Spanish

‘Spanish in the Lower Sixth builds on the foundations laid at GCSE. Familiar topics form the basis of the first parts of the language course, but a lot of new vocabulary is added’.

Course Overview

As the language course progresses, more advanced structures are introduced, and these require a sound understanding of the more basic structures if they are to be effectively added to your linguistic armoury. By the end of the first term, you should find yourself beginning to cope successfully with understanding and communicating in genuinely advanced Spanish. By the end of the two-year course to A Level, our best students achieve nearnative fluency in a wide variety of topics and situations.

Work will be done mainly in Spanish. Your teachers will speak to you in Spanish for the great majority of the time and you will be expected to conduct yourself, even for the most routine issues, in Spanish. You will be expected to undertake a good deal of independent work as well as the work set.

A lot of the language work is based upon the reading of a variety of texts and listening to recorded authentic material, often from internet sources. All you do will improve your ability to communicate in speech and in writing, develop your ability to construct a convincing argument and use evidence appropriately, and as you do so, you will also gain confidence in defending your arguments against those of others. All these skills are needed when performing successfully at an advanced level.

The department offers students the opportunity to travel to Salamanca during February half-term. The week-long trip involves staying with families (normally in pairs) and attending daily culture and language classes at a local language school (4 hours/day). Although this is not a compulsory trip, it is highly recommended as it helps greatly with fluency, comprehension skills, confidence and gives a real insight into Spanish life and culture.

Skills Required

You should aim to begin the course with a firm knowledge of the major verb tenses and forms for both regular and irregular verbs. A working knowledge of the bulk of GCSE vocabulary will also be assumed.

Methods of Assessment

The two main areas of study during the Spanish A Level are; social issues and trends and political, intellectual and artistic culture.

Paper 1 Listening, Reading & Writing

Students will have to respond (in Spanish) to passages from a range of contexts and sources as well as translate a short text into English.

Paper 2 Writing

Students will answer an essay question in Spanish about the film and book studied studied in lessons, as well as translate some sentences into Spanish.

Paper 3 Speaking

Students will have a 20 minute speaking assessment, where they will have a discussion around one of the themes studied in class and also present and discuss their own research project.