AQA A-Level Spanish
The Spanish A-Level builds on knowledge, understanding and skills gained at GCSE and focuses in depth on Spanish language, culture and society; students must study the following themes and sub-themes in relation to at least one Spanish-speaking country. Students must study the themes and sub-themes using a range of sources, including material from online media.
Entry requirements: Students must have a grade 6 or above in their Spanish GCSE examination.
Career opportunities: Spanish A Level is a ‘facilitating subject’, meaning that it is favoured by Russell Group universities. Students who have done Spanish A Level have received university offers in a variety of subjects, both language-based and beyond.
Destinations for Spanish A Level students include Medical Science at King’s College, Spanish and Portuguese with Latin American Studies at Manchester, Marine Biology at Southampton, and Chemistry with Spanish at Manchester.
What will I study?:
- Aspects of Hispanic society: Modern and traditional values, Equal rights, Cyberspace
- Artistic Culture in the Hispanic world: Modern day idols, Spanish regional identity, Cultural heritage
- Multiculturalism in the Hispanic society: Immigration, Racism, Integration,
- Aspects of political life in the Hispanic world: Today’s youth, tomorrow’s citizens, Monarchies and dictatorships, Popular movements
Literary texts and films:
- El Laberinto del Fauno: Students study Guillermo Del Toro’s masterpiece set in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War.
- La Casa de Bernarda Alba: Students study Lorca’s play and prepare to write critical essays on it.
Individual Research Project: Students must identify a subject or a key question which is of interest to them and which relates to a country or countries where Spanish is spoken. They must select relevant information in Spanish from a range of sources including the internet. The aim of the research project is to develop research skills.
Assessment overview: Students do three exams at the end of the two-year course.
Paper 1: Reading, Listening, Translation (2 hours and 30 minutes)
Paper 2: Writing – Essay Paper (2 hours)
Paper 3: Speaking Exam (21-23 minutes – including 5 minutes preparation time)
Homework /Independent Study Policy: There is obviously a heavy workload for Spanish, to garner the grammatical and linguistic fluency needed at this level. Students typically have a range of homework for different parts of the course, from grammatical practice, to vocabulary learning, to independent research and essay writing. On average, students should be completing around 5 hours of independent study per week outside of lessons, and most of this is directed by teachers.
Enrichment: Students studying A Level Spanish have had the opportunity to participate in residential trips to Spain. Over the last couple of years, students have had the chance to visit Andalucía, Valencia, and Barcelona and we hope to continue this over the next few years. Students have also taken part in trips to the theatre to see “La Casa de Bernarda Alba” and a tango show.