Stratford Girls’ Grammar
A-Level Spanish
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Advanced Level Spanish – AQA
What are the exams like?
A Level Spanish is a linear exam, which means that you would be sitting three final papers at
the end of Year 13:
Paper 1
Listening, Reading and Writing
2 hours 30 minutes
40% of total A Level

The Listening section of Paper 1: You will listen to spoken passages from a range of
contexts and sources, and you will answer questions targeting main points, gist and
detail. All of these questions will be in in Spanish, to be answered with non-verbal
responses or in Spanish. Studio recordings in Castilian Spanish will be used and you will
have individual control of the recording (either individual CD or mp3 players).

The Reading section of Paper 1: you will read a variety of texts written for different
purposes, drawn from a range of authentic sources and adapted as necessary. You will
answer questions targeting main points, gist and detail. All of these questions will be in
in Spanish, to be answered with non-verbal responses or in Spanish.

The Writing section of Paper 1 will test your translation skills:
o Translation into English; a passage of minimum 100 words.
o Translation into Spanish; a passage of minimum 100 words.
Paper 2
Writing
2 hours
30% of total A Level
You will have to write 2 essay questions, each of them based on a film and a play, and you will
be advised to write about 300 words for each of those essays (i.e. 600 words in total).
You will be marked on your knowledge of the film and the play, the structure of your argument,
the examples you choose, and your critical evaluation of the work you’ve studied in light of the
question you have been asked. The quality of your Spanish, the range of structures you use
and your accuracy will also be assessed. The film we will be studying is El Laberinto del Fauno
(Pan’s Labyrinth) and the play will be La casa de Bernarda Alba (The House of Bernarda Alba).
Paper 3
Speaking
21-23 minutes.
30% of total A Level
This exam is divided into three sections in total:

Part One – Discussion of a stimulus card (5-6 minutes)
You will have 5 minutes supervised preparation time during which you will prepare one
of two cards given to you by the examiner. The two cards will cover two separate topics.
The cards will be selected at random from a set of six provided by AQA. These will be
based on three of the topics prescribed for A2 level, ie Social Issues and Trends, and
Political and Artistic Culture. Two cards will be set from each topic area covering
different sub-topics, eg a card on Gender Equality and a card on Immigration from the
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topic Social Issues and Trends. You will be expected to answer and develop any points
arising from the printed questions on the card.
You may make notes during their preparation time and may refer to these notes during
this part of the test.

Part Two- Presentation (2 minutes)
A two-minute presentation on an individual research project of your choice. You will
identify a subject or a key question which is of interest to you and which relates to a
Spanish-speaking country. This project could bear a direct relation to your other A-Level
subjects (i.e. if you’re doing Economics, you might want to cover one of the emerging
economies in Latin America).

Part Three- Discussion (9-10 minutes)
A follow-up discussion on the individual research project you outlined in your
presentation. You will provide a list of bullet points to the examiner so that you can give
them an idea of the scope of your research and also what kind of questions they might
be able to ask, as they might not necessarily be very knowledgeable about your chosen
area of expertise.
What are the topics like?
There are a total of 4 broad topic areas:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Social issues and trends.
Political and artistic culture.
Cultural topic (the study of a film and a play)
An individual research topic (chosen by you).
Let’s have a look at each one of them:
1. Social issues and trends
You will study the themes and sub-themes below in relation to at least one Spanish speaking
country.


Aspects of Hispanic society
o Modern and traditional values (Los valores tradicionales y modernos)
o Cyberspace (El ciberespacio)
o Equal rights (La igualdad de los sexos)
Multiculturalism in Hispanic society
o Immigration (La Inmigración)
o Racism (El Racismo)
o Integration (La Convivencia)
2. Political and artistic culture
You will study the themes and sub-themes below in relation to at least one Spanish speaking
country.
 Artistic culture in the Hispanic world
o Modern day idols (La influencia de los ídolos)
o Spanish regional identity (La identidad regional en España)
o Cultural heritage or cultural landscape (El patrimonio cultural)
 Aspects of political life in the Hispanic world
o Today's youth, tomorrow's citizens (Jóvenes de hoy, ciudadanos de mañana)
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o
o
Monarchies, republics and dictatorships (Monarquías, repúblicas y dictaduras)
Popular movements (Movimientos populares)
3. The cultural topic.
We will be studying a film and a play, and you will have to write two short essays on each of
them for Paper 3. For the film, we will be studying El Laberinto del Fauno (Pan’s Labyrinth), and
for the play we will cover La casa de Bernarda Alba (The House of Bernarda Alba). Both of
them will be watched and read in lessons.
4. An individual research project.
You will identify a subject or a key question which is of interest to you and which relates to a
country or countries where Spanish is spoken. They may bear a direct relation to your other ALevel subjects (i.e. if you’re doing Economics, you might want to cover one of the emerging
economies in Latin America). For this, you will be able to select relevant information from a
range of sources including the internet, and then analyse and summarise your findings so that
you can then present and discuss them in your speaking assessment.
Examples of possible broad research areas as suggested by Ofqual include:
o La deforestación en Amazonas (Deforestation in Amazonia)
o Desarrollo y sostenibilidad en América Latina (Development and sustainability in Latin
America)
o Activismo social en la España contemporánea (Social activism in modern Spain)
How are the lessons divided up?
You will have a total of 5 lessons a week. In addition you will have a conversation lesson for
part of one of your non-contact periods with Mariluz, our Spanish assistant. This will be in
pairs/a small group. It is very important that you attend this lesson and that you do your
best to speak in her class.
What will we do in class?
You will study listening and reading passages from the textbook and many other sources. We
will also have grammar lessons as we progress throughout the year. We will use the G10 (ie the
language lab) once a week, so you will need a log-in and be able to access all the materials we
have online for you.
What will the homework be like?
You will be set listening tasks from the textbook, vocabulary to prepare for reading texts, some
grammar exercises and some writing tasks. You will have vocabulary, grammar and
comprehension tests, but your homework will be mostly be targeted to improve your essaywriting skills.
What do I have to do to succeed at A Level?
The biggest difference between GCSE and A Level is that you are not a pupil anymore; as you
enter Year 12 you become a student! This means that it is up to you to put time in studying
and go beyond the minimum. This is because at A Level the questions, fields of vocabulary and
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grammar are much more open-ended, so it is not enough to simply pay attention in class; it is
up to you to do more at home. It is very important that you keep up to date with the work set,
particularly the topic-related essays. Remember, with Modern Languages, and especially at ALevel, you can’t cram up for final exams.
Do I need any special equipment?
You will be provided with a text book, grammar exercises and worksheets. Keep checking the
Spanish Moodle section for updates, i.e. new video files, class-work that you may have missed.
A good dictionary is also essential, and you will need an A4 lever-arch file. This must be solely
for Spanish and you should keep it organised - separate sections for topic-specific vocabulary
and exercises on the one hand, and grammar on the other.
Will I get to go Spain?
As part of your A Level course, our school will offer you the opportunity to take part in the Y13
Spanish Exchange with our partner school, IES Cavaleri, in Seville. We’ve run a very successful
Y11 Spanish exchange with this school for the last 10 years, and now we’re aiming to extend
this opportunity to our 6th Form Hispanists. You would be hosting your Spanish partner in Y12
(March), and you would be going to Seville in Y13 (October, just before half-term); this will be a
joint trip with our traditional Y11 exchange, but you would be going to lessons as part of
language immersion stay, in the same way as you would if you were to take part in an Erasmus
programme at University – our view is to make it a ‘mini-Erasmus’, so to speak.
We have also come across a company who organise work experience placements for English
sixth formers in Spain. This is a private venture and is not organised by the school, and no
teachers from school go on the trip, so if you choose to go the contract is between your
parents and the company. In the past, all girls who have gone form this school have been
found placements in the same town - generally in shops, restaurants, newspaper offices etc.
The group is accompanied and are housed in a hotel. We generally recommend that you go
during the February half-term, as this would not interfere with your academic progress in other
subjects and it is also before the oral exam. Most of last year’s Year 12 went and certainly had
an enjoyable time as well as improving their Spanish before their oral exam.
Going to Spain or any Spanish-speaking country is the whole point of learning Spanish. Any
time you can spend practising your language skills will help you improve. If you have contacts
in Spain (i.e. from previous trips/ exchanges), then make use of them and see if you can get
yourself over there, speaking Spanish!
What have other students said?
Learning Spanish at A-Level was the best decision I ever made. It's such a lovely language
to listen to and to speak. The topics at A-Level are far more interesting than at GCSE and
it's fun to study a Spanish film and play at A2. The ability to speak Spanish is a skill that is
sought by employers and will give you an advantage in later life. Susie Barnes, Y13
Leaver 2014; International Management and Spanish, University of Bath .
I really enjoyed Spanish A Level. All the new grammar was taught in bite size chunks
which made it really easy to understand and use in your own writing. Listening and
reading exercises covered interesting topics and I really liked the fact that a lot of them
were real news articles or clips. And in year 13, Ms Rivas' endless enthusiasm for the play
and the film made the culture side of the course just as interesting and enjoyable. In year
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12, as recommended by the language department, I did work experience in a
Chocolatería in Santander. Communicating only in Spanish was hard work, but it was
great to see how much I had already learnt since GCSE and it definitely improved my
speaking and listening skills. Overall, I think that Spanish A level, as well as being really
fun, has given me a really good grounding in Spanish grammar, society and culture and
so I feel well prepared for my further study of the language at university. Clara Theil, Y13
Leaver 2014; Modern Languages (Spanish, French, Arabic); University of Durham
I am now a fourth year student, studying English literature and Spanish at Cardiff
University. I have just returned from a year living in Mexico, which has undoubtedly been
the best year of my life so far. I was given the unique and incomparable experience of
getting to know a whole new country and culture, in one of the most geographically and
demographically diverse countries in the world. Studying Spanish at A-level gave me the
confidence and foundation necessary to continue studying languages at University. At a
time in which Latin – American countries are becoming of an increasing global
importance, Spanish is one of the most useful skills you can have in the world of
international business. Having come through the other side of my year abroad, I can
honestly say that it is well worth persevering through all of the tough moments, you
won’t regret it once you are able to write ‘bilingual’ on your CV. Felicity Box, Y13 Leaver
2011; English Literature and Spanish, University of Cardiff
Studying Spanish at A-level, and then at university, turned out to be the best decision I
ever made. Not only did I get to spend the best year of my life living in Spain as part of
my course, I am now able to say I can speak one of the most widely spoken and
increasingly useful languages in the world. Speaking Spanish opens up unlimited
opportunities for travel and work in the most interesting, colourful and diverse places
you can think of all over the world. Jenna Gould-Yates, Y13 Leaver 2010; First Honours
in Hispanic Studies, University of Sheffield.
I'm so glad I was able to take Spanish at A-level because it really helped to prepare me
for my degree. I currently study Spanish and Linguistics at the University of Oxford and
my knowledge of grammar and my ability to converse more confidently has really
allowed me to concentrate on different parts of my studies, like Linguistics which I started
from scratch but I love it. The critical analysis of films and plays gave me skills that I now
use regularly in my writing. For me, the best part has been that I am now living in Chile
for my year abroad and I can actually make myself understood here! I've met so many
people who feel like they are really missing out because hardly anyone speaks English
and it's so much easier to get involved with the culture and the people when you can
speak their language. Mhairi Crinean, Y13 Leaver 2012; Spanish and Linguistics,
University of Oxford.
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