AQA Specifications

EnvironmentPollution, energy, protecting the planet

The multicultural societyImmigration, integration, racism

Contemporary social issuesWealth and poverty, law and order, impact of technical and scientific progress

Cultural topics Como Agua Para Chocolate

Films from Almódovar

Stimulus card discussion: 5 minutes Conversation: 10 minutes

Preparation Time: 20 min

Stimulus card:1 Sub-Topic chosen by candidate out of a choice of two.

Discussion: Discussion of Como Agua Para ChocolateDiscussion of Laberinto del Fauno

Last 5 minutes.

Candidate chooses 1 of the 2 points of view during the 20 mns preparation & may make unlimited notes during the preparation for use in the test.

Candidate informs the examiner at the start of the test which point of view she has chosen.

The examiner will focus solely on the sub-topic of the Stimulus Card; e.g. if the sub-topic is "La integración“, the examiner cannot ask questions about immigration or racism.

First Part: candidate presents her viewpoint

Lasts 1 minute. The candidate informs the examiner at the start

of the test which point of view she has chosen. Then brief, uninterrupted presentation of the

candidate‘s viewpoint lasting no more than one minute.

5 marks* (out of the 15 allocated for the Stimulus Card) are allocated for the 1st minute of presentation of the candidate‘s viewpoint.

First part - 5 marks overall

5 marks: Student develops a wide range of relevant points.4 marks: develops a number of relevant points3 marks: some relevant points made but little development2 marks: Responses brief and lacking in development

0-1 mark: No or very little meaningful response

.

Second Part: Challenging the candidate

Lasts 4 minutes The candidate is required to develop, defend,

and justify her views. The examiner will listen to the candidate‘s ideas &

opinions in order to challenge the candidate & play "Devil‘s advocate“

Examiner will give the candidate opportunities to defend & justify their opinion.

10 marks* (out of the 15 allocated for the Stimulus Card) are allocated for how the candidate responds to challenging questions & defends their viewpoint.

Second part - 10 marks overall

9-10 marks: Sustains meaningful exchange with very little prompting. Responds well to regular opportunities to react spontaneously. Can develop ideas & counter views. 7-8 marks: Responds reasonably well with some evidence of spontaneity. Reacts infrequently to opportunities to develop ideas & counter views.5-6 marks:Tends to react rather than initiate. Limited evidence of spontaneity in developing response to questions seeking views & opinions. More comfortable with factual information3-4 marks:Generally dependent on the examiner‘s prompting which elicits only occasional attempts to give additional information.0-2 marks: Minimal reaction with little or no development of responses independent of any prompting.

The discussion covers the two Cultural Topics studied: The book Como Agua Para Chocolate & the film Laberinto del FaunoLasts 10 minutes (approx. 5 minutes on each topic).The candidate is required to develop ideas and counter views to gain the highest marks.Factual knowledge alone limits the interaction mark to a maximum of 6 (out of 10). For a higher mark the candidate must show evidence of analysis & developing opinions.Examiner must respond & react to what the candidate says & challenge the candidate‘s response where appropriate.Fewer than 4 minutes on any topic will reduce the candidate‘s mark by one band.

Explain and exemplify Describe and define Compare and contrast Give opinions directly Questions that probe further candidate‘s

responses Questions that challenge candidate‘s responses Implications, consequences, other viewpoints What about? What if? questions Hypothetical mode: ¿Qué harías si tuvieras ....? Evaluating another stand-point

Fluency - 5 marks

Pronunciation and Intonation - 5 marks

Interaction - 10 marks

Knowledge of Grammar - 15 marks (awarded across both parts of the exam.)

develop, make notes of ideas and examples on all sub-topics,

have lots of opinions and reasons for them,

think about how to steer the conversation to topics you want to talk about,

know advanced phrases for giving, defending, contradicting opinions,

know phrases for giving examples and details,

Practise as much as possible with Isabel and in class!