Formal education, organised leisure, and informal discourse in Basque : improving the linguistic proficiency of new speakers and fostering motivation and attachment to the language

 This article examines the impact of educational interventions on the development of informal discourse in Basque, a minority language in northern Spain and southern France. It explores how structured leisure, games, and recreational activities, both inside and outside the classroom, can serve as effective pedagogical tools and foster motivation and language attachment. Using a quantitative methodology, the study included fifth-grade primary school students from the Basque Autonomous Community (Bizkaia, Álava, and Gipuzkoa) and the Autonomous Community of Navarre (n = 208).