Spanish
There are no prerequisites.
The learning will be verified by a written and an oral test which, unless otherwise noted, will be held on two different dates. Students must pass the written test to access the oral test.
The final written test provides a series of exercises of various kinds, for example:
1) phrases to complete, depending on their context, with a verb in the present indicative, chosen between various proposed.
2) Sentences to be completed with articles, prepositions or other words.
3) Questions to be answered with the use of the affirmative or negative imperative and reflexive or objective pronouns.
4) Sentences to be completed with verbs in the past tenses, choosing the right one according to the context.
5) Put the accent on the words that need it.
6) Sentences to be completed with verbs in the present tense or present subjunctive, future or conditional.
7) Phrases to be translated using the verbal periphrasis studied.
8) Reading Comprehension, 5 multiple choice questions.
9) Writing (70-80 words) on one or more topics of the course program.
Total time for taking the exam is 105 minutes. The maximum score is 100, the sufficiency is reached with 60 points and will allow the students to take the oral examination. In case of insufficient score, the student must repeat the written test in the following scheduled exam.
The oral examination consists of a conversation about one of the communicative contents of the course syllabus and in the exposition of a cultural or current subject related to Spain or Latin America, both to be agreed with the teacher in advance. The cultural or current content should preferably be chosen among the e-learning proposals. During the course some lessons will be devoted to the preparation of this exam.
The oral test will evaluate the student's skill to interact in a conversation, using the Spanish language in a communicative context related to familiar topics, personal interests or to everyday life.
The evaluation of the oral exam will not be expressed numerically and in case of success the examination will be "approved." In case of failure the oral examination will be "not approved" and the student will have to repeat it (only the oral part, since admission to the oral exam requires passing the written test).
The course aims to develop the ability to understand and produce written and oral texts at the "usuario intermedio" level, equal to the level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference, as well as the ability to understand and express themselves in a simple way in the context of direct exchange of information on topics of general type.
The learning outcomes will be:
- Acquisition of the main morpho-syntactic structures of the Spanish language at an intermediate level (Threshold).
- Ability to read and comprehend the main ideas of a text written in standard Spanish.
- Ability to speak and to produce simple coherent texts on topics which are familiar or of personal interest.
- Ability to describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes and ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.
- Definite and indefinite article; adjectives and pronouns: demonstrative, possessive, indefinite; simple and articulated prepositions, spatial references and adverbs of place; subject, reflexive and object pronouns; interrogative pronouns and adverbs; quantifiers “muy and mucho”; comparative and superlative adjective and adverbs; accentuation rules.
- Conjugation of verbs: affirmative and negative imperative and present tense, imperfect, simple past, present perfect, past perfect and future, conditional and present subjunctive.
- Verbal periphrasis with infinitive, with gerund and with past participle.
- Greetings and presentations, exchange of personal information.
- Description of yourself and others, talk about family, work, university, the place we live in, personal interests and free time.
- Ways of expressing tastes, physical sensations, preferences and opinions.
- Propose activities and respond to a proposal, ask for and offer help or favors.
- Talk about daily routine, actions that are happening or developing now, expressions of obligation, frequency expressions, talk about projects and plans for the future.
- Talk about changes.
Students should demonstrate a thorough knowledge of the course materials made available on the e-learning platform.
Course textbook (adopted in class):
• Cuadernos de gramática española, A1/B1, Editorial Difusión, ISBN 978-84-8443-858-8
As a support for individual studying it’s advisable to use the following text:
• Via Rápida. Curso intensivo de español, Libro del alumno + Cuaderno de ejercicios, ed. Difusión.
The learning objectives will mainly be reached by frontal lessons (56 hours), that will be predominantly dedicated to explain grammar and to practice exercises that are taken from exams given in the past years. All the explanations and exercises will be available on the e-learning platform. Attendance is not required, but it’s highly recommended.