SPANISH LEVELS.
What do Spanish levels mean?
A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2 are a way of describing how your Spanish develops over time: what you can understand, what you can communicate and how independently you can use the language.
A1 - A2
Basic User
B1 - B2
Independent User
C1 - C2
Proficient User
A1 to C2.
What can you do at each Spanish level?
Each level describes a broader range of things you can understand and communicate in Spanish. As you progress, you can deal with more situations, express more complex ideas and use the language with greater independence.
A1
Basic user
You can understand and use simple, familiar Spanish in everyday situations. You can introduce yourself, ask and answer basic questions and have short conversations when the other person speaks clearly and gives you time.
A2
Basic user
You can understand common Spanish used in everyday situations and communicate in familiar contexts. You can talk about yourself, work, travel, shopping and other routine topics, even if conversations still need to stay fairly simple.
B1
Independent user
You can follow the main points of clear Spanish on familiar topics and manage many everyday situations in Spanish. You can talk about experiences, plans and opinions and keep a conversation going without relying on prepared phrases.
B2
Independent user
You can understand more detailed conversations and texts and communicate with increasing ease and spontaneity. You can explain your ideas clearly, give reasons for your opinions and take part in conversations on a much wider range of topics.
C1
Proficient user
You can understand demanding Spanish and communicate fluently and flexibly across a wide range of situations. You can express complex ideas clearly, adapt how you speak or write and choose your language with greater precision.
C2
Proficient user
You can understand almost everything you hear or read and communicate very fluently, precisely and naturally. You can adapt your Spanish to complex situations and express subtle differences in meaning with ease.
UNDERSTANDING PROGRESS.
A level doesn't tell the whole story.
You might understand more Spanish than you feel able to speak, or know the grammar but find it harder to use spontaneously. Different parts of your Spanish can develop at different speeds.
Understanding.
You may understand more than you can say.
Listening and reading can develop differently from speaking and writing, so your strengths may not always develop at the same pace.
Using the language.
Knowing something isn’t the same as using it.
Grammar and vocabulary give you tools, but progress also means being able to use them when you actually need them.
Independence.
Progress is about what you can do with Spanish.
As your Spanish develops, you can communicate in more situations, express more complex ideas and rely less on help or preparation.
How we use A1 to C2 at El Patio.
We use A1 to C2 as a shared reference for understanding where your Spanish is now and what kind of group will help you keep progressing.
A shared reference.
CEFR gives us a common language for talking about progress.
A1 to C2 helps us describe your broad level of Spanish and understand the kind of support and challenge that may suit you best.
A teaching level.
Your group is a place to learn, not a box to fit into.
Students at the same broad level can still have different strengths, different gaps and different levels of confidence. We use the level as a guide, not as a rigid label.
Progress takes time.
One course doesn’t equal one CEFR level.
Our regular courses run in 8-week blocks, but language development is continuous. You may spend several courses building, practising and consolidating within the same broad CEFR level.
FIND YOUR LEVEL.
Not sure where you fit?
The next step depends on whether you’re starting Spanish from zero or have studied before.