CCEA A-Level · Analysis & Prediction

2023 CCEA A-Level Spanish 5750 Past Paper: Analysis & Answers

This examination bundle covers CCEA GCE Spanish A2 2 Section A (Listening) and A2 3 (Extended Writing). The Listening paper assesses high-register socio-political comprehension in Spanish and English across themes of housing vulnerability and illegal transit migration. The Extended Writing paper requires an analytical essay in Spanish on one set literary text, assessed across understanding (AO2 - 35 marks), cultural knowledge/analysis (AO4 - 20 marks), and target language accuracy (AO3 - 20 marks).

Updated: 31 Aug 2026

Analysis Sample paper

Difficulty 3.7/5

Total marks

100

Duration

105 mins

Most tested

A2 3 Literary Text Extended Analysis & A2 2 Contemporary Societal Issues Listening

Paper breakdown

Assessment Unit A2 2 (Section A) Listening: 25 marks · 45 minsAssessment Unit A2 3 Extended Writing: 75 marks · 60 mins

Top chapters

García Lorca: La Casa de Bernarda Alba (A2 3: Extended Writing) · 75 marksSender: Réquiem por un Campesino Español (A2 3: Extended Writing) · 75 marksOur Place in a Changing World: Immigration and Emigration (A2 2: Listening and Reading) · 15 marksOur Place in a Changing World: Poverty at Home and Abroad (A2 2: Listening and Reading) · 10 marks

Overall Verdict & Exam Overview

The CCEA GCE Spanish A2 assessment suite tests advanced receptive listening precision alongside evaluative literary prose. A2 2 Section A carries 25 marks across two recordings: Question 1 targets nuanced listening with responses required in Spanish (10 marks), while Question 2 requires detailed factual extraction in English (15 marks). A2 3 Extended Writing provides a choice of four literary works (Lorca, Muñoz Molina, Sender, and Neruda) evaluated out of 75 marks over a strict 1-hour timeframe.

Where the Marks Are Won and Lost

In Section A (Listening), high performance depends on isolating precise qualifiers rather than giving generalised summaries. In Question 1, candidates frequently lose marks when lifting verbatim phrasing without tailoring it to the grammatical constraint of the prompt, or missing key social nuances (e.g., distinguishing property rights from rights to dignified housing). In Question 2, exact numbers, conditions, and explicit hazards (such as physical rail dangers versus cartel violence) must be catalogued completely to access full marks.

In A2 3 (Extended Writing), the lion's share of credit lies in AO2 (35 marks) and AO4 (20 marks). Merely narrating the plot or describing character actions caps marks at Band 3. Top-band essays immediately adopt an analytical register, directly addressing the prompt's central tension (e.g., evaluating narrator reliability in El dueño del secreto or assessing the justification of tyranny in La casa de Bernarda Alba) with purposeful textual evidence and cohesive discourse markers.

Strategic Revision & Exam Technique

Listening Segmentation: Practise noting specific causal links and numerical data on initial playback before finalising concise answers. Maintain the required response language strictly (Spanish for Q1, English for Q2).
Essay Architecture: Allocate 5 minutes to outline a balanced thesis with 3–4 thematic pillars before writing. Ensure every paragraph ends with an evaluative statement tying back to the prompt question.
Target Language Range (AO3): Incorporate high-utility A2 structures—such as concessive clauses, passive/impersonal constructions, and accurate subjunctive triggers—without sacrificing grammatical accuracy in agreement and verb conjugation.

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Charts

Marks by chapter

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Question type mix

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Extended Essay (Option Choice)75 marks · 1 questions
Short Answer Listening in English15 marks · 9 questions
Short Answer Listening in Spanish10 marks · 6 questions

Mark accessibility

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65%within easy or medium reach

easy: 15 marksmedium: 50 markshard: 35 marks

Command word frequency

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Skill weighting

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Study ROI

Bigger bubbles recur more often; higher bubbles carry more marks, helping you rank revision priorities.

Literary Critical Essay Structuring and Thematic Evidence (A2 3)

75 marks · Difficulty 3.8 · recurrence 100%

Contemporary Migration & Social Vulnerability Listening Comprehension (A2 2)

25 marks · Difficulty 3.4 · recurrence 95%

Target Language Accuracy & Idiomatic Register (AO3)

20 marks · Difficulty 4 · recurrence 100%

Time vs marks

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marksmins

Next-year prediction

Topics worth watching next year, with the reason shown directly below each bar.

Extended Writing: Sender's Historical Allegory vs Lorca's Social Codes95%

Set texts remain fixed across examination cycles; questions will shift focus from individual culpability toward broader symbolic/allegorical dimensions.

Our Place in a Changing World: Sustainable Living and Environmental Issues88%

Sustainable living and green transitions have high syllabus priority but were not the primary focus of this series' A2 2 listening paper.

Young People in Society: Societal Attitudes and Democracy82%

Youth political engagement and democratic participation alternate frequently with poverty and migration contexts in A2 2 listening topics.

Cumulative marks ladder

The line is your running mark total question by question; dashed lines are the estimated grade cut-offs. See which question the line crosses your target grade at, so you know how far you must answer cleanly and which questions decide a band.

Examiner insights

Official report

Common pitfalls

In Listening Q1, copying whole audio sentences indiscriminately rather than targeting the exact phrase that answers the question.
Mixing response languages by writing in Spanish for Q2 or English for Q1, leading to automatic loss of credit.
Treating the A2 3 essay as a plot synopsis rather than structuring each paragraph around critical evaluation of the prompt.
Failing to budget time in A2 3, leaving inadequate time for an analytical conclusion and proofreading of verb endings and adjectival agreements.

Misconceptions

Believing that high lexical volume alone guarantees a top AO3 score; accuracy and syntactic control are weighted equally alongside complexity.
Assuming only one literary interpretation is acceptable, whereas CCEA mark schemes explicitly credit divergent, well-substantiated arguments.
Assuming that approximate listening answers in English will be awarded marks without explicit specific details (e.g. citing 'danger' instead of 'threat of serious injury or death').

Where marks are lost

Omitting the second half of two-mark composite listening sub-questions.
Grammatical slips in high-frequency structures (e.g., gustar constructions, ser vs estar, gender agreements) that drag AO3 into lower bands.
Unsubstantiated assertions in literary essays without direct, contextualised references to specific scenes, characters, or poetic devices.

Estimated grade boundary

Updated: 31 Aug 2026

Source: CCEA

Grade	Mark	Percentage
A*	—	90%
A	—	80%
B	—	70%
C	—	60%
D	—	50%
E	—	40%

Official grade boundaries published by CCEA.

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