GCE EXAMINERS' REPORTS
SPANISH
AS/Advanced
SUMMER 2016
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Unit
Page
SN1: Oral Examination
1
SN2: Listening, Reading and Writing
2
SN3: Oral Examination
5
SN4: Listening Reading and Writing
6
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SPANISH
General Certificate of Education
Summer 2016
Advanced Subsidiary/Advanced
SN1: ORAL EXAMINATION
SN1 (a) Visiting-examiner conducted tests
Once again most candidates coped well with the topics and questions on the cards. In
Card A1 many candidates used the phrase caída libre in reference to the bottom picture
and some knew that the top picture was the Museo Guggenheim in Bilbao although they
did not need to know this. Some hazarded that it was of a museo industrial. It was
surprising that many candidates had to ask for the meaning of techo de vidrio on card B6
which is a key phrase for the topic. Most candidates were able to answer the three
compulsory questions on each card. Some very able candidates attempted some analysis
although this is not compulsory. However, it was noticeable that yet again some candidates
simply read out their notes and others had gone for a lengthy script. The advice about
sticking to bullet points is there for a reason. Some candidates had been well prepared to
cope with follow-up questions, whereas others were unable to formulate a response.
As for the general conversation, there were some interesting discussions on the three
areas of hobbies, studies and future plans. As usual, the best candidates were able to use
a variety of tenses and some up-to-date or idiomatic language.
SN1 (b) Centre-conducted tests
Most, but not all, teacher-examiners followed the guidelines specified, asking the 3
questions exactly as they appeared on the card, and then some follow up questions
designed to generate further views and opinions, before moving on to the general
conversation keeping to the timings allowed. In some cases questions of a more personal
nature and, therefore, more suited to the general conversation were asked during the
discussion on the card thereby reducing what could be asked in the second part. This can
be avoided by asking about friends or young people in general rather than the candidate. In
a few cases again this year candidates chose 2 A cards or 2 B cards which broke the
specification guidelines.
There was spontaneity and interaction this year, although in some centres, teacher examiners allowed their candidates to simply read out their notes. In some cases the
general conversation was not only pre-learnt, with only familiar questions being asked, but
over rehearsed and delivered as a presentation in a monotone with virtually no expression
or realistic intonation. This resulted in minimal interaction and even less spontaneity. A
variety of questions and some less predictable ones would be more appropriate here.
Questions need to be adapted to what each candidate says.
Some teachers put the same questions to each candidate and did not really follow up the
answers to generate a true discussion. If candidates launch into a pre-learned monologue
they should be interrupted with further questions. There is no need for teacher examiners to
correct candidates or to finish their sentences for them. It is also important to keep to the
timings of up to 4 minutes maximum per card and 7 minutes maximum for the general
conversation. The timings in the specification are not optional.
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1
SPANISH
General Certificate of Education
Summer 2016
Advanced Subsidiary/Advanced
SN2: LISTENING, READING AND WRITING
Ejercicios 1 and 2
The Listening tasks were based on ‘El turismo en España’ and ‘La nueva capitana
española de la Copa Davis’. Exercise 1 was a True / False task in which false plus
correction were required to gain the mark. Most candidates understood the passage and
coped well with the true / false questions. Many candidates scored full marks but many also
scored 4 or less out of a possible 8. In question (ii) the difference between tourist numbers
in the summer and the winter was required to get the mark. In (v) the correct number 64.9
million was needed and ‘millones’ had to be spelled correctly. In (vii) Cataluña / Catalunya
had to be spelt correctly to gain a mark. Short answers are to be encouraged as is some
manipulation of the answer. Infinitives and past participles are not accepted as corrections
(unless grammatically correct in the context).
Ejercicio 2 was a grammar question testing common grammar points. Some candidates
scored full marks although many candidates found (ii), (iii) and (iv) difficult. It was surprising
how many candidates chose ‘servilleta’ instead of ‘andaluza’ in (ii).
Ejercicio 3
The three texts were on ‘¿Fiestas sin Toros?’, ‘Salón de orientación universitaria’, and
‘Hábitos recreativos de los jóvenes españoles’.
In Ejercicio 3(a) some candidates spotted all 5 correct statements which were 2,4,6,7 and
8, but many candidates could find only 4 correct ones. Candidates who ticked 5 boxes and
put a cross in 5 boxes were not awarded any marks as it was not clear which boxes were
the correct ones.
In Ejercicio 3(b) the questions were direct and required brief answers. A few candidates
performed well in this task and provided short answers in their own words. However, weak
candidates found the task very difficult and tended to copy from the text, in many cases
giving answers which did not match the question. All four questions proved to be difficult for
many. Many candidates opted for straight lifts from the text, whether this made sense or
not. Basic grammatical accuracy is required for clear evidence of comprehension here.
In Ejercicio 3(c) it was clear again this year that candidates who drew up a table of the
different parts of speech did much better in this task than those who did not analyse the list
of words. Many more candidates gained 15 marks this year which suggests that candidates
have finally learned how to tackle this task. The words that proved to be most difficult were
‘consumir’ and ‘consumar’, which we have seen many times over the lifetime of the
specification, ‘mal’ and ‘malas’, ‘mucha’ and ‘poca’. The widespread use of ‘poca’ suggests
that some are not reading the text. It is also essential to copy correctly and this includes
accents. It is evident that weak candidates need to practise this exercise. It was noted that
many candidates are using words more than once, contrary to the rubric.
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2
Ejercicio 4
This was a less demanding exercise for some candidates this year. Once again, words had
to be copied correctly into the space provided. Questions (ii) and (iv) proved to be most
difficult, with confusion between ‘tengan’ and ‘tienen’ and ‘la falta’ and ‘la culpa’ in (ii) and
(iv) respectively.
Ejercicio 5
There were six extracts for translation this year containing some complicated structures.
Too many candidates are still stringing words together and do not check the meaning or
sense of what they have just written. Words are increasingly being invented or copied into
English e.g. ‘bachillerato’ in many unrecognisable forms, ‘Farmacy’, ‘centuries’ for
‘hundreds’ and ‘campaigns’ (with ‘campanes’, ‘campains’ and ‘campaines’ among the most
frequent). Teachers should remind candidates that, in order to gain a mark, verbs have to
be translated in the correct tense.
In (i) candidates had difficulty translating ‘pasatiempo’, ‘orgullo’ and ‘escenario’. In extract (i)
some thought that ‘Lejos’ was a person and in (ii) that ‘bachillerato’ was a place. In (ii)
Bachillerato and Farmacia were often not translated correctly or were incorrectly spelled.
One candidate wrote that Elsa Martín wanted to study pharmacists. In (iii) ‘exits’ for ‘salidas’
was not acceptable because, in this context, it means ‘job opportunities’ and has appeared
before. In (iv) ‘centenares’ was translated as ‘thousands’, and even ‘centuries’. In (vi) it was
obvious that candidates had not looked back at the context, because ‘para los primeros’
was too often translated as ‘first of all’ when it referred to ‘the first mentioned’ or ‘the
former’. Some are still writing the first thing that enters their head as when ‘campaigns’
were referred to as ‘campers’. ‘Self-esteem’ was often misspelt. Clearly, reading what is
actually written in the extract, and checking the meaning of the translation so that it makes
sense, is crucial in this type of task. In centres where this type of translation exercise has
been practised regularly, candidates performed much better. However, there are still many
candidates who are failing to grasp the meaning of these extracts and who are writing
meaningless versions.
Ejercicio 6
The essays were on tourism, AIDS, alcohol abuse and new technology. All of the titles were
attempted, with the most popular being (c) closely followed by (d). In (a) there were some
well-written essays on tourism, but many candidates tended to produce a pre-learnt essay
and did not say whether or not they agreed with the statement or give reasons and failed to
mention other types of tourism. However, some candidates did write an essay which
addressed all parts of the question, giving examples, views and opinions.
In (b) there were some good essays which argued the point successfully and agreed or
disagreed with the essay title as appropriate, and considered whether or not Aids was more
serious than drug abuse or smoking. Weaker candidates wrote very general essays and did
not really address the issue.
In (c) many candidates answered the question well and justified their views on whether or
not alcohol abuse in one’s youth can lead to health problems in later life. Many failed to
refer to what problems might be encountered in later life and merely kept repeating
‘problemas de salud cuando sean mayores’. Some lifted whole sentences from the written
text without any attempt at manipulation.
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3
In (d) candidates often concentrated on new technology and its advantages and/or
disadvantages and failed to address the second part of the question which asked whether
studies were of greater importance.
In order to be concise candidates must keep to the word limit and check that they have
answered each element in the question, agreed or disagreed with it, as the case might be,
and provided reasons or solutions where necessary. In other words they should follow the
rubric closely. Some candidates kept repeating the same ideas, included irrelevant material,
did not follow the rubric and their written Spanish was quite careless.
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4
SPANISH
General Certificate of Education
Summer 2016
Advanced Subsidiary/Advanced
SN3: ORAL EXAMINATION
As usual candidates were offered a choice of card and liked being able to decide on the
choice of topic for the discussion. On the whole candidates coped well with the 3 questions
on the card which often generated an interesting discussion. Weak candidates found the
questions difficult to answer as they often had few opinions or lacked the relevant vocabulary
to generate a discussion, and so resorted to using ‘sí’ or ‘no’ without justifying their answer.
The second part of the oral consisted of an exposé on any book, film or region of around 4
minutes duration followed by a discussion lasting from 7 to 10 minutes. The best
candidates produced detailed analytical exposés on their chosen film or book which often
generated a very interesting discussion whereas weaker candidates tended to produce prelearnt passages from Wikipedia, film reviews, literature notes and travel guides. Good
candidates provided information in their exposé that could be followed up easily in the
discussion. Weak candidates found the discussion difficult, as, in many cases, they lacked
detailed knowledge and consequently it was difficult to generate a meaningful discussion,
because they were outside their zone of confidence. Notes need to be brief, ideally
between 5 and 10 bullet points.
Centres are required to provide the visiting examiner with a list of exposé titles and a copy
of that list must be included with the SN4 scripts to ensure that there is no overlap with the
oral cards or the SN4 essay. This requirement was not observed by all centres. Exposés
should be neither too broad nor too narrow in scope and should not be too long. Where
several candidates are preparing an exposé on the same film, book or region, it is good
practice although not compulsory, to encourage them to focus on different aspects. The
best exposés always set out to answer a question or respond to a problem. Many
candidates chose to analyse a film and it was obvious that a wide selection of films had
been watched with candidates choosing their preferred one. These exposés were very
analytical and detailed. Candidates can improve their own performance by taking their time
over the delivery of the exposé, concentrating on intonation and pronunciation. As in
previous years, some candidates tended to rush, which immediately had a detrimental
effect on intonation, pronunciation and clarity. Sometimes exposés were difficult to
understand. In cases where candidates had chosen to talk about a region their exposés
often lacked detail and analysis and were very general, relying on narrative or descriptive
details. Exposés on Andalusia seem especially prone to these weaknesses. Some
candidates opted not to have notes as they felt that they did not need them. Nevertheless,
it is recommended that all candidates bring some brief notes in to the examination just in
case they do go blank. Examiners will help candidates in cases of memory loss but their
confidence can be badly affected if they cannot refer to notes.
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SPANISH
General Certificate of Education
Summer 2016
Advanced Subsidiary/Advanced
SN4: LISTENING, READING AND WRITING
Ejercico 1(a)
Many candidates successfully answered at least two of the three questions. In (ii) some
candidates referred to ‘líneas de autobús ‘as ‘lines’ of buses and were not awarded a mark.
In (iii) three examples of sustainability were needed; merely being enjoyable was not
enough to be awarded a mark.
Ejercicio 1(b)
The Facility Factor data showed that this question was the least accessible on the Paper.
Some candidates answered the three questions correctly, but many scored no marks at all
for this section. In (i) candidates needed to mention the demolition of twenty homes or
dwellings. In (ii) many candidates failed to specify the land next to the houses – they
understood that it was the site where the houses stood.
Ejercicio 2(a)
This was the third least accessible question on the Paper, according to Facility Factor data.
The comprehension task on unemployment in Spain required answers in English. Once
again some candidates wrote in Spanish and gained no marks at all. The language of the
answer must always be in the same language as the question and candidates should be
careful about this. In (i) the answer was that contracts are not renewed after the Christmas
period so, with Reyes in mind, ‘the end of December’ failed to answer the question. The
second part of the question required a reference to the fact that the bad weather can affect
the construction industry. A relatively high number took ‘tiempo’ to mean ‘time’ instead of
‘weather’. In (ii) it was disappointing to see how many candidates did not know ‘aceituna’ –
surely basic vocabulary in Spanish - and consequently mentioned a ‘tuna’ or ‘fish harvest’
or ‘fishing for oil’. A mention of olives or even olive oil would have gained the mark. In (iii)
an adjective such as ‘pessimistic’, ‘grim’, ‘gloomy’ was needed as the question asked
candidates to describe the forecast for unemployment and then justify it. Some thought that
the outlook was optimistic. In (iv) there were more accurate answers, and in (v) a reference
to both ‘cuts in wages’ and ‘better competitiveness’ was required. The spelling of
‘competitive’’ was poor. Candidates need to think carefully about their answers and ensure
that they answer what is being asked in clear, correct English. Translating long passages
from the text would suggest that candidates do not know the answer but hope that it is
contained somewhere in the translated chunk.
Ejercicio 2(b)
This was a paragraph continuing on from the text in the previous question. A choice of 10
words was provided from which 5 had to be selected to fit the gaps. Good candidates
scored full marks. In a few cases words were not copied correctly and candidates lost
marks. The three words most frequently copied erroneously were ‘licenciada’, ‘currículos’
and ‘enlazando’. Many candidates opted for ‘futuro’ instead of ‘adelantado’ in (1).
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Ejercicio 2(c)
The reading comprehension text on how the arrival of illegal immigrants from Africa
triggered a panic over the spread of the ebola virus to the Canary Islands proved difficult for
some candidates. Facility Factor data showed that it was the third least accessible question
on the Paper. Too many resorted to copying too many words from the text without any
attempt at manipulation. This was the case in (ii) where the two ideas were relatively
straightforward: ‘widespread fear causes irrational panic among the public’. Candidates
tended to overcomplicate their answers, as in (iv) ‘la protección’ or ‘para protegerse’ would
have been sufficient. In (v) many did not understand the idea of ‘mutual recrimination’. In
(vii) candidates had to infer that the transport of the immigrants was disgraceful. In general,
only the best candidates handle inference questions well. Questions (ii), (v), (vii) and (viii)
were the most challenging. In (viii) many candidates failed to convey the time dimension. It
is worth advising candidates that answers need to be concise and must answer the
question without being a straight lift from the text. Tenses should be correct and infinitives
and past participles are not accepted unless grammatically correct. It is surprising how
many candidates use ‘había’ when ‘hubo’ would be more correct.
Ejercicio 3
The translation was based on the text for Ejercicio 2(c) but many chose not to look for
useful words from that source. Many of the phrases and vocabulary could be found there
and good candidates used these to great advantage. Many candidates still have major
difficulties with tenses and the conjugation of verbs. If such candidates could learn the parts
of ‘querer’ and ‘morir’, it would lead to a huge improvement. Vocabulary such as ‘la muerte’,
‘amenazas’, ‘extenderse’, ‘llegaron’, ‘tardar’, ‘cansados’, ‘buena salud’, ‘comisaría’ and
'cientos proved too difficult for many, yet these are basic words. ‘Death’ was often ‘el
muerto’ or ‘muertar’, ‘fear’ was often ‘mierdo’. Some candidates used ‘aterrizar’ for landing
on a beach. ‘Trasladar’ was often spelled incorrectly as ‘transladados’ or ‘traslados’.
‘Hundreds’ was translated as ‘decenas’, ’centenos’, ’cienes’ or even ‘miles’ or ‘millares’.
‘Pateras’ became ‘panteras’ or ‘pantanos’. Some words were invented, such as ‘tirado’ for
‘tired’. This remains a worrying trend, and genders and tenses were forgotten. It was again
obvious that many candidates had not practised this skill enough. The gender of common
nouns, the agreement of adjectives, the use of the subjunctive and conjugation of verbs are
areas that cannot be neglected.
Ejercicio 4
Guided Studies essay
The rubric stated clearly that candidates should write one essay yet some still wrote two.
The essay could not be on the same film, book or region as that prepared for the exposé in
SN3. Nevertheless a few candidates wrote on the same film, book or region that they chose
for their exposé when checked against the list of SN3 titles. Since centres have been told
about this and it is in the specification, candidates who did not follow the rubric were
penalised and this will continue to be the case.
Film Option
This option had the second highest facility factor, indicating that the task was very
accessible to candidates. The most popular essays were those on El laberinto del fauno,
Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios, El Bola and Maria llena eres de gracia. Many
candidates wrote very analytical essays, full of details or examples and with little focus on
description, demonstrating their ability to make valid references to different parts of the film
to support their answer. This was particularly true of both questions on El laberinto. In the
first essay many wrote disparagingly of Vidal without considering whether he was a product
of his military background and the Civil War. In the second essay many compared the
characters of Carmen, Ofelia and Mercedes without analysing the type of world and society
within which the female characters were trapped.
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Weaker candidates once again relied heavily on pre-learnt material and simply retold the
story, often in general terms and with few details. They did not address all or part of the
question set. Nevertheless, many candidates wrote good essays, answering the question
by making relevant points and using factual details. Many essays were very enjoyable to
read.
Literature Option
This option had the highest facility factor in the exam, indicating that candidates found the
questions very accessible. The most popular essays were those on La casa de Bernarda
Alba and Como agua para chocolate. As with the essays on the film many candidates
wrote very interesting analytical essays, focusing on the rubric of the question set. Weak
candidates used pre-learnt material and simply retold the story. Some candidates wrote at
length about Lorca and Franco’s Spain yet Lorca was spared experiencing the dictatorship.
As in the case of the film option, many of these essays were very enjoyable to read.
Regional Option
This was the least popular option and attracted only 29 candidates. As has become the
trend, the relatively small number of essays on the region were, on the whole, less well
done than the film or book essays. Apart from a few exceptions, candidates who wrote
about a region produced very general essays which often referred to Spain as a whole,
lacked detail and analysis and showed very little specific knowledge of the region.
Candidates need to be prepared by teachers not only to write 400 words on the region, but
to provide information, demonstrate that they have a good knowledge and can analyse. It
was evident that some candidates had researched the region independently and, as a
result, had not been taught to analyse or evaluate the information they had found. Some
direction, guidance and essay writing practice are to be recommended for candidates
choosing this option.
Advice on how to improve language performance at AS and A level.
Attention to the points below would lead to a major improvement in candidates’
performance in written and spoken Spanish. This advice reworks a similar item in last
year’s report and targets frequent errors in grammar, lexis and idiom.
(i)
the persistence of la or las problema / problemas
(ii)
the widespread use of es vale
(iii)
the use of es bien for es bueno / buena and similar constructions
(iv)
the common use of es una buena “aidía” in the oral components
(v)
the frequent use of the verb estar followed by a noun as in la discriminación está
un crimen
(vi)
ser is frequently used in the continuous tense, e.g. son haciendo
(vii)
many candidates cannot say or write ‘in comparison with’ and use
en comparazón or en comparison
(viii) los peligrosos is widespread for los peligros
(ix)
too many candidates use es no and hay no
(x)
the following are widespread: consiste de and depende en
(xi)
structures like es camina, es necesita (two verbs) are too common
(xii)
the use of collective nouns like la gente, la policía, el gobierno with a plural verb is
widespread
(xiii) too many candidates use the gerund instead of the infinitive for a noun, e.g. they
say or write: bebiendo agua es bueno instead of beber agua es bueno
(xiv) the use of the definite and indefinite article needs attention: candidates say or write
educación or deporte when it should be la educación and el deporte
(xv)
the omission of de after salir
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(xvi)
many cannot conjugate the verbs tener and mantener, with some thinking that
they are – ar verbs
(xvii) the misspelling of parecer is widespread
(xviii) too may do not know how to use hay, había, ha habido, hubo
(ixx) candidates confuse aunque and sin embargo (Aunque, [sic] is frequently seen
at the beginning of sentences in essays)
(xx)
candidates need to practice the common usage of por and para
(xxi) candidates cannot handle a logical sequence of personal pronouns
(xxii) the ‘personal ‘a’ is used only by native speakers or very best non-native speakers
GCE Spanish Examiners Report Summer 2016/GH
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