Through this course students develop and build on the Spanish language competencies acquired at previous levels; students will refine and expand oral and written skills and achieve the capacities for higher degrees of specialisation. It also addresses remaining deficiencies in grammar, syntax, and vocabulary in preparation for the exam at the end of the semester. In addition the course provides time to reflect on, analyse, and discuss aspects of Spanish culture and society in a contemporary context.

For Erasmus students, this corresponds to level C1/C2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

·         To reinforce and improve skills in Spanish syntax, style, and vocabulary

·         To familiarise students with abstract concepts of language and linguistics

·         To enhance analytical skills in written and oral Spanish

·         To improve reading skills and  to reflect on meaning and style

·         To enhance knowledge and understanding of Spanish speaking societies and cultures

·         To enhance oral, aural, and presentation skills

·         To develop transferable skills and the ability to work in small groups

·         To stimulate and encourage independent-learning

·         To build on language skills acquired during the Year Abroad

Teaching, learning, and assessment are designed to enable the student to achieve the learning outcomes described above. The aim of this course is to enable the student to communicate in Spanish at level 6. The students will improve their knowledge of grammar, and vocabulary, their pronunciation of the language and their knowledge of the cultural context in which it is used. While part of any class is likely to involve direct teaching, the emphasis is on student participation and the student be expected to take part actively in discussion and in tasks such as working in pairs and in small groups, role play, and individual or group presentations. The class will be taught in the TL in most instances.

Oral skills such as Presentation skills with anunderstanding of contemporary social, cultural, and political issues in Spain  and the Spanish speaking world

Ability to develop a reasoned and well structured argument

Analysis of written texts with emphasis on an analytical approach, research in depth on a topic, exploration of grammatical problems and syntax structure, work on registers.

Other key skills developed include study, research, and organisational skills; communication and IT skills; intercultural and interpretation skills.

Development of transferable skills.

Revision and improvement on the students’ grammar skills at a C2 level, which will enable them to communicate in the target language with a near-native competence. Specific topics in this course include the simple and complex sentence, the noun clause, the verb clause, reported speech and the use of subjunctive, amongst others.

·         Aragonés, L. (2011). Gramática de uso del español. Nivel C1-C2. Madrid: SM.

·         Blanco, A.I. & alii. (2011). El cronómetro. C2. Madrid: Edinumen.

·         Collins Spanish Dictionary: Complete and Unabridged(Spanish/English, English/Spanish). 9^th edition. London: Collins, 2009. (Also available in digital format).

·         Hernández, G. (1990). Análisis gramatical. Teoría y práctica. Madrid: SGEL.

·         Moreno, C. (2001). Temas de gramática. Nivel superior. Madrid: SGEL.