UCL CENTRE FOR LANGUAGES
& INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION
Course Units 2015-2016
Spanish Current Affairs and Culture
(Social, Historical and Political)
Prerequisite for entry
Successful completion of Spanish for Business and Current Affairs at the UCL CLIE, have completed some post-‘A’ Level
training or spent some time in the country actively using the language.
Course duration
20 x 2-hour classes.
Self-Study
80 hours in total.
Course codes
LCSP6006, LCSPG006, LCSPM006, LCSP6056, LCSPG056 and LCSPM056 (together with Spanish for Business and Current
Affairs).
Aims and Objectives
The course is designed for advanced level students and comprises knowledge and understanding both of the structure of
the language and of the cultural (social, historical and political) contexts in which it is currently used. It enables participants
to use their language skills in an academic environment. The course covers recent history, current affairs and the latest
issues in society as well as other related topics. Students will give presentations and are involved in roundtable discussions
and debates on a variety of current issues. Cultural awareness will be further developed and raised within a
European/global context. The course will enhance knowledge and use of linguistically complex structures (a variety of
styles and registers from a range of authentic material). Various transferable skills will also be further developed.
Functions
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expressing opinions, critical topic-related comments;
debating, commenting, negotiating;
suggesting, accepting, refusing;
analysing social and cultural issues;
defining cultural concepts;
composing written pieces of information for different purposes;
conducting presentations on complex specialised topics.
Course Content
Main topics/themes proposed to be covered
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History of Spain;
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Spanish politics;
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Hispanic literature;
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Hispanic music;
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Hispanic film;
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History and Politics of Hispanic America;
Immigration;
The European Union.
Skills
Reading
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newspapers (politics and culture): reading for gist, scanning for specific information;
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in-depth analysis of socio-political and cultural topics in major newspapers/magazines.
Writing
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exploration of literary sources;
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analysis and review of articles;
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note-taking from presentations;
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writing up presentations.
Listening
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radio, television, film;
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presentations.
Speaking
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formal and informal discussions, debates, round table;
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presentations.
Linguistic Structures
Grammar and Vocabulary
•
emphasis on vocabulary;
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revision of the most advanced and challenging grammatical items, e.g. subordination;
•
use of the subjunctive:
- in clauses with "quienquiera que", "comoquiera que", "cuandoquiera que", etc.;
- in clauses like: ¡cómo creer que...!, ¡cómo pensar que...!
Discourse Strategies
analysing/comparing various sources (different text types);
preparing oral contributions for different audiences;
cohesion.
Main Aspects of These Strategies
structuring (logical structures);
linking devices (lexical, grammatical);
stylistic levels, formal registers and their usage;
format.
Learning Resources
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Dominio, Curso de perfeccionamiento, Dolores Galvez (Edelsa) – ISBN: 9783060300464
Materials for the course will be drawn from:
Authentic written material from various sources such as El País, ABC, Cambio 16, etc., as well as literature.
Authentic audio and audio-visual material (radio, television and film).
In addition there is a wide range of language learning materials available for self-study in the Self-Access Centre.