Students taking this module are required to have passed all Spanish language modules in Years 1 and 2 of the programme and to have spent Year 3 in a Spanish-speaking country.
This module builds on the knowledge, experience, and linguistic competence acquired by the students during their year abroad. It consolidates and further explores cultural, political, economic, social, and environmental topics and trends of countries where the language is spoken and their current affairs together with issues relating to contemporary history, mentality, and history of ideas. Many of the topics discussed contribute to the student’s education in sustainable development. The module also consolidates and builds on language competency by working further to perfect the students’ level of linguistic accuracy and foster deeper awareness of the target language style, register, and tone.
The aims of this module are:
- To consolidate and enhance students’ knowledge of the political, commercial, and social environment of Spain and/or other Spanish-speaking countries.
- To deepen awareness of cultural differences between Spanish-speaking countries and their own.
- To expand students’ appreciation of cultural and infrastructural factors in a global context.
- To provide students with opportunities to practice observation, investigation, fact-finding, and reporting skills.
- To enhance students’ critical and analytical thinking skills.
- To provide students with a stimulating and supportive environment in which they can develop their Spanish language skills.
This module is benchmarked at C1.1 on the CEFR. On successful completion of the module, students will generally be able to perform at that level in all four language skills. They may be able to perform at C1.2 Level or above on the CEFR in familiar contexts, such as those closely related to those that feature in the teaching programme, when they have sufficient time to prepare and access appropriate reference materials. The minimum exit level for the module is B2.1 on the CEFR.
Current Affairs in Spain and/or Other Spanish-speaking Countries
This module will study major political, economic, commercial and social trends in Spain and/or other countries where Spanish is spoken, and with reference to sustainability literacy when relevant/UN sustainable development goals when relevant.It will address cultural and social differences in Spain and/or other Spanish- speaking countries in European and global contexts.Students will be encouraged to engage in current debates on a wide range of issues involving research, analysis and production of texts on selected topics.
A range of teaching and learning approaches will be used in the delivery of this module including interactive classes; independent media research; teamwork; individual and group presentations; reading and class discussions of selected texts; writing and presenting reports of events and summaries of texts.
These activities will normally take place in the setting of a communicative language class, making maximum appropriate use of Spanish throughout.
E-learning will be incorporated into the module as much as possible, including such activities as the use of the language laboratory, and the use of computing facilities by students to both sourcing information via the internet and other media and to present their work in a variety of formats, supported by the use of various word-processing, spreadsheet, and presentation software packages.
| Module Content & Assessment | |
|---|---|
| Assessment Breakdown | % |
| Formal Examination | 40 |
| Other Assessment(s) | 60 |