI specialists, without pretending to be ambitious, could do a lot in that regard, but our workload leaves no time for anything else. We only arrived at a lot of students who need direct attention and we cannot participate seriously in other tasks.

The Education delegation does not heed our demands, they answer not to ask for more EHI and speech therapists. Isn't there money? I do not believe that, on the other hand, we could not read in the newspapers that innovation projects such as Ikaslab, Hezilab or Bizilab have a total subsidy. I am sure they are very good projects, I am not saying no, but unfortunately they do not respond to the urgent challenges we have today.

The trade unions, for their part, have called for a strike at the end of this month for the teachers of public education, and although the demands seem legitimate to me, once again they have forgotten the working conditions of the IHI specialists, even if they are aware of our situation, there are very few of us who work in this specialty and, therefore, we have no strength.

We want dignified ratios and the right to develop our work with quality. We are not asking for more.

Aitor Bárcena Larreategui, Professor of Hearing and Language