Proyecto 3: Debate moderado
Chapter Objectives
This is an integrated assessment chapter. By the end of it, you will be able to:
- Present a recommendation using the present subjunctive after expressions of influence, desire, necessity, or emotion (Chapter 11).
- Respond to doubt or denial using the subjunctive after expressions of uncertainty and indefinite antecedents (Chapter 12).
- Propose real and hypothetical conditions using si clauses with the present/future and the imperfect subjunctive with the conditional (Chapter 13).
- Concede a known or uncertain obstacle with aunque, and state a purpose or condition for a proposal using para que, antes de que, or sin que (Chapter 14).
- Participate in a moderated debate that negotiates a solution, combining these four systems in connected, spontaneous discourse.
- Edit spoken and written argumentation for accuracy in mood selection, agreement, and register.
This chapter introduces no major new productive grammar system. It consolidates and assesses the recommendation, doubt, conditional, and concession/purpose systems developed across Chapters 11 through 14.
Communication Scenario
The neighborhood association has scheduled a moderated meeting to decide how to expand the volunteer program discussed in Chapters 11 through 14. Some members want to recruit more volunteers immediately; others doubt the group has the resources to train them well. Camila has agreed to moderate. Each participant must recommend a course of action, respond honestly to doubts raised by others, and propose a condition or purpose that would make their plan work, while acknowledging at least one real obstacle.
- Before the debate, review the four systems this project draws on: recommendation, doubt, condition, and concession/purpose. You will need all four to participate fully.
- Think of a real disagreement you have witnessed or imagined about resources, time, or responsibility. Notice how people in that disagreement recommend, doubt, set conditions, and concede points without abandoning their position.
Recycled Language for the Debate
Purpose: to consolidate, not expand, the vocabulary and expressions needed to recommend, doubt, propose conditions, and concede obstacles in a moderated discussion. No new vocabulary domain is introduced in this chapter.
| Función | Expresión recuperada | Capítulo de origen |
|---|---|---|
| Recomendar | recomiendo que, es importante que, sugiero que | Capítulo 11 |
| Expresar duda o negación | dudo que, no creo que, no es cierto que | Capítulo 12 |
| Antecedente indefinido | no hay nadie que, buscamos una solución que | Capítulo 12 |
| Condición real o futura | si + presente, ... futuro/presente | Capítulo 13 |
| Condición hipotética | si + imperfecto de subjuntivo, ... condicional | Capítulo 13 |
| Concesión (hecho conocido) | aunque + indicativo | Capítulo 14 |
| Concesión (posibilidad) | aunque + subjuntivo | Capítulo 14 |
| Propósito | para que + subjuntivo | Capítulo 14 |
| Tiempo previo / exclusión | antes de que, sin que + subjuntivo | Capítulo 14 |
| Negociar | estoy de acuerdo en parte, propongo un término medio, ¿qué tal si...? | Recuperado y consolidado |
No item in this table is new. Each expression is drawn directly from a system already activated in Chapters 11 through 14 and is presented here only to support fluent recall during the debate.
Grammar Review: El lenguaje del debate
Purpose: to review, without introducing new content, how the four systems from this unit combine naturally inside a single argument.
A single well-formed argument in this debate often moves through all four systems in sequence: a recommendation, a response to doubt, a condition, and a concession.
- Recomendación: Recomiendo que contratemos a dos coordinadores más.
- Respuesta a la duda: Entiendo que algunos duden que tengamos fondos suficientes, pero el presupuesto lo permite.
- Condición: Si conseguimos el apoyo del ayuntamiento, podríamos contratarlos este mismo mes.
- Concesión y propósito: Aunque el proceso de contratación tome tiempo, empezaremos ahora para que el programa esté listo antes de que termine el año.
Review the mood each connector requires before the debate: que after recommendation and doubt verbs, si clauses following the pattern that matches real versus hypothetical conditions, and aunque/para que/antes de que/sin que following the fact-versus-possibility and same-subject-versus-different-subject rules from Chapter 14.
Repaso controlado:
- Completa con la forma correcta: Sugiero que el comité _____ (buscar) más voluntarios este trimestre.
- Completa: No creo que _____ (haber) suficiente tiempo para organizar todo antes del evento.
- Completa: Si el ayuntamiento nos _____ (dar) más fondos, ampliaríamos el programa el próximo año.
- Completa: Aunque el presupuesto _____ (ser, hecho) limitado este año, seguiremos adelante con el plan.
Model Debate Excerpt
Camila moderates as Don Rafael and Marisol debate whether to expand the volunteer program this year.
Listening Task
Ask your instructor, a partner, or a text-to-speech tool to read the model debate excerpt aloud, twice. As you listen, identify one instance of each of the four systems below and write the exact clause you heard.
| Sistema | Cláusula escuchada |
|---|---|
| Recomendación | ______ |
| Duda | ______ |
| Condición | ______ |
| Concesión o propósito | ______ |
Reading Task
Reread the model debate excerpt above, then complete the following analysis independently or with a partner.
- Identify each clause that uses the subjunctive and state which of the four systems (recommendation, doubt, condition, concession/purpose) triggers it.
- Find the sentence with a real condition (si + present) and explain why it does not use the subjunctive.
- Explain how Marisol's proposal para que tengamos tiempo... sin que el equipo se sienta abrumado combines two connectors from Chapter 14 in a single sentence.
- Identify the moment where Don Rafael concedes part of his position without abandoning his original recommendation, and explain what language signals that partial agreement.
Writing Workshop: Propuesta para el debate
Before the debate, write a short position paper (eight to ten sentences) on the topic your instructor assigns, or on the volunteer-program expansion from the scenario above. Your position paper must include all four systems below. No major new grammar is introduced for this task; every structure comes from Chapters 11 through 14.
- Recomendación. Write at least one recommendation using the present subjunctive.
- Respuesta a la duda. Anticipate an objection and respond to it using an expression of doubt or an indefinite antecedent with the subjunctive.
- Condición. Include one real or hypothetical si clause.
- Concesión y propósito. Include one clause with aunque and one with para que, antes de que, or sin que.
- Revisa. Check your draft against the checklist below before the debate.
Lista de revisión:
- My recommendation uses the subjunctive correctly after an expression of influence or necessity.
- My response to doubt uses the subjunctive correctly after an expression of doubt or an indefinite antecedent.
- I chose the correct pattern for a real versus a hypothetical si clause.
- I used the indicative or subjunctive after aunque based on fact versus possibility.
- I checked the subject of each clause before choosing between the subjunctive and the infinitive after para, antes de, or sin.
- My accents, capitalization, and punctuation are correct throughout.
Speaking Task: El debate
Práctica controlada
With a partner, take turns reading aloud the model debate excerpt, paying attention to the shift between recommendation, doubt, condition, and concession in each turn.
Tarea comunicativa: Debate moderado
In groups of three, assign the roles of moderador/a, proponente, and escéptico/a. Using your position papers from the Writing Workshop, hold a five-minute moderated debate on the assigned topic. The proponent must recommend a course of action and concede at least one real obstacle; the skeptic must raise at least one doubt and one condition; the moderator must summarize the negotiated solution at the end, using at least one purpose clause.
Alternativa individual
If you are studying independently: record yourself presenting your position paper as if to a committee, then record a second version in which you respond to an imagined objection, set a condition for your proposal, and concede one obstacle. Listen back and check your verb forms after each of the four connectors reviewed in this chapter.
Culture and Communication
Moderated discussion in neighborhood associations, cooperatives, student assemblies, and similar community bodies is common across many Spanish-speaking contexts, and the language of negotiation often values acknowledging the other side's point directly (entiendo que..., es una duda razonable) before restating one's own position. This pattern of partial agreement followed by a counter-proposal reflects a widely used negotiation style rather than a single national custom, and it appears in many languages and communities in similar forms.
Phrases such as estoy de acuerdo en parte and propongo un término medio are broadly understood across the Spanish-speaking world. Some regions favor alternative negotiation phrases, such as a ver si nos ponemos de acuerdo; these are presented here for recognition only and do not replace the productive expressions used in this course.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Error: Using the indicative after an expression of doubt — Dudo que tenemos suficientes coordinadores.
Correction: Doubt and denial require the subjunctive: Dudo que tengamos suficientes coordinadores.
Error: Mixing a real condition with the imperfect subjunctive pattern — Si consiguiéramos más fondos, ampliamos el programa este trimestre. (when the speaker means a plausible, near-future possibility)
Correction: A real, likely condition uses the present indicative and a future or present result: Si conseguimos más fondos, ampliaremos el programa este trimestre. Reserve the imperfect subjunctive and conditional for a condition the speaker treats as less likely or contrary to fact.
Error: Conceding a point in a way that abandons the speaker's own recommendation entirely, rather than negotiating a middle ground — simply agreeing without restating a position.
Correction: Effective negotiation in this debate format acknowledges the other side and restates or adjusts one's own position: Estoy de acuerdo en parte, pero recomiendo que...
Chapter Review
Parte A — Recomendación y duda
1. Completa: Recomiendo que el comité _____ (revisar) el presupuesto antes de decidir; No creo que _____ (ser) necesario cancelar el proyecto.
Parte B — Condiciones
1. Completa: Si el comité _____ (aprobar) el plan, empezaremos el mes que viene; Si tuviéramos más voluntarios, _____ (poder, nosotros) atender a más familias.
Parte C — Concesión y propósito
1. Completa: Aunque el proceso _____ (tomar, hecho) tiempo, vale la pena; Vamos a capacitar a los voluntarios para que _____ (estar) listos antes de que _____ (empezar) el trimestre.
Parte D — Integración
1. Escribe un argumento breve de tres o cuatro oraciones que combine una recomendación, una respuesta a la duda, una condición y una concesión sobre un tema de tu elección.
Practical Performance Task
Tarea práctica — Capítulo 15
Proyecto 3: Debate moderado
Complete the following integrated assessment task:
- Submit the position paper from the Writing Workshop (eight to ten sentences, including all four systems: recommendation, doubt, condition, and concession/purpose).
- Answer the four Reading Task questions in writing, based on the model debate excerpt.
- Complete the Listening Task chart above.
- Participate in the moderated debate from the Speaking Task, or record the independent-study alternative, demonstrating all four systems in spontaneous discourse.
Portafolio del capítulo
- Written position paper covering recommendation, doubt, condition, and concession/purpose.
- Completed reading analysis of the model debate excerpt.
- Completed listening chart.
- Notes or a recording from the debate, showing negotiation of a solution.
| Criterio | Logrado | En desarrollo |
|---|---|---|
| Recomendación con subjuntivo | Forma correcta y apropiada al contexto | Forma inconsistente o verbo en indicativo |
| Respuesta a la duda | Subjuntivo correcto tras duda o antecedente indefinido | Uso incorrecto del modo tras la duda |
| Condición (real o hipotética) | Patrón correcto según el tipo de condición | Los dos tipos de condición se confunden |
| Concesión y propósito | Distingue hecho de posibilidad; usa para que/infinitivo correctamente | No distingue hecho de posibilidad o confunde sujeto único con cambio de sujeto |
| Negociación e interacción | Reconoce el punto contrario y propone una solución | Repite su posición sin responder al argumento contrario |
| Precisión ortográfica y de registro | Acentos, puntuación y registro consistentes | Errores frecuentes que afectan la claridad |
Answer Key
Grammar Review Practice
- busque
- haya
- diera
- es
Listening Task
Model answers: Recomendación — Recomiendo que ampliemos el programa a dos barrios más; Duda — Dudo que tengamos suficientes coordinadores capacitados; Condición — Si capacitamos a los voluntarios actuales antes de que empiece el trimestre, podríamos manejarlo; Concesión o propósito — Aunque el presupuesto es limitado este año, tenemos suficiente para empezar or para que tengamos tiempo de evaluar los resultados sin que el equipo se sienta abrumado.
Reading Task — Model Analysis
1. ampliemos (recomendación), tengamos (duda), capacitemos... empiece (condición/tiempo previo), se sienta (propósito). 2. Si el ayuntamiento nos da más fondos, ampliaríamos... is not present in this excerpt as a present-tense real condition; the excerpt's conditions use present indicative in the si clause, which does not require the subjunctive because the speaker treats the condition as plausible. 3. Marisol combines para que (purpose: so that they have time) with sin que (exclusion: without the team feeling overwhelmed) in a single sentence, both governed by the subjunctive because each clause has a different subject from the main verb. 4. Don Rafael says Estoy de acuerdo en parte and then restates a modified version of his original recommendation, showing that he concedes Marisol's point about starting smaller while keeping his underlying goal.
Chapter Review — Parte A
Model answer: revise; sea.
Chapter Review — Parte B
Model answer: aprueba; podríamos.
Chapter Review — Parte C
Model answer: toma; estén; empiece.
Chapter Review — Parte D
Model answer: Recomiendo que empecemos el proyecto este mes. Entiendo que algunos duden que tengamos suficiente personal, pero si capacitamos a dos voluntarios más, podremos manejarlo. Aunque el calendario es ajustado, seguiremos adelante para que el programa esté listo antes de que termine el año.
Looking Ahead
Lo que ya sabes
You have now used recommendation, doubt, real and hypothetical conditions, and concession or purpose together in a single negotiated discussion, both in writing and in spontaneous speech. Camila's committee — and you — can recommend a plan, respond honestly to doubt, propose a condition, and concede an obstacle without losing sight of a workable solution. These four systems remain fully active for the rest of the volume.