Suchergebnisse

This paper deals with various issues concerning the establishment and inauguration of the first Croatian supplementary school in Italy, the shaping of the curriculum and the forming of heterogeneous learning groups. The paper also deals with the political aspect of the new institution. This school, located in Rome, has remained active to this day, with a curriculum that differs from the one in use in the Molise region, the home of the officially recognized Croatian national minority. The methodology is based on the analysis of the statistical data issued by the Italian Ministry of Education, of the legal regulations in effect at the time when the school was established, as well as today, and on the analysis of the pedagogical and linguistic theories by Bruner, Such, Widdicombe, Ivir-Ashsworth, Jelaska and Cvikić. The paper aims to show the modern and, indeed, progressive qualities of educational and cultural procedures in Croatian supplementary school in Rome, based on the principles set by the above mentioned authors. The task accomplished by the school is set in the context of creating/enforcing the national identity based on the cultural, historical, psychological and sociological principles, expounded by the monk Martinac, and by Fromm, Smith, Supek and Anholt. The establishing, organizing and functioning of the school is also analysed in consideration of the legal framework in the period from 1998 to 2015, as well as regarding the aspect of cultural diversity and cultural integration.

In this paper, the authors deal with a critical analysis of some of the problems associated with PISA testing in mathematics. First of all, the social, economic and political circumstances of the launch of the PISA project are pointed out. This is followed by an analysis of what the authors consider as very important concepts for understanding PISA philosophy, such as applicable knowledge and problem solving in a real-life situation. We compared two different ways of defining these concepts and showed what the consequences of learning and teaching mathematics are in each of the cases. The authors present the results of the research that was conducted with mathematics teachers, as well as teachers of other subjects. The research dealt with the determination of the importance and role of the mathematical tasks of the PISA test for students' further mathematical education. The results of the research have shown that there is a significant statistical difference between the assessment provided by the teachers who do and those who do not teach mathematics. The paper also analysed some specific tasks that the students were solving in PISA tests. The authors point out some deficiencies and inaccuracies observed in the mathematics tasks on PISA tests, as well as the weaknesses of PISA testing itself. ; U ovom radu autori se bave kritičkom analizom nekih problema vezanih uz PISA testiranje iz matematike. Prije svega ukazano je na društvene, ekonomske i političke okolnosti pokretanja PISA projekta. Zatim su analizirani, po mišljenju autora, vrlo važni pojmovi za razumijevanje PISA filozofije, a to su primjenjivo znanje i rješavanje problema u stvarnoj životnoj situaciji. Usporedili smo dva različita načina definiranja ovih pojmova i pokazali koje su posljedice po učenje i nastavu matematike u oba slučaja. Izložili smo rezultate istraživanja koje smo proveli s nastavnicima matematike, ali i nastavnicima drugih predmeta. Istraživanje se odnosilo na utvrđivanje značaja i uloge matematičkih zadataka PISA testa za daljnje matematičko obrazovanje učenika. Rezultati istraživanja su pokazali da postoji statistički značajna razlika između procjena nastavnika koji predaju i nastavnika koji ne predaju matematiku. U radu smo analizirali i konkretne zadatke koje su učenici rješavali na PISA testiranju. Ukazali smo na izvjesne nedostatke i nepreciznosti matematičkih zadataka PISA testova, kao i na slabosti samog PISA testiranja.

This article focuses on the presence of the concept of dissimilitude in the selection of literary texts for children prescribed by the syllabi in Croatia and Serbia. The comparative analysis is based on providing a list of texts for the first cycle of education in the two syllabi through a concept-based (transcending the text) observation of dissimilitude, as well as a content-based (text-inherent) analysis of the presence of dissimilitude in these texts in its broadest sense. In the literary texts prescribed by the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Serbia, the field of dissimilitude thematization can largely be attributed to the nature of the literary work itself, rather than the curricular or concept-based education policy behind the current syllabi. The paper presents results of the analyses of the two syllabi that are conceptually quite different. The aim of this paper is to compare educational strategies for teaching literature in two countries – Croatia and Serbia – by analysing the presence of dissimilitude in a selection of literary texts. ; U radu se razmatra prisutnost koncepta različitosti u izboru književnih tekstova za djecu koje propisuju nastavni programi u Hrvatskoj i Srbiji. Komparativna analiza polazi od popisa tekstova za prvi ciklus školovanja u oba programa i uočavanja koncepta različitosti u samim programskim koncepcijama (transcedentno tekstu), ali i sadržajima, putem analize prisustva najšire shvaćene teme različitosti u tim tekstovima (imanentno tekstu). U tekstovima propisanim u RH i RS s obzirom na polje tematizacije razlika se u najvećoj mjeri može pripisati prirodi djela, a ne programskoj i koncepcijskoj obrazovnoj politici važećih programa. U radu se iznose rezultati analiza programa koji su koncepcijski sasvim različiti. U odnosu na koncept različitosti u djelima oba programa razmatra se niz problema koji prate fenomen razlike. Cilj je rada usporediti obrazovne strategije nastave književnosti dviju zemalja – Hrvatske i Srbije – na primjeru analize prisustva koncepta različitosti u izboru književnog teksta.

Cilj ovog rada je prikaz usporedne analize između dva kolegija koji se predaju na učiteljskim fakultetima u Danskoj i Hrvatskoj, a putem kojih se studenti osposobljavaju za poučavanje prirodnih znanosti u osnovnim školama. To su kolegiji Priroda i tehnika u Danskoj te Metodika prirode i društva u Hrvatskoj. Poučavanje prirodnih znanosti je jedan od najkompleksnijih predmeta u osnovnoj školi, a na učiteljskim fakultetima jedan od najzahtjevnijih kolegija. Provedena analiza obuhvaća karakteristike obrazovnog sustava u ovim zemljama, sadržaje kolegija i specifičnosti inicijalnog obrazovanja učitelja s posebnim osvrtom na neophodne kompetencije u poučavanju ovih predmeta u osnovnoj školi. Na temelju usporedne analize može se zaključiti da studijski program Metodike prirode i društva u Hrvatskoj nedovoljno priprema buduće učitelje za sudjelovanje u znanstvenim istraživanjima, suradnju s predstavnicima lokalne zajednice kao i za cjeloživotno učenje. Imajući na umu, da se u demokratskim društvima, koji se temelje na znanju i aktivnom sudjelovanju njihovih građana, od učitelja očekuje da razviju kod svojih učenika vještine istraživanja, komunikacije i intelektualnog razvoja tijekom života, pitanje je kako oni mogu uspješno ostvariti svoju profesionalnu zadaću, ako ih učiteljski fakulteti adekvatno ne osposobe prije ulaska u školu. ; The aim of this paper is to present the results of a comparative analysis of the two courses taught at teacher training institutions in Denmark and Croatia through which students are prepared to teach science at primary schools, namely the course on Nature and Techniques taught in Denmark and the course on Teaching Science taught in Croatia. Science is one of the most complex subjects to teach in primary schools and one of the most demanding subjects at teacher training faculties, in general. The analysis encompassed the characteristics of public education systems in both countries, the content of the courses and the specificities of the teacher pre-service training to implement this subject, with emphasis on competences required to teach them in primary schools. The analysis of teacher training curricula yielded that Teaching Science poorly prepares Croatian future teachers for participating in scientific research, establishing contacts with the representatives of local community, as well as for lifelong learning. Having in mind that, in democratic societies based on knowledge and participation, teachers are expected to develop in their students the skills for inquiry, communication and intellectual growth throughout their lives, the question emerges on how they could fulfil their professional tasks if teacher training faculties fail to properly prepare them before they enter schools.

The aim of the article is to present the development of the TILKA education model. This new L1 and L2 teaching model integrates language and literature teaching through research and activity, as well as the principles and methods of intercultural education and transactional analysis. Our main research question during the model development was how nonviolent communication can be included into the intercultural language teaching. The analysis of various discourses (science, tourism, politics, literature) with regard to intensity modification has shown that verbal aggressiveness can be related to the expression of intensity modification. Building the competence of nonviolent communication with the use of specific intensity modificators can be included into the language teaching model as one of the most important intercultural goals. ; Cilj članka je predstaviti razvoj odgojnog modela TILKA. Taj novi model nastave materinskog/prvog i stranog/drugog jezika s jedne strane obuhvaća poduku jezika i književnosti s pomoću istraživanja i aktivnosti, a s druge spaja smjernice i metode interkulturnog odgoja i transakcijske analize. Naše najvažnije istraživačko pitanje vezano je uz nenasilnu komunikaciju koja bi mogla postati sastavni dio interkulturne jezične nastave. Da bismo odgovorili na pitanje kako uključiti nenasilnu komunikaciju u okvir interkulturne jezične nastave, analizirali smo četiri različita diskursa (znanost, turizam, politika, književnost) iz perspektive modifikacije intenziteta. Analize su pokazale da je verbalna agresija povezana s modifikacijom intenziteta u jeziku. Kod nenasilne komunikacije modifikatori koji jačaju intenzitet prisutni su samo onda kad postoje realna potreba i mogućnost da se pojača argument. Inače se više upotrebljavaju modifikatori za slabljenje argumenta koji uspostavljaju neku racionalnu distancu prema sadržaju i primatelju poruke. Kompetencija nenasilne komunikacije sa specifičnom upotrebom modifikacije intenziteta može biti uključena u jezičnu nastavu kao jedan od najvažnijih interkulturnih ciljeva.

Iako je deficit pažnje/hiperaktivni poremećaj (ADHD) najčešći neurorazvojni poremećaj u dječjoj dobi, istraživanja ADHD-a u Republici Hrvatskoj iznimno su rijetka, a posebice se to odnosi na istraživanja u kojima su sudionici sama djeca s ADHD-om. Stoga je opći cilj ovog rada opisati osobno, doživljeno iskustvo svakodnevnog života vezanog uz školovanje osnovnoškolskih dječaka s ADHDom. U istraživanje je uključen namjeran uzorak sudionika, 14 dječaka s ADHD-om kronološke dobi od 8 do 11 godina, koji su uključeni u redovan sustav obrazovanja. Sa svakim su dječakom provedena tri polustrukturirana fenomenološka intervjua. Posebna pažnja u ovom istraživanju posvećena je metodološkom pristupu usmjerenom na dijete, prilagođenom djetetovim razvojnim osobinama te sigurnom za dijete. Podaci su obrađeni metodom interpretativne fenomenološke analize (IPA), a iskustvo školovanja dječaka s ADHD-om prikazano je kroz dvije teme: (1) Izazovi školovanja s ADHD-om te (2) Podrška u školi: važnost uvažavanja, senzibiliziranosti i odnosa. Istraživanje je pokazalo da dječaci s ADHD-om prepoznaju svoje izazove vezane uz školovanje, a njihove teškoće najviše dolaze do izražaja u obrazovnim aktivnostima koje od njih zahtijevaju usmjeravanje i održavanje pozornosti, organiziranost, ustrajnost, fleksibilnu pažnju i radno pamćenje. Posljedično se suočavaju s iskustvom školskog neuspjeha, frustracije te sniženog samopouzdanja kad su posrijedi njihove sposobnosti. Dječaci prepoznaju podršku koju u školi dobivaju od učiteljice i pomoćnice u nastavi, ali i ograničenja koja doživljavaju radi nerazumijevanja, manjka senzibiliziranosti za njihovu neurorazličitost te neprimjenjivanja IOOP-a. Dječaci vrlo jasno opisuju koje prilagodbe bi im olakšale iskustvo školovanja. Rezultati ovog istraživanja upozoravaju da su djeca s ADHD-om u posebnom psihosocijalnom riziku, dok je u smislu participativnih prava djece, njihova iskustva potrebno uvažiti kao ravnopravnih dionika obrazovnih politika. ; Although attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders observed in childhood, ADHD research in Croatia, especially studies involving children, are extremely rare. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to describe the personal everyday school life experiences of boys with ADHD who were studying in elementary schools. This study included a purposive sample of 14 boys with ADHD aged 8 to 11 years who attended mainstream elementary schools. Three semi-structured phenomenological interviews were conducted with each boy. Special attention was given to ensure that the methodological approach used in this study was child-centred, child-friendly, and child-safe. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyse the data. Data collected on the school experiences of the boys with ADHD are presented via two themes: (1) challenges of schooling with ADHD, and (2) support at school: the importance of recognition, sensitivity, and relationships. This study demonstrates that boys with ADHD can recognize the challenges associated with their schooling and find it very difficult to take part in school activities that require directing and maintaining attention, organization, perseverance, flexible attention, and working memory. Consequently, the boys reported that they experience failure, frustration, and reduced self-confidence in their own abilities. Boys participating in this study were able to recognize the support received at school from their teachers and teaching assistants, as well as the obstacles that occurred due to misunderstandings, lack of sensitivity to their neurodiversity, and failure to apply the Individualised Education Program. The boys also provided clear descriptions of the adjustments necessary to make their school experience easier. The results of this study illustrate that children with ADHD face specific psycho-social risks, followed by recommendation that their experiences should be considered during the development of educational policies, given their participatory rights and their role as equal stakeholders.

We are witnesses to the increasing spreading of knowledge in all fields of scholarship and life itself. This has placed a burden on education at all levels. It has created a gap between possibilities and aspirations, which has in turn resulted in dysfunctional knowledge and dissatisfaction of pupils, teachers and parents. The objective of the Croatian National Education Standard (CNES) is to resolve these problems. The CNES is a comprehensive approach to the educational process and encompasses the objectives of education and learning, educational content, proposed instruction methods, expected outcomes of teaching, instruction and the teaching environment. The overall objective here is to educate and prepare younger generations for getting their bearings under unpredictable future circumstances, for a knowledge-based economy and society. A large number of experts from the relevant higher educational and scholarly institutions and practicing teachers from throughout Croatia participated in the development of the CNES. The task of the CNES in the field of geography is to disburden pupils and to develop knowledge, skills and habits, and to train and socialize individuals, in compliance with the value system of the European Union. The CNES in geography has been presented, as in all subjects of the natural science group, through lecture topics. The structure of topics is tabular, with 13 parameters that indicate objectives of the CNES. An analysis of the CNES clearly shows that teaching geography is inconceivable without maps, because complex spatial reality cannot be perceived without corresponding knowledge, ability and habits from the field of cartography. The map, with its universal nature (cartographic symbols), is an irreplaceable lecture aid to educate and socialize pupils. Implementation of the CNES commenced in 2005 in an experimental 5% (49) of Croatia's schools. Implementation of CNES requires additional education of geography teachers, which has been conceived by means of seminars in several phases. ; Svjedoci smo sve većeg povećavanja koli-čine znanja u svim područjima znanosti i života. To je opterećivalo naše obrazovanje na svim stupnjevima. Nastao je raskorak između mogućnosti i htijenja, što je rezultiralo nefunkcionalnim znanjima i nezadovoljstvom kako učenika, tako učitelja i roditelja. Te probleme trebao bi razriješiti Hrvatski nacionalni obrazovni standard - HNOS. Hrvatski nacionalni obrazovni standard je cjeloviti pristup obrazovnom procesu i uključuje ciljeve odgoja i obrazovanja, odgojno-obrazovne sadržaje, prijedloge metoda poučavanja, očekivane ishode učenja i poučavanja te nastavno okružje. Sve je to u cilju obrazovanja i pripreme mladih naraštaja za snalaženje u nepredvidivim budućim okolnostima, za gospodarstvo i društvo temeljeno na znanju. Na izradi HNOS-a radio je velik broj stručnjaka iz relevantnih visokoškolskih ustanova i znanstvenih institucija, učitelja praktičara iz cijele Hrvatske. Zadaća je HNOS-a rasterećenje učenika i razvijanje znanja, vještina i navika te odgoj i socijalizacija pojedinca, u skladu s vrijednosnim sustavom EU. HNOS iz geografije prezentiran je, kao i u svim nastavnim predmetima prirodne skupine, kroz nastavne teme. Ustrojstvo tema je tabelarno, s 13 odrednica koje upućuju na ciljeve HNOS-a. Analizom HNOS-a razvidno je da je nastava geografije nezamisliva bez geografske karte jer je složenu prostornu stvarnost nemoguće spoznati bez odgovarajućih znanja, sposobnosti i navika iz područja kartografije. Karta je svojom univerzalnošću (kartografski znakovi) jedinstveno sredstvo za odgoj i socijalizaciju učenika. HNOS se počeo provoditi u 2005. godini u oko 5% (49) hrvatskih škola. Za provedbu HNOS-a potrebna je dodatna edukacija učitelja geografije, a ona je osmišljena putem seminara u nekoliko faza.Ključne riječi

U radu se analizira kakav su utjecaj imale promijenjene političke prilike na rad zadarskih srednjih škola na hrvatskom jeziku. Završetkom Prvoga svjetskog rata 1918. godine nije došlo do smirivanja političke situacije na hrvatskoj strani Jadrana. Talijanska je vojska od 4. studenoga 1918. postupno okupirala sjevernu i dio srednje Dalmacije. Pri tome su se vršili institucionalni i izvaninstitucionalni pritisci na rad hrvatskih škola. Nameće se talijanizacija javnog i službenog komuniciranja, a okupirani dijelovi Dalmacije odvajaju se od zaleđa. U takvim okolnostima dolazi do otežana funkcioniranja školskog sustava jer jedan dio hrvatskih i srpskih nastavnika napušta Zadar, a na njihovo mjesto dolaze talijanski nastavnici. Povremeno dolazi do prekida nastavnog procesa, što je bila uzrokovano fizičkim napadima i zauzimanjem školskih prostora od strane talijanske vojske. Sklapanje Rapallskog ugovora iz studenog 1920. zapečatilo je sudbinu dotadašnjih hrvatskih školskih institucija koje prestaju s radom krajem školske godine 1920./1921. ; In this paper an analysis is made of the influence of the changed political situation on the workings of secondary schools in Zadar in which the language of instruction was Croatian. At the end of the World War I in 1918, the political situation on the Croatian side of the Adriatic had not calmed down. From November 4th, 1918, the Italian army progressively occupied northern Dalmatia and a part of central, while at the same time putting both institutional and non-institutional pressure on the operations of Croatian schools. Italian public and official communication are imposed, and the occupied areas of Dalmatia are kept separate from the hinterland. In such circumstances, the functioning of the school system is made more difficult, as a portion of Croatian and Serbian teachers leave Zadar, and Italian teachers take their place. Occasionally the teaching process is disturbed due to physical attacks and the occupation of the school space by the Italian army. With the signing of the Treaty of Rapallo from November of 1920, the fate of previous Croatian scholastic institutions is sealed, and they cease operations at the end of the 1920/1921 school year.

Visoko obrazovanje važan je segment pripreme za tržište rada svih studenata koji upisujući pojedini fakultet žele steći potrebnu edukaciju za rad u odabranom području. Zemlje Europske Unije, pa tako i Hrvatska, ulažu u razvoj visokog obrazovanja kroz različite operativne programe koji pridonose dostupnosti obrazovanja za sve kategorije građana. Otvorenost visokog obrazovanja svakom članu društva temelj je inkluzivne obrazovne politike Europske Unije. Obrazovne politike postaju područje interesa cijele europske zajednice jer se društvo znanja vidi kao temelj gospodarske konkurentnosti Europe na globalnom tržištu. Cilj je rada ispitati kako stručnjaci koji rade u službama podrške za studente s invaliditetom doživljavaju poštovanje prava na visoko obrazovanje studenata s invaliditetom na Sveučilištu u Zagrebu. Riječ je o kvalitativnom istraživanju provedenom u 2019. godini putem polustrukturiranih intervjua, dok su podaci obrađeni primjenom tematske analize. U istraživanju je sudjelovalo 10 stručnjaka koji rade u službama podrške za studente s invaliditetom na Sveučilištu u Zagrebu. Rezultati ukazuju na pozitivne primjere poštovanja prava na visoko obrazovanje, ali identificiraju i postojeće slabe točke koje je potrebno unaprijediti u skladu sa suvremenim postavkama inkluzivnog europskog društva. Promjene u budućnosti potrebne su u područjima standardizacije asistencije i prijevoza, prilagodbe infrastrukture, redovite edukacije nastavnog osoblja, senzibilizacije studenata te u razvoju ljudskih resursa u uredima za studente s invaliditetom. ; Higher education plays a pivotal role in preparing students for the labour market by providing education at the university level required for work in the chosen field. The EU member states, including Croatia, invest in higher education through different operational programmes to increase access to education for all citizens. Equal access to higher education for all is at the core of EU education policies for inclusion. Moreover, the education policy importance rises on the European agenda as the concept of knowledge society becomes central to European competitiveness on the global market. This paper aimed to examine how professionals employed by support services for students with disabilities perceive the respect of the right to higher education for students with disabilities at the University of Zagreb. The paper is based on qualitative research from 2019, which involved semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis of data. The research included 10 professionals employed by the support services for students with disabilities at the University of Zagreb. Although the results indicated certain good practice examples of respecting the right to higher education, they also pointed out the challenges that ought to be addressed in line with contemporary inclusive practices in Europe. In the future, improvements are recommended in the following areas: standardising assistance and transportation, adapting infrastructure, continuing training of the teaching staff, raising student awareness and human resource development at the Office for Students with Disabilities.

The paper reports partial findings of a research project into Croatian ethnonationalism (Croatian: narodnjastvo) as a religion (in the sense of a human invention of the sacred). The practical problems are as follows: ethnonationalism as a religion, which implies inter alia that an ethnic community (Croatian: narod) has the potential and/or capability to develop into, and ought to become, the substratum of a (nation-)state; consequences of ethnonationalism, which include the unattainability of ethnic democracy, ethnic economy and ethnic maturity; conditions of Croatian ethnonationalism, primarily the Catholic Church as a condition in 1961-71, and also before and after the period, especially since 1990. Theoretical problems, i.e. inadequacies in scholarly knowledge of the practical problems, include the following: firstly, Croatian Constitutional Court jurisprudence on ethnic and religious communities; secondly, systematic history of law and state in Croatia and Yugoslavia 1945-90; thirdly, transformation of both communism and catholicism into ethnonationalism; fourthly and fifthly, social structure and representation/agency. To attain the general goal of the research project, which is the use of reason in public affairs, the research is carried out within the theoretical and methodological framework of an integral theory of law and state which includes a modified Lasswell and McDougal's policy analysis expanded by historical institutionalism and critical theory. The subject-matter are the following features of Catholicism as an institutionalized religion, especially in Croatia 1961-71: (1) law, i.e. (1.1) sources of law; (1.2) internal law (organs, members, means); (1.3) external law (relations with the state and non-Catholics); (2) the Church and economy; (3) the Church and nation; (4) Catholicism on theory and practice. The hypotheses (which are ideal-types and as such cannot be either verified or falsified conclusively) are that ethnonationalism in Croatia is a consequence of, inter alia, the following beliefs maintained by the Catholic Church in Croatia in the 1960s and to a significant degree later on: 1. the only acceptable relationship between the Church and the state is the partnership of two legally equal public orders over the same subjects within which the Church has the exclusive power to regulate matrimonial and other family relations, and the power to control education in public schools; 2. peasant family is the basic organic human community; 3. the subjects to the ecclesiastical -- originally feudal -- power tied in fact to land make the ethnic community (Croatian: narod), which is united with the clergy into the Christian community (Croatian: krscanski narod); 4. since fundamental truths are accessible by theology only, and practice is an application of theory, practical knowledge, especially on the appropriate relationship between the Church and the state, is valid only if in accord with Church teaching. The evidence presented in the paper supports to a significant degree the hypotheses. The research findings contribute to the solution of all the theoretical problems, providing major contributions to the second and the third: the most probable reason why the Catholic Church in Croatia was rather silent in the Yugoslav and Croatian Spring 1961-71 and quite vocal since the 1990 is the Croatian Church's allegiance in matters of Church and state more to the First than to the Second Vatican council (which abandoned the Church's "divine" right to be co-sovereign with the state, exposing the "right" as a human invention of the sacred); the Church's ethnonationalism, which facilitates the political partnership of the Church and the state and ensures the dominant position of the clergy within the Church, has coincided with the interest of Yugoslav communists to retain their might and power by a metamorphosis, with the Church's assistance honoured by a concordat, into Croatian ethnonationalists, who, as newly born capitalists, have appropriated the greater part of the former socialist property and continue appropriating the greater part of present public goods. Adapted from the source document.

Promjenom paradigme visokoga obrazovanja (VO) u globalnom kontekstu javna se sveučilišta sve više okreću razvoju internacionalnih aktivnosti. Internacionalizacija može predstavljati komparativnu prednost sveučilišta, koja razvijena kroz specifičnu inovativnu stratešku odrednicu (nišu), može postati osnova sveučilišne politike koja se provodi i implementira u različitim policy arenama. Što je sveučilište inovativnije u izboru i razvijanju ove specifične niše, ono ima veće razvojne mogućnosti te postaje kompetitivnije. Cilj je ovoga doktorskoga rada istražiti utjecaj globalizacije na internacionalizaciju javnih europskih sveučilišta. Pritom se u glavnoj tezi rada tvrdi da se promjenom paradigme visokoga obrazovanja u globalnom kontekstu javna sveučilišta sve više okreću razvoju internacionalnih aktivnosti (npr. Knight, 2008; Teichler, 2009; Kehm, 2003; Van der Wende, 2001) ali pritom odabiru različite specifične strategije (niše) internacionalizacije, dok se u postavljenoj hipotezi kaže da razlike između nacionalnih konteksta i načina na koji države upravljaju financijskom i ekonomskom krizom utječu na razlike u strategijama internacionalizacije pojedinih javnih europskih sveučilišta. Nacionalni kontekst pritom obuhvaća različitosti u tradiciji, kulturi i povijesnoj ulozi države u kojoj sveučilište djeluje, što sve utječe na razlike u nacionalnim strategijama internacionalizacije i strategijama koje u ovom području razvijaju javna sveučilišta. Budući da u literaturi ne postoji opće prihvaćena definicija globalizacije, internacionalizacije i europeizacije u području visokoga obrazovanja, niti suglasje o njihovom međusobnom odnosu te indikatorima koji ih determiniraju, provođenju komparativne analize triju studija slučaja u svrhu istraživanja utjecaja globalizacije na internacionalizaciju javnih europskih sveučilišta u ovom je doktorskom radu prethodilo empirijsko istraživanje putem delfi metode među stručnjacima širom svijeta. Minimalne definicije triju pojmova i indikatori globalizacije i internacionalizacije u području VO-a, dobiveni empirijskim istraživanjem provedenim putem delfi metode na temelju konsenzusa među ekspertima, poslužili su kao osnova komparativne analize triju studija slučaja (tri sveučilišta – Beč, Lausanne, Granada; u trima državama – Austrija, Švicarska, Španjolska), koja je provedena na temelju istraživačkog modela posebno osmišljenog za potrebe ovoga doktorskoga rada. Na temelju uvida dobivenih komparacijom triju studija slučaja u radu je utvrđen utjecaj globalizacije na internacionalizaciju javnih europskih sveučilišta, čime je potvrđena glavna teza ovoga doktorskoga rada. Također, analizom je utvrđeno i da su različiti nacionalni sustavi VO-a i specifične VO institucije na različit način odgovorili na promjene nastale djelovanjem faktora s globalne i međunarodne razine, koje se vezuju uz zadnji val globalizacije. Sukladno tome, moguće je reći i da su različitosti u prilagodbi ovim promjenama utjecale i na različitost sveučilišnih politika internacionalizacije te na različitost strateških dokumenata koje su u ovom području razvila tri analizirana sveučilišta. S obzirom na činjenicu da se nacionalni kontekst u hipotezi vezivao uz različitosti u tradiciji, kulturi i povijesnoj ulozi države, zbog čega je u analizi trebalo provjeriti je li moguće utvrditi poveznice između specifičnih strateških odrednica (niša) internacionalizacije u ovom području na Sveučilištu u Beču s tradicijom i politikom Austro-Ugarske Monarhije, na Sveučilištu u Lausanni s politikom neutralnosti, a na Sveučilištu u Granadi sa španjolskom kolonijalnom politikom prema Sjevernoj Africi, na temelju analize ovakva izravna poveznica u službenim dokumentima nije utvrđena. Ipak, kroz intervjue i boravak u trima sveučilišnim sredinama, utvrđeno je da je specifične strateške odrednice internacionalizacije moguće vezivati uz pojedine karakteristike koje se mogu smatrati povijesnim, kulturalnim i tradicijskim 'ostacima' ili tekovinama spomenutih koncepata, koji su danas, pretvoreni u nova, suvremena obilježja, ipak prisutni u samoj srži triju sveučilišta. Zaključno, kroz uvide dobivene komparativnim istraživanjem putem istraživačkog modela utvrđen je utjecaj financijske i ekonomske krize na sveučilišta u Španjolskoj, što je onda bilo moguće povezati i s provedbom sveučilišne politike u području internacionalizacije te aktivnostima i inicijativama Sveučilišta u Granadi u okviru strategije internacionalizacije, što se posebno očituje kroz izrazitu okrenutost programima za koje postoji osigurano financiranje na EU razini (npr. Erasmus+ program). Suprotno tome, uvidima nije utvrđeno postojanje utjecaja financijske i ekonomske krize na strategije internacionalizacije Sveučilišta u Beču i Sveučilišta u Lausanni te na njihovo djelovanje u ovom području. ; Although according to the opinion of many researchers universities have been among the most globalised institutions (Marginson and Considine, 2000: 8) historically, in last decades universities have had to adapt to many changes under the pressure of the last wave of globalisation (e.g. increased competitiveness, high importance of rankings, new forms of international activities, use of new communication technologies in teaching and learning, etc.). The processes that universities use to adapt to the pressure of globalisation tend to include: new strategic determinants and policies, new organisational and governance models in order to achieve greater competitiveness and better rankings results, the search for alternative and additional sources of financing due to the decrease in public funding allocation, the development of new concepts and activities with an international dimension, the establishment of new partnerships, the development of various models for international collaboration, etc. (for example, see publications by Frølich, Gornitzka, Kehm, Knight, Maassen, Neave, Stensaker, Teichler, Van der Wende, etc.). The aim of this PhD thesis is to explore the impact of globalisation on the internationalisation of European public universities. This primarily includes verifying the main thesis that by changing the paradigm of higher education (HE) in the global context, public universities are increasingly turning to the development of international activities (eg. Knight, 2008; Teichler, 2009; Kehm, 2003; Van der Wende, 2001), but they choose different internationalisation strategies. Internationalisation can be a comparative advantage of the university which, developed through specific innovative strategic orientation (niche), becomes the framework for the official university policy implemented in different political arenas and communicated to stakeholders at all levels. This niche can be based on tradition, culture and the historical role of the state in which the university operates. More the university becomes innovative in the selection and development of this niche, it gets better development opportunities and it can achieve greater global competitiveness. Therefore, this project is secondly oriented on verifying the hypothesis that differences between national contexts xi (tradition, culture and historical role of the state) and the ways in which countries manage the economic and financial crisis, affect the different selection of internationalisation strategies of European public universities. Since scientific understanding of internationalisation have changed over time, this term is today widely understood as a broad umbrella term that covers many dimensions, components, approaches and activities (de Wit and Hunter, 2015: 45). However, in the literature there is no specific answer what is exactly globalisation in HE, what are the pressures of globalisation in HE field, what do we mean by the internationalisation of universities and where and how does Europeanisation fit in. Literature has offered various definitions of these three terms and their mutual relations (for example, see publications by Altbach, de Wit, Knight, Marginson, Rhodes, Robertson, Scott, Stromquist, Sawir, Teichler, Van der Wende), and the researchers in the field of HE adopted various approaches to its operationalisation (see Knight, 2008; Teichler, 2004, 2009; Marginson i Van der Wende, 2007; de Wit, 2010, etc.) Although this PhD project is dealing with the impact of globalisation on the internationalisation of European public universities, a theoretical concept of Europeanisation is also included in the theoretical framework. The Bologna process, which highly promotes internationalisation policies and efforts, as well as other European initiatives in HE, some researchers consider to be linked with the Europeanisation in HE and therefore all three terms are analysed and discussed in this project. There are two gaps in literature that this PhD project addresses: the problem with the lack of generally accepted definitions of globalisation, internationalisation and Europeanisation and their mutual relations in HE, as well as their indicators; and the lack of projects which use analysis of the role of the context in HE field in order to explore differences between individual national (and subnational) policies. This PhD thesis had three main objectives: (1) to explore the impact of globalisation on the internationalisation of European public universities; (2) to analyse the factors that determine and redefine the characteristics of internationalisation of universities and factors that indicate the degree of policy change in strategies of HE institutions and national HE policies; (3) to explore the differences in national contexts and ways in which countries 'filter' globalisation pressures and the impact of financial and economic crisis, which affects the characteristics of national HE policies and university strategies in the field of internationalisation. In order to fulfil these goals, triangulation of literature review and empirical research was used. Therefore, in this PhD project, two empirical researches were conducted: a Delphi method research and a comparison of three case studies.

Baski, manjinski narod sa svojim zasebnim jezikom i kulturom, stoljećima je podijeljen između Španjolske i Francuske. U Francuskoj Baski nemaju status manjine ni institucionalnu autonomiju. U Španjolskoj, međutim, nakon teškog razdoblja Francove diktature i preustrojstva Španjolske 1978. na kvazifederalnom načelu, španjolski Baski dobivaju priznanje nacionalne posebnosti te znatnu institucionalnu autonomiju kroz tzv. Autonomnu zajednicu (AZ) Baskiju. Unatoč zadovoljavanju većine aspiracija Baska u Španjolskoj, u španjolskoj Baskiji i dalje je prisutan secesionizam, dok taj fenomen u francuskom dijelu Baskije gotovo da i ne postoji. Cilj disertacije bio je, binarnom studijom i dizajnom najsličnijih slučajeva, koristeći se kvalitativno-kvantitativnom metodom, istražiti je li autonomija, umjesto zadovoljavanja španjolskih Baska statusom u okviru Španjolske, pridonijela jačanju njihova nacionalizma i secesionizma. Ovi fenomeni obrađeni su kroz tri prizme: izgradnju subdržavnih institucija, izgradnju subdržavnih identiteta i izgradnju lokalnih elita. Uočeno je da je autonomija u španjolskoj Baskiji pridonijela izgradnji protodržave, od demokratski izabranog Parlamenta, preko izvršne vlasti, do djelomično izgrađenog sigurnosnog aparata. Iako usporen rascjepima u baskijskom društvu uslijed demografske heterogenosti, na djelu je proces izgradnje subdržavne baskijske nacije. Autonomija je omogućila i izgradnju lokalnih elita, dolazak baskijskih nacionalista na vlast, kao i stranačko nadmetanje u baskijskom nacionalizmu. Sve to omogućilo je i da AZ Baskija krene izrazito "baskijskim" smjerom. Ona je potencijalno samo korak do pune neovisnosti, kojoj nedostaje još "prozor mogućnosti", koji se dogodio npr. raspadom bivših komunističkih federacija. U francuskoj Baskiji ne postoji teritorijalna, odnosno institucionalna autonomija. Ne dajući im "prozor mogućnosti" za razvoj i jačanje, građanska i unitarna država u Francuskoj odigrale su značajnu ulogu u ublažavanju baskijskog nacionalizma i secesionizma. Slučajevi španjolske i francuske Baskije pokazali su kako (ne)postojanje autonomije znatno utječe na periferni nacionalizam i secesionizam, kao i na potencijal za secesiju. ; In the last couple of years, the rise of secessionism in several democratic, Western European countries - from the United Kingdom (Scotland) and Belgium (Flanders) to Spain (Catalonia and the Basque Country) has been noted. All of them have something in common. In addition to having a heterogeneous ethnic structure, that is, the existence of distinct historical ethnic communities, all of these states have also, in the last couple of decades, gone through dramatic administrative and structural changes. From unitary states they had once been, they have transformed in a way which resulted in the introduction of either a certain degree of devolution or even in federalization. Consequently, historical ethnic communities have achieved a certain degree of autonomy, ranging from a partial and asymmetric decentralization ("devolution") as in the case of Scotland, to an extensive autonomy of the so-called autonomous communities of Spain. The intention of the central state and the legislator has been, inter alia, to safeguard the state unity and strengthen the state by accommodating the grievances of ethnic communities and their elites. The final outcome, however, has often been adverse to initial intentions. In the newly formed administrative units, "proto-states" of the ethnic minorities, there has been a rise in nationalism and secessionism. The purpose of this dissertation is to tackle this phenomenon and explore the causal relationship of autonomy and nationalism/secessionism. That is, the idea whether the autonomy itself strengthened nationalism and secessionism in the autonomous territories, thus acting as "subversive institutions" towards the central State, has been examined. In order to test the hypothesis and the arguments of the theory of subversive institutions, a dual comparison of two cases, Spanish and French Basque Country, and the most similar systems design have been used. The most similar systems design holds that the two cases share many common features and differ in only one. For instance, French and Spanish Basque Country are situated in the same region, share common language and ethnic origins; they are both parts of wider nation-states, face situation of diglossia etc. A differing feature, in this case, autonomy in the Spanish Basque Country – Autonomous Community of the Basque Country –Euskadi, is held responsible for the different outcome (stronger peripheral nationalism and secessionism). The choice of these two cases has been prompted by the fact that they may be considered the most similar cases in extremis, given that it is the same people on the two sides of the state border.The Basques, minority group with their own language and culture, for centuries have been divided among Spain and France. In France of today the Basques enjoy neither status of a national minority nor an institutional autonomy. In Spain, however, after a difficult period of Franco's dictatorship and the country's restructuring in 1978 on a quasi-federal principle, the Spanish Basques got acknowledgement of their national uniqueness (through a status of a nationality), and the Basque Country gained a significant institutional autonomy through so-called Autonomous Community of the Basque Country. In spite of the accommodation of most of the Spanish Basques' grievances, both on a tangible level (economic, political and cultural) and on a symbolic level (national and state symbols), the Spanish Basque Country still faces secessionism, while that phenomenon is hardly visible in its French counterpart. The dissertation explores whether the autonomy, instead of accommodating the Spanish Basques in the framework of the Spanish State, has contributed to the growth of their nationalism and secessionism. Conversely, the dissertation explores also whether the French civic state has contributed to attenuation of the peripheral, in this case, Basque nationalism. In France there are no "autonomic" institutions, but as a result of political and societal changes in France and external pressure from the South, i.e. from the Spanish Basque Country (spill over effect or Galton's problem), a "new governance" with specially designed institutions has been developed to partially accommodate the Basque grievances. Deprived of any substantial competences, executive or financial, they are a pale shadow of their Spanish counterparts. However, precisely for that, they serve as a good example to make comparative research in order to show the immense difference the autonomy per se can make. The research relies on the Valerie Bunce' s theory of "subversive institutions", which she tested on the cases of the former communist federations Soviet Union (USSR), Czechoslovakia (CSFR) and Yugoslavia (SFRY). Valerie Bunce (1999), explaining the collapse of former communist federations USSR, CSFR and SFRY, put forward a thesis that their design created preconditions for creating states within state. Consequently, the structure itself brought about the collapse of the communist bloc, and within it, of the federations USSR, CSFR and SFRY. Therefore, Bunce holds that the federalism created nations at the republican level or, if they had already been "defined", the federalism strengthened them. In other words, federal structure where the autonomous/federal units enjoyed relatively wide autonomy, in the long term acted centrifugally and finally led to the collapse of states (federations). With the advent of Gorbatchev and perestroika, consequent abandoning of the Brezhnev doctrine, and array of events that brought upon the collapse of communism and of federations, federal units – new "nations-in-the-making", took advantage of the situation ("window of opportunity") and proclaimed their independence.Bunce's theory and arguments have been applied on the situation in Spain. In the second case of the French Basque Country, and especially in the following comparative analysis, the situation in Spain can be/ is compared with the situation in France. It is thus possible to test the hypothesis on subversive institutions and to note the differences produced by the existence of autonomy in Spain. Bunce's theory has been tested on Spain (Spanish Basque Country) particularly for its quasi-federal structure of so-called autonomous communities (comunidades autónomas), or in Spanish jargon, Autonomías. Spanish autonomías provide a certain framework of a proto-state, nation-state, "state-in-waiting", and strengthen the centrifugal forces and local nationalism in a way, maybe to a lesser extent, but similarly as former republics of the ex-socialist federations. There comes the idea to test the theory of subversive institutions on Spain, i.e. Spanish Basque Country. In the introductory chapters of the dissertation, the phenomena of identity and nationalism have been tackled, followed by the theory of subversive institutions, as well as other supportive theories of the official nationalism (Anderson, 1990), path dependency (Krasner, 1984) and logic of appropriateness (March and Olsen, 2009). Finally, the three main arguments of the theory of subversive institutions have been elaborated, as well as the fourth, "counter argument". The two case studies follow, of the Spanish and the French Basque Country, structured in the same or very similar way. Firstly, the phenomenon of the Basque identity, its formation and its specifics for each of the two cases, has been elaborated. Secondly, the relation of the State towards the Basques and their identity has been examined in more depth. Within that framework, process of state building and other "counter-subversive action" of the state, with the aim of diminishing the peripheral nationalism and secessionism, has been tackled. Separate chapters have been dedicated to the transition to autonomy in the Spanish Basque Country (and to the Spanish Estado de las Autonomías /State of Autonomies) Bunce's theory and arguments have been applied on the situation in Spain. In the second case of the French Basque Country, and especially in the following comparative analysis, the situation in Spain can be/ is compared with the situation in France. It is thus possible to test the hypothesis on subversive institutions and to note the differences produced by the existence of autonomy in Spain. Bunce's theory has been tested on Spain (Spanish Basque Country) particularly for its quasi-federal structure of so-called autonomous communities (comunidades autónomas), or in Spanish jargon, Autonomías. Spanish autonomías provide a certain framework of a proto-state, nation-state, "state-in-waiting", and strengthen the centrifugal forces and local nationalism in a way, maybe to a lesser extent, but similarly as former republics of the ex-socialist federations. There comes the idea to test the theory of subversive institutions on Spain, i.e. Spanish Basque Country. In the introductory chapters of the dissertation, the phenomena of identity and nationalism have been tackled, followed by the theory of subversive institutions, as well as other supportive theories of the official nationalism (Anderson, 1990), path dependency (Krasner, 1984) and logic of appropriateness (March and Olsen, 2009). Finally, the three main arguments of the theory of subversive institutions have been elaborated, as well as the fourth, "counter argument". The two case studies follow, of the Spanish and the French Basque Country, structured in the same or very similar way. Firstly, the phenomenon of the Basque identity, its formation and its specifics for each of the two cases, has been elaborated. Secondly, the relation of the State towards the Basques and their identity has been examined in more depth. Within that framework, process of state building and other "counter-subversive action" of the state, with the aim of diminishing the peripheral nationalism and secessionism, has been tackled. Separate chapters have been dedicated to the transition to autonomy in the Spanish Basque Country (and to the Spanish Estado de las Autonomías /State of Autonomies) after the 1978 Constitution, possess almost the entire state administration. One of the 17 autonomous communities, Autonomous Community of the Basque Country - Euskadi has a clearly defined territory, a democratically elected Parliament (officially called the Basque Parliament), a Government, officially called the Basque Government, ministries (called departamentos, departments, headed by consejeros, counselors), a Prime Minister, Lehendakari, with some prerogatives of a President, including state honours and palace. His office includes a mini Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Acción Exterior – External Action), with its delegations abroad. Thus, the Basque Government can project its image abroad. The autonomous administration has some 60 000 employees, to which one has to add the 30 000 employees of the provincial and communal administration, and disposes of a 10.6 billion € budget. At the same time, the central state administration in the Basque Country counts only 15 000 employees. Euskadi disposes of its own police forces Ertzaintza. As mentioned before, several authors argue that with such a developed administrative apparatus, a "segment-state", in our case the Spanish Autonomous Community of the Basque Country- Euskadi, has been in power for most of the post-1978 Constitution period. Its institutions are consequently able to act as centrifugal ("subversive") institutions, transmitting nationalist messages through media, education system, and regional institutions. But their nationalist message is not of Spanish, but of peripheral, in this case, Basque nationalism. Given the specific, unfavourable linguistic situation of diglossia, and the importance of language for national (and Basque) identity, the Basque Governments took it as a mission to restore to the Basque language a status of a full-fledged official and education language, in a sense of Gellner's "language of high culture" (1998). (Re)Introducing the Basque language, not only in schools and universities, but literary everywhere, rebasquisating Euskadi, a Basque identity has been (re)enforced. Nowadays almost all institutions under the competence of local, autonomous institutions in the Spanish Basque Country are obliged to adopt Action plans or Five-year plans on the language normalization, that is, reinforced use of the Basque language. The Basque Government, in that way projects certain ideology and builds up and strengthens the Basque national identity. A new, Basque nation is being built.The statistics speak for themselves. Before the autonomy, that is, before 1978/1980, education language was 100% Spanish. Nowadays, only a tiny 0.5% of students study exclusively in Spanish (so called Model X), and 15.3% in Model A, with education in Spanish, and Basque language as one of the subjects. 18.9% study in bilingual schools (Model B) and the high 65.3% study in Basque schools (Model D), with Spanish language as one of the subjects. The presence of the Basque language is enforced in other areas as well. For instance, in public administration the targeted percentage of Basque speakers should be 48.46% and it should increase with the rise of knowledge of the Basque language in general population. Moreover, the presence of the Basque language is checked regularly in yearly evaluation reports. In the Parliament, in 2005-2009 legislature, 56% of deputies spoke Basque, while in 2013 the percentage rose to 68,5%. At the University of the Basque Country, in Academic year 1995/1996, 27.2% of the students studied in Basque, while in 2013/2014 the percentage rose to 64.3%. The number of bilingual professors (Basque and Spanish) rose from 35.1% in 2006 to 47.8% in 2013. Similar processes can be followed everywhere.As far as identity is concerned, the 35% of the interviewees in the opinion polls conducted by the University of the Basque Country declare themselves as "only Basques", 21% as "more Basque than Spanish", 35% "equally Basque and Spanish", 3% "more Spanish" and 3% "only Spanish". As it can be noted, Basque identity prevails, with a significant percentage of dual identity. Spanish identity (more or exclusively Spanish) is quite low. Opinion polls also testify of the presence of a strong local (Basque) patriotism, and at the same time, mistrust in Spanish State institutions. For example, 62% of the interviewees show trust in the Basque Government, 61% in the Basque Parliament and Basque police Ertzaintza, while only 39% in the King, 15% in the Spanish Cortes and 11% in the Spanish Government. Trust in the Basque Prime Minister is 56%, while in the Spanish Prime Minister it is only 7%. Regarding the attitude towards secessionism, 35% of interviewees support the present autonomous status, 29% favour federation (which understands a more autonomy), 7% favour more centralization and 25% favour secession. Although the latter percentage alone seems low as to provide proof of secessionism in stricto senso, the sum of the all percentages, except for 7% for centralization, should be taken into consideration if secessionism were to be regarded in a wider sense (as peripheral nationalism; autonomism and secessionism; Horowitz, 1985). From the data above, the conclusion can be drawn that the process of Basque nation-building maybe has not finished yet, but is well under way and that there is a "Basque direction" of the Euskadi. As for the Basque language in the French Basque Country, though it is increasingly present in its schools, public institutions and society, it still does not enjoy an official status. The improvement of linguistic situation is only partially due to the incitement on the part of the authorities. There is an immense difference from Spain. The French state after 1980-s allowed more freedom and space for "regional languages" to be taught, but did not impose it, force it by "dictate", as has been in the case of Euskadi. The main credit for the improvement of status of the Basque language is due to the efforts of the civil society, associations and citizens themselves. The results, comparing the Spanish and the French Basque Country, vary accordingly. Only 36,6% of school children attend some Basque language classes, while in Spanish Basque Country it is 99,5%. There is the Public Office of the Basque Language (OPLB), that helps and promotes teaching Basque language in the French Basque Country, but it has no authority to impose the Basque language in education as the Viceconsejería de Política Lingüística of the Gobierno Vasco and the Gobierno Vasco in the Spanish Basque Country. Only 11% of the interviewees feel "only Basques", 5% "more Basques", 24% "equally Basques and French", 16% "more French and 36% "only French". In the French Basque Country, the French identity and the French language in both education and society prevail. There is no "Basque direction" or Basque nation-building process. The third argument of the theory of subversive institutions is about elites' building. In Euskadi, there is the local (Basque) Parliament, where the Basque nationalists have dominated since the first elections after the establishment of autonomy (1980), with an average of 60% of votes/seats, except for the period 2009-2012 (due to a ban of the Basque radicals before the elections). In the current legislature, 2012-2016, the nationalists (moderate PNV-EAJ and radical EH Bildu) have 48 out of 75 seats. That means that they have been able to impose a "Basque direction", e.g. policies of rebasquization (termed language normalization), or vote the Ibarretxe Plan. There are also numerous examples of party competition in nationalism and local patriotism, e.g. the issue of Basque language use, flag, coat of arms or anthem. In the French Basque Country, due to non-existence of a local Parliament or self-rule, there are no such phenomena. There have been since decades Basque nationalist parties, and they score up to 10% of the votes. Nowadays, there is also a Basque nationalist party, AB (Abertzaleen Batasuna), which is relatively successful at the lower, communal level, having around 100 councillors. However, the non-existence of a Basque administrative unit,département, and centralist French electoral and administrative system, result in a situation where only two Basque nationalist councillors managed to enter the General Council of the Département Pyrénées-Atlantiques, of which French Basque Country is a part. And there they are only two of the 54 councillors. Therefore, even if at the lower, communal level, Basques nationalists can enter the local communes and be part of ruling coalitions, or form associations of local councillors and mayors, they cannot impose a more "Basque direction" of the whole French Basque Country, like their Spanish Basque counterparts. The autonomy, embodied in the Euskadi's Basque parliament, enabled Basque nationalists in the Spanish Basque Country (Autonomous Community of the Basque Country – Euskadi) to come to power at the local level and to direct the (Spanish) Basque Country towards a "Basque direction". In addition, it helped also to build up their own elites – party elites and leaders, Government and Parliament dignitaries, above all the Prime Minister- Lehendakari, local public company managers, University, Academy, institutes' directors etc. If a potential future new country needs the infrastructure (i.e. state administration, the framework), it also needs identity/ideology and leaders (the contents and experts). And here they are! Not only are they in place, but they are in power! Finally, having their own Basque University will help to reproduce new Basque elites. In contrast, the French Basque Country does not possess almost any of the above. Indeed, the difference produced by autonomy is immense. A special attention has been given to the Ibarretxe Plan which represents at the same time a peak of the autonomy, but also shows its limits. Juan Jose Ibarretxe, Euskadi's Prime Minister (Lehendakari) from 1999 to 2009, put forward in 2003 his Proposal for Reform of the Political Statute of Community of Euskadi, popularly known as Ibarretxe Plan. It was actually a proposal for a confederation between the Basque Country and Spain. The relations between them would be based on a "free association"(Art.1). Without going into details of the Proposal, suffice it to say that, had it been enacted, even without a completely independent Basque Country, it would mean the end of Spain as we know it today. The Plan was approved by the Basque Government in 2003, and a year later, by the Basque Parliament, although with a narrow majority of 39 out of 75 votes. However, in order to be enacted, the Proposal should have passed in the Spanish Parliament. It was not surprising that the Spanish Parliament had rejected any discussion about it. Today a Spanish "carte blanche" for an independent Basque Country seems completely unimaginable. Nevertheless, remembering the "velvet divorce" of Czech and Slovak Republics and bearing in mind as well the development of situation in Catalonia, one cannot exclude, under different circumstances and leadership in Madrid and Euskadi, a possibility of a "new Ibarretxe Plan" leading to a "velvet divorce" and eventually to an independent Basque Country. To conclude, the autonomy enabled institutions (Parliament/Argument 1), nurtured Basque identity (Argument 2), enabled Basque nationalists to come to power, created a space for Basque elites and leaders and created space or even incentives for party competition in Basque nationalism (Argument 3). The thing the autonomy has not produced, and that lacks for secessionists, is a "window of opportunity" (Bunce, 1999). But if the "window" opens, as in the case of e.g. Czechoslovak "velvet divorce", an opportunity for a potential sovereign Basque state could be created. The comparative analysis has showed more sharply the differences between the two cases resulting from the existence of the autonomy in the Spanish Basque Country (Autonomous Community of the Basque Country- Euskadi) and its absence in the French Basque Country. While in Euskadi the nationalists have since 1980 scored around 60% of the votes in the Basque Parliament and dominated local politics for most of the time, in the French Pays Basque they never score more than 10% and have always been quite irrelevant at the regional local level (except for the lower local level of municipalities). The Basque identity prevailed in Euskadi and French in the Pays Basque. The Basque nationalists have been able to impose a "Basque direction" and an intensive "basquization" within the language normalization policy in Euskadi, which has not been the case in Pays Basque. Finally, a serious sovereignist/secessionist attemps – Ibarretxe Plan occurred, materialized, and was voted in the Basque Parliament of Euskadi, while in the Pays Basque anything of a kind is beyond imagination. There is no French Basque Government to conceive such a plan, no French Basque Parliament as a forum where such a Plan could be voted and no prevalence of Basque nationalists to vote such a plan…All of these phenomena are direct or indirect results of the autonomy or were allowed and fostered by the autonomic institutions in the Spanish Basque Country. Conversely, they are missing in the French Basque Country due to lack of autonomy. The two cases confirmed the hypothesis that the autonomy in ethno-federal arrangements fosters peripheral nationalism and secessionism and a potential for secession, while civic State attenuates them. Interestingly enough, even the consultative institutions of the French "new governance", initially quite powerless, managed to acquire some of the features of the "subversive institutions". They have become increasingly "Basque" and have taken a "Basque direction". However, the civic, centralised and unitary State prevented these institutions stripped of a real power from taking a lead in the Basque nationalism, to gain any significant power, or to direct the French Basque Country in any "Basque direction". The civic State in France indeed acted in attenuating peripheral, Basque nationalism by not providing it a "window of opportunity" to grow.