Spanish 3A – Online
Students at this level should be able to understand and communicate effectively unaided on everyday, routine matters but will still have quite a limited range. Emphasis is on developing your vocabulary, accuracy and fluency so that you can express your opinions and follow the gist of popular media.
Who is this course for
Students entering at this level should be able to understand and communicate effectively, though not necessarily accurately, in Spanish. It is likely that students will have studied 120 hours of Spanish recently as a minimum.
If you are not sure, please take our self-assessment.
Download self-assessment questionnaire
What does this course cover
This course particularly aims to develop reading, listening and speaking.
Existing knowledge is used and extended and students are exposed to stimulating material and topics in order to improve linguistic capacity, widen understanding, foster confidence and self expression in Spanish and become further familiarised with the culture of Spanish speaking people.
Course content and topics will be negotiated with the class as much as possible.
You will be working towards reaching B1 level of competency in the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), incorporating these objectives:
- Understand the main points of clear standard speech on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc.
- Understand the main point of many radio or TV programmes on current affairs or topics of personal or professional interest when the delivery is relatively slow and clear.
- Understand texts that consist mainly of high frequency everyday language.
- Understand the description of events, feelings and wishes in personal letters.
- Deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken. Enter unprepared into conversation on topics that are familiar, of personal interest or pertinent to everyday life (e.g. family, hobbies, work, travel and current events).
- Connect phrases in a simple way in order to describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes and ambitions. Briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans. Narrate a story or relate the plot of a book or film and describe your reactions.
- Write simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest.
- Write personal letters describing experiences and impressions.
What will it be like
The course will be run online using Zoom for the live class sessions and either the Moodle page for the course or some other system for the distribution of the electronic resources for the session sitting alongside this. Although there will be some adjustments that need to be made for the online version of this course, we will aim to keep the experience as close as possible to that of a face to face course taught in the Centre.
The emphasis on the course will be on developing confidence in speaking and reading and so the activities used will be communicative. There will be small group work, pair work, whole group discussion and debate, roleplay, games, presentations by the tutor and the students, video, audio and an opportunity for research on the internet through demonstration of useful websites on the smartboard in the classroom.
Your tutor will assess your learning throughout the course and you will receive regular feedback. You will also have the opportunity to evaluate your own progress and discuss it with your tutor at the end of the course.
What else do you need to buy or do
The course will be run on Zoom, please make sure you have installed it in advance of your first class on your computer or mobile device. You can sign up for free here:
You will need a microphone (it's fine to use whatever is built into your device) and camera, so we can see you via video. You may also want to use headphones during the session.
You can participate in class sessions through the use of a computer, laptop, tablet or other similar internet enabled device. Please note that if you only have access to a smartphone, you will be able to attend the class sessions and participate in them but you will find it more difficult to benefit from the full range of materials and activities involved in the course if this is your only means of connection.
Make sure you have a small space to work in during the session and that as far as possible that you can keep this space quite and clear of interruption so that you can concentrate on what is happening in the class.
By signing up to the course you are consenting to being on camera. The content of the lesson may occasionally be recorded by the tutor for internal education and training purposes but any such recordings will not be made available to anyone outside of the Mary Ward Centre organisation without us asking you again for further permission to do so.
Pen, paper and a ring binder or folder. The tutor will recommend grammar and language activities books as well as dictionaries. There will be some reading or research to be done for the following week's class and students are encouraged to read, listen to Spanish radio or TV and spend as much time as possible being exposed to the language. The tutor will advise.
What this course could lead to
Spanish 3B at the MWC.
I've been to many Centres to study in London and the Mary Ward Centre is one of the nicest I've studied in.MWC student
This course has concessions available for people who meet certain criteria
Got a Question about this Course?
Contact The Departmental Administrator.
Why choose Mary Ward?
Mary Ward Centre is the adult education centre with a difference. We provide a wide range of subjects for people at all levels and run courses during the day, evening and weekends to suit your timetable. You can learn face to face at one of our centres (Bloomsbury or Waterloo) or take an online course
Get inspired and enjoy excellent teaching in an environment where each individual’s learning experience is valued. That’s what makes Mary Ward Centre ‘the friendly place to learn.’