Spanish: Intermediate Conversation



Overview

Experience this dynamic and interactive Spanish conversation class to refine your conversational skills in a range of familiar situations at work, place of study, leisure places or whilst travelling abroad.

To benefit from the course, participants should have done one of the following:

1. Studied Spanish for approximately three years.

2. Completed Parts 1 and 2 of our Spanish: Intermediate level.

3. Achieved or are near the B1 Level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages.

Programme details

Course starts: 22 Apr 2026

Join us to enhance your conversational skills across various domains, including personal, social and professional contexts. Through engaging activities, multimedia resources, and interactive discussions, you will build confidence in listening and speaking. The course will help expand your vocabulary, refine grammar accuracy, and improve fluency while discussing topics such as travel, relationships, work and hobbies. We will explore nuanced language use, including formal and informal registers, and some idiomatic expressions.

Our open-access courses cater for mixed-ability groups, fostering collaborative learning where students work together to achieve their learning goals. The weekly course schedule below provides an overview of the main topics that are likely to be covered in each session. Please note that these may sometimes change according to the tutor’s discretion to reflect the interests of course participants.

Week 1: How did it all begin?

Week 2: Turning points and life decisions

Week 3: Living elsewhere – immigration, travel, and identity

Week 4: Dilemmas and what would you do?

Week 5: Utopias and fears – the world we’d like (or not) to see

Week 6: The power of storytelling – myths, legends and personal tales

Week 7: Food, identity and cultural memory

Week 8: Work, ambition and what defines success

Week 9: Media, misinformation and digital life

Week 10: Rituals, celebrations and how we mark time

Grammar points:

- Pretérito indefinido, imperfecto, and pretérito perfecto

- Pretérito pluscuamperfecto, narrative review, conditionals

- The present subjunctive in expressions of emotion, opinion, and uncertainty

- The imperfect subjunctive and conditional (second conditional)

- The subjunctive mood, future expressions, speculative conditionals

- Reported speech (estilo indirecto), use of se in impersonal constructions

- Relative clauses and cohesive devices for narration

- Por vs para in abstract and figurative use

- The passive voice and reflexive passive

- Prepositions and discourse connectors in the more complex expression of thoughts

Key functions

- Origin stories, first memories, important past experiences

- Reflecting on personal and historical "what ifs" and key decisions

- Exploring what it means to live abroad or between cultures

- Moral or social dilemmas, giving advice, role-playing problem solving

- Imagining better (or worse) futures: environment, society, AI, politics

- Telling personal or fictional stories, using tension and detail

- Connecting food and memory, sharing traditions and identity

- Discussing career paths, values and personal definitions of success

- Analysing digital culture, expressing opinions on news and media

- Describing and comparing traditions, reflecting on the passage of time

Textbooks

No Course book required. All course materials will be provided by the course tutor.

Certification

Digital badge

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be issued with an official digital badge from the Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford. In order to be issued with your badge, you will need to have attended at least 80% of the course.

After the course, you will receive an email with a link and instructions on how to download your digital badge. You will be able to add this badge to your email signature and share it on social media if you choose to do so. 

Fees

Description Costs
Course fee £300.00

Funding

If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. Please see the below link for full details:

Concessionary fees for short courses

Tutors

Mr Esteban Cichello Hubner

Esteban Cichello-Hubner studied International Relations, Applied Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition at Hertford College, University of Oxford and completed a teaching degree at the OU Education Department.  He then pursued his Spanish Philology studies at the University of Salamanca.  Esteban is an author and an experienced foreign modern languages tutor who has taught several courses at the Oxford University Language Centre and OUDCE.

 

Leonardo Sagor is a qualified Modern Foreign Languages tutor from South America with extensive teaching experience at the University of Oxford’s Department for Continuing Education and the Oxford Language Centre. He studied at the University of Salamanca and earned his PGCE from the University of Bedfordshire. A musician and vocalist, Leonardo has recorded for the Michel Thomas language courses. His dynamic, culturally rich lessons aim to create a fun and immersive classroom experience that brings the language to life. A passionate traveller, he has explored over 50 countries, adding a global perspective to his teaching.

Mr Leonardo Sanchez Gorosito

Leonardo Sagor is a native qualified Modern Foreign Languages tutor. He is originally from South America and has taught several courses at the Oxford University Department for Continuing Education throughout his career. He is also a composer, a guitar player and a talented singer. Leonardo graduated from  the University of Salamanca and obtained his PGCE at the University of Bedfordshire. He is a tireless traveller who has explored more than 50 countries. He recorded his voice for the legendary Michel Thomas language courses and is currently working on teaching Spanish through cinema.

Course aims

Enhance learners' conversational skills to interact confidently in familiar situations, at work and while travelling in a country where the language is spoken.

Course objectives:

1) Develop learners’ comprehension skills to understand the language of diverse speakers, including different accents and faster speech.

2) Enhance fluency through class activities that cover a variety of situations likely to be encountered at work, in social contexts and while travelling abroad.

3) Encourage the use of a variety of lexical repertoire and grammar structures to construct clear and coherent sentences.

4) Consolidate understanding of cultural nuances, some idiomatic expressions, and social etiquette.

Teaching methods

Our language courses promote collaborative learning, encouraging peer interaction and real-life activities. You will learn through participating in engaging activities and tasks in the target language. These are likely to include role-plays, pair- and small-group work, and discussions conducted in a friendly and informal learning environment. The course has been structured to help you primarily to develop your speaking and listening skills.

Join us to improve your proficiency and conversational skills in a supportive and stimulating environment!

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be better prepared to:

1) understand standard speech at natural speed in a variety of situations likely to be encountered at work, in social contexts and while travelling abroad.

2) speak confidently in a variety of contexts, initiating and maintaining conversations on a range of topics.

3) use a range of lexical repertoire and grammar structures to express ideas and give reasons.

4) recognise cultural nuances and some idiomatic expressions.

Assessment methods

Formative assessment will be implemented through a series of class activities and tasks, such as discussions, debates, role-plays, and presentations. Comprehension tasks using audio and video materials may be used to assess learners' understanding of spoken language. Participants are encouraged to participate in class activities to benefit from tutor feedback.

Application

Please use the 'Book now' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an Enrolment form for short courses | Oxford University Department for Continuing Education

Level and demands

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Terms & conditions for applicants and students

Information on financial support