For generations, in a small village, everyone was required to learn how to draw maps of a continent that no longer existed. No one had ever seen this vanished land, yet the practice was upheld with near-religious devotion. “Knowledge is in the map”, the teachers preached. To question the ritual was to risk being labeled mad. And so, generations were raised to navigate a world that was already gone.
This story is a mirror of the Spanish education system: rigid, outdated, and oblivious to the world it claims to prepare students for. Students are still forced into one-size-fits-all molds, regardless of their unique talents or pace. Education, instead of liberating, has become coercive. Meanwhile, there are more effective, personalized, and accessible alternatives available. Yet we keep repeating the same obsolete patterns. The question is no longer what are we teaching, but why are we still teaching this way?
My thesis is clear: we must guarantee complete freedom in education, and the State must step back from interference.
Diagnosis of the Current System
The Spanish education system is a relic of another era. Designed in the 19th century, it still echoes the logic of the industrial revolution: rigid hierarchical structures, standardized curricula, and centralized authority. While society has evolved, the classroom still functions like a factory of obedience, built not to nurture creativity or individuality, but to produce compliance. In a world that demands adaptability and innovation, we’re still educating for obedience.
The Ministry of Education alongside other regional governments dictates what millions of students must learn, how they must learn it, and how they’ll be assessed. This top-down planning reflects what Friedrich Hayek called “the fatal conceit” of the State—the belief that central authority can determine what’s best for all, while ignoring the richness of individual differences. In education, this conceit stifles potential rather than cultivating it.
Although the system presents itself as diversified with general, special, and adult education, they all fall under the same bureaucratic umbrella. Even private schools are bound to state-imposed curricula and regulations, leaving little room for genuine and true pedagogical freedom. The illusion of choice masks a rigid uniformity.
Public education, though funded by taxes, is far from free. It conceals a form of coercive taxation: everyone pays, even those who don’t use the service or disagree with its values. Semi-private (concertado) schools face restrictions, and private ones are heavily regulated, which stifles innovation and diversity. From kindergarten through compulsory secondary education (ESO), the system remains rigid and uniform. At 16, students are presented with a supposed choice between academic and vocational tracks. Yet access to university hinges on a standardized test (EVAU) that measures not merit, but conformity to academic norms. Meanwhile, vocational education, though practical in nature, is similarly shaped by state directives.
Even universities, once heralded as bastions of free thought, have fallen under bureaucratic and political control. Public institutions, while significantly more affordable, are far from free. Their programs must adhere to official standards and, increasingly, ideological mandates. Rather than fostering intellectual freedom, many have become little more than political outposts.
Methodologically, the system is also outdated. It prioritizes rote memorization over deep understanding. From the earliest stages, students are evaluated on their ability to regurgitate information rather than think critically. In an age of instant digital access, this model is not only obsolete, it is counterproductive.
Moreover, this approach lacks emotional engagement. Repetition without understanding fails to inspire genuine interest. In contrast, solving real-world problems fosters creativity, resilience, and critical thinking. Yet the current system is designed to standardize, not to ignite. The system is not only inefficient but morally indefensible. The State imposes a single way of understanding knowledge, stifles pedagogical diversity, and strips families of educational sovereignty. The system is not only inefficient but morally indefensible. The State imposes a single way of understanding knowledge, stifles pedagogical diversity, and strips families of educational sovereignty. When the government controls education, it inevitably influences what individuals are allowed to think and believe. This monopolization of thought undermines intellectual freedom and suppresses dissenting perspectives. Just as freedom of religion or expression requires separation from state control, so too does education. A truly free society must reject the idea that the State can dictate the intellectual formation of its citizens.
Proposals for Reform
A Voucher System
A realistic and just solution is the introduction of school vouchers—redirecting public funding from institutions to families, allowing money to follow the student. In Spain today, access to quality education is too often determined by ZIP code and income. Concertado schools offer some alternatives, but many families are priced out. Admission policies and geographic limits further limit choice.Vouchers would empower all families to select the school—public, private, or semi-private—that best aligns with their needs, values and aspirations.
This isn’t about privilege—it’s about equity. International voucher systems are income-based: the less a family earns, the larger the voucher. This ensures true equality of opportunity. Contrary to critics, vouchers don’t dismantle public education—they compel it to improve. Strong public schools will continue to attract families; those that don’t must adapt. This will result in a dynamic landscape of innovation and accountability, as schools compete to attract families, they will be driven to improve quality and respond to diverse needs. In Spain, where PISA results reveal stark disparities across regions and income levels, vouchers help close the gap. The goal is empowerment, placing students and families at the heart of education.
Morally, it is indefensible that a low-income mother must send her child to a failing school because of her address. With vouchers, all families, regardless of income or background, would access the same opportunities. This is not just economically sound; it is a moral imperative. No child should be trapped by their birthplace.
Vouchers don’t dismantle public education, they modernize it. They don’t threaten social cohesion, they enhance it through diversity. They don’t undermine equality, they make it tangible. This reform brings education into the 21st century with a clear principle: freedom of choice.
Reducing State Power
Since its inception, education in Spain has been dominated by powerful institutions—first the Church, then the State. What began as religious privilege evolved, with the 1812 Constitution and the 1857 Moyano Law, into state monopoly. These reforms laid down the foundation for the rigid administrative structure still in place today.
What seemed like liberation from dogma was just a change of masters. Content, structure, and purpose became state-defined, shaped to serve shifting political agendas. The Second Republic promoted secularism, Franco enforced nationalism, democracy ushered in a cycle of constant policy swings. In just over 40 decades, Spain has enacted six major education laws. This instability reveals a hard truth: education in Spain is driven more by politics than pedagogy. Classrooms have become ideological battlegrounds, with each administration imposing its worldview.
This is unacceptable. Knowledge cannot be centrally planned. As Hayek argued, knowledge is decentralized, dynamic, and rooted in individual experience. The belief that a ministry can dictate what is valid to learn is authoritarian hubris—it crushes diversity, initiative, and innovation. A state monopoly on education stifles freedom of thought. It constrains families, confines teachers, and limits students. Mises and Rothbard were unequivocal: education must be independent of the State, just like religion must be. The human mind must not be directed by political power.
The path to true educational freedom requires a dramatic reduction in the State’s role. While it can still ensure access and fairness in funding, it should never dictate content or method. The State’s involvement should be minimal and non-intrusive. Viable alternatives such as vouchers, school choice, and demand-driven funding allow public funds to flow directly to families, not institutions.This approach fosters diverse educational offerings tailored to various needs and values.
In such a system, education shifts from being a political prize to a tool for personal and collective growth. Diversity replaces imposition, competition overcomes bureaucracy, and liberty triumphs over control.
Towards a free educational system
The history of Spanish education is a history of control, not liberation. If we are to raise free citizens, we must first provide free education. To achieve this, the State must relinquish its hold over education and stop dictating the minds of individuals. No society can be truly free while its education system is captive by political power. It’s time to open the windows, break the mold, and return education to its true purpose: fostering autonomous, critical, and free individuals.
This piece solely expresses the opinion of the author and not necessarily the magazine as a whole. SpeakFreely is committed to facilitating a broad dialogue for liberty, representing a variety of opinions. Support freedom and independent journalism by donating today.
