Spanish (B1.2 - B2.1)

• Having met the BAC 1 course objectives set by the Faculty of Arts.
• Having enrolled for this course and included it in one's curriculum.
• Simultaneously follow the BAC 2 Spanish classes offered by the Faculty of Arts.     

The prerequisite(s) for this Teaching Unit (Unité d’enseignement – UE) for the programmes/courses that offer this Teaching Unit are specified at the end of this sheet.

The aim of this course is to develop the systematic mastering of the communication and language skills (socio-lignuistic and pragmatic) needed in various productive, receptive, interactive and mediating situations, corresponding to a B1.2-level (threshold) and a B2.1-level (vantage) of the Common European Framework of Reference for languages.
To reach that objective, the themes tackled in the course differ from those that are usually addressed when only basic communication skills are aimed at.

Conversations, critical reflection and writing activites will be organized about character descriptions, everyday life, holidays and leisure, hobbies and interests, trips, education, food and drink, work, abstract and cultural subjects such as music, cuisine, history, cinema or advertising.

At the end of this learning module, the student should be able to:

• express themselves using a broad array of vocabulary on subjects linked to their field of studies as well as general subjects. The learner should be able to vary their discourse so as to avoid repetition, but lexical hiatuses can still provoke hestiation and paraphrasing (B2.1-level for vocabulary).
• communicate with quite a good command of grammar. The learner does not make any errors that can lead to misunderstanding (B2.1-level for grammar).
• use clear and natural pronunciation and intonation (B2.1-level for phonetics).
• write clearly and understandably, following the rules of lay-out and structure. Spelling and punctuation are quite accurate but can still be influenced by the learner's mother tongue (B2.1-level for spelling).
• have a conversation with native speakers without having to adapt their behaviour (B2.1-level for socio-linguistic skills).
• adapt to changes of subject matter, style and tone typical for natural conversation and be able to adapt and vary the way of expressing themselves (B2.1-level for pragmatic skills).
• use ready-made expressions, such as "that's a hard question", as hesitation devices and fillers (B2.1-level for turn-taking).
• engage in a description or a clear narrative while developing and arguing salient points with the help of details and relevant examples (B2.1-level for discursive and thematic development skills).
• make use of a lilmited number of connectors, while, from time to time, erros in consistency and coherence may occur in longish interventions (B2.1-level for discursive and coherence skills).
• communicate with ease and spontaneity, which should enable regular interaction with native speakers without either party having to make an effort (B2.1-level for functional competence and speaking ease).
• failthfully relay detailed information (B2.1-level for functional competence and accuracy).

The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.

Continuous assesment using various kinds of activities linked to communication or oral and written production skills, listening and reading comprehension, as well as mediating activities that have to be carried out throughout the semester, with a final exam on grammar and vocabulary.

The learning module is conducted in the form of contact hours, along with an e-learning component on two UCL platforms (Moodle and Mahara).
The learning module follows a Spanish foreign-lanuage learning handbook as well as its workbook, both aiming at the B2.1-level of the course. It adopts a PBL-approach (problem-based learning) using the principles of reflexive learning: the student is at the heart of their learning and is cognitively involved, so that they can construct knowledge and know-how by themselves as well as with the help of their peers. Thus, various forms of self-assessment and/or peer-assessment can be proposed throughout the learning module.

Moreover, tandems (exchanges) with native speakers are proposed and organized in the framework of this course.

This learning module aims at developing all the language and communication skills entrenched in a communicative, lexical and grammatical approach. The methodology is very varied and includes carrying out various assignments throughout the course, linked to the themes tackled.

The learning module (using the action-oriented approach) starts from the premise that the language learner is essentially becoming a language user in various fields (personal, public, professional and educational) and situations (places, organizations, actors, objects, events, operations, texts), focussing mainly on spoken production.

1. Alonso, R., Castañeda, A., Martínez Gila, P., Miquel, L., Ortega, J., & Ruiz Campillo, J.P. (2005).  Gramática básica del estudiante de español
2. Chamorro, M.D., Conejo, E., & Martínez Gila, P. (2013). Bitácora 4- Cuaderno de ejercicios
3. Chamorro, M.D., Lozano Gr., Martínez Gila, P., Muñoz B., Rosales Fr., Ruiz Camillo, J. Pl., & Ruiz -Fajardo, G. (2010). Abanico:libro del alumno (nueva edición)
4. Chamorro, M.D., Lozano Gr., Martínez Gila, P., Muñoz B., Rosales Fr., Ruiz Camillo, J. Pl., & Ruiz Fajardo, G. (2010). Abanico: cuaderno de ejercicios (nueva edición)
5. Sans, N., Martín Peris, E., Garmendia, A., & Conejo, E. (2013). Bitácora 4 (B1.2) - Libro del alumno. Difusión