Intermediate Spanish Language I
NOTE: The University of Deusto recommends to take this course together with Intermediate Spanish I and III.
DESCRIPTION AND AIMS
The main goal of the course is to provide students with the appropriate atmosphere for students to develop their communicative competence from a low-intermediate level towards a solid intermediate one. This will be achieved through practice involving the four language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The speaking skill will be emphasized by means weekly sessions devoted to oral Spanish, where students will participate in activities such as roleplays. All functional and grammar contents will be approached from a communicative perspective which will assume and value active participation of the students in the class at all times.
SYLLABUS
Functional and grammar contents:
- Brief review of the present indicative tense
- Introduction to the conditional tense: forms and basic use
- Interviewing: question structure
- Expressing feelings and likes: me gusta/divierte/indigna/da risa/cae bien/...
- Preterite tense: regular and irregular forms.
- Preterite / Present perfect contrast.
- Giving advice and suggesting solutions: lo que tienes que hacer es.../¿por qué no...?/ intenta
- Expressing opinions about activities: me parece/resulta + divertido/fácil/aburrido...
- Expressing feelings and difficulties: noto que / veo que /..+Indicativo, me canso de/me
cuesta/me da miedo + Infinitivo
- Describing and giving opinions about a show.
- Arranging to meet someone: ¿cómo quedamos? / a mí me va bien....
- Expressing what you feel like doing: apetecer + infinitivo/sustantivo
- Expressing frequency: muchas veces, a menudo...
- Locating events in the day: por la mañana / tarde / noche, a mediodía
- Talking about health and physical conditions: asking questions, describing conditions, talking
about medication.
- Recommendations: hay que / es aconsejable / es conveniente...
- Command forms: tú / usted " vosotros / ustedes
- Describing objects and machines: forms, materials, parts, components, usefulness,
traits:¿Para qué sirve? ¿Cómo funciona?
- Talking about domestic problems and “intelligent homes”.
- Uses of se: En España se come mucha paella. / Se me han perdido las llaves.
- Present subjunctive: regular and irregular forms.
- Use of the subjunctive in relative clauses: Busco un apartamento que…
METHODOLOGY
All grammar and functional contents will be integrated into activities within the framework of units with different topics: meeting other people, health…
Assignments will include brief compositions and daily homework.
Classes will be implemented with weekly visits to the multimedia laboratory, where students will have the chance to improve their pronunciation by means of the state-of-the-art software available to them.
ASSESSMENT
The final grade will be calculated according to the following grade breakdown:
Participation & attendance: 15%
Homework: 15%
Compositions: 15%
Tests: 20 %
Oral section: 15 %
Final exam: 20%
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Textbook and workbook:
Martín Peris, E. y N. Sans Baulenas, Gente 2: Libro del Alumno y Libro de Trabajo. Barcelona, Difusión, 2004.
Other sources of material to be used in class:
- Arnal, C. y A. Ruiz de Garibay, Escribe en español. Madrid, SGEL, 1996.
- Ascarrunz Gilman, G. y C. Benito-Vessels, Horizontes: Cultura y Literatura. Boston, Heinle
& Heinle, 1997.
- Baralo, M., Gibert, B. Y B. Moreno de los Ríos, Preparación Certificado Inicial Español
Lengua Extranjera, Madrid, Edelsa, 1994.
- Bretz, M.L., Dvorak, T. y C. Kirschner, Pasajes: Lengua. Boston, McGraw Hill, 1997.
- Bretz, M.L., Dvorak, T. y C. Kirschner, Pasajes: Cultura. Boston, McGraw Hill, 1997.
- Cabrerizo, M.A., M.L. Gómez, and A.M. Ruiz: Sueña 2: Libro del alumno y cuaderno de
ejercicios, Anaya, Madrid, 2001.
- Castro, F. Uso de la gramática española. Nivel Intermedio. Madrid, Edelsa, 2000.
- Cerrolaza, M., Cerrolaza, O. y B. Llovet, Planet@ 2: Libro del alumno y Libro de referencia
gramatical. Madrid, Edelsa, 1999.
- Pinilla, Raquel y Rosanna Acquaroni, ¡Bien dicho! Ejercicios de expresión oral. Madrid,
SGEL, 2000.
- Rodríguez Rodríguez, María, Escucha y aprende. Ejercicios de comprensión auditiva. Madrid,
SGEL, 2003.
- Sánchez, A., Mª T. Espinet y P. Cantos: Cumbre. Nivel Intermedio. Madrid, SGEL,1996.
Notes:
- Before the beginning of instruction, students will need to take a placement test in order to
determine their Spanish level.
- Since class attendance is essential for the acquisition of the four skills, student attendance will
be daily checked. Absences might affect the students’ final grade.
- The grading system, as well as the assessment standards, will be the same as those used in the
U.S.A.