Introductory description

This module will consolidate linguistic skills acquired in the intermediate year and extend them through translation, writing, reading, speaking and listening activities.
A range of assessments will be offered for students to track and reflect on their progress through the provision of regular feedback. Students will also be provided with complementary autonomous learning activities and directed to appropriate activities for self-study in order to develop independent learning strategies.

Module web page

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

Translation: into English and into Spanish, covering range of discourses, from literary texts and essays to
journalistic pieces. Aims are to encourage students to reflect on the practice of translation, to consider
how best to render each text in a way which is both linguistically accurate and sympathetic to the style and
context of the original.

Writing: building on year 2/3 work, students will produce a series of discursive texts in a variety of
registers and styles, involving prior reading, research and peer-review. Emphasis will be placed on style, the
deepening of vocabulary knowledge and the use of complex grammatical structures.

Oral: students will research and prepare a series of oral presentations and debates, focused on developing
appropriate argumentation and discussion structures and vocabulary, as well as peer learning and group
work.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• Highly proficient independent language-learning and research skills.
• The acquisition of sophisticated skills in grammar, translation, writing and reading in Spanish and the ability to apply complex syntax in various contexts
• The acquisition of sophisticated skills of aural comprehension and oral communication over a wide range of topics, showing familiarity with different varieties of Spanish in the world, registers and styles.
• Sophisticated ability to understand and critically engage with aspects of contemporary Hispanic society and culture and intercultural issues associated with them
• A systematic approach to proof reading with due attention to accuracy

International

All modules delivered in SMLC are necessarily international. Students engage with themes and ideas from a culture other than that of the UK and employ their linguistic skills in the analysis of primary materials from a non-Anglophone context. Students will also be encouraged to draw on the experiences of visiting exchange students in the classroom and will frequently engage with theoretical and critical frameworks from across the world.

Subject specific skills

This module will build students’ linguistic skills through activities that stimulate authentic target language production and develop sensitivity to the transference of meaning across languages. Students will work towards the production of nuanced, accurate and contextually sensitive materials through a range of language classes and guided independent learning.

Transferable skills

All SMLC culture modules demand critical and analytical engagement with artefacts from target-language cultures. In the course of independent study, class work and assessment students will develop the following skills: written and oral communication, creative and critical thinking, problem solving and analysis, time management and organisation, independent research in both English and their target language(s), intercultural understanding and the ability to mediate between languages and cultures, ICT literacy in both English and the target language(s), personal responsibility and the exercise of initiative.