Categories: General
      Date: Apr 16, 2015
     Title: A Comparative Look at Publishers of Spanish Learning Material

A Comparative Look at Publishers of Spanish Learning Material

An important question to consider when learning and practicing Spanish, as a student or a teacher, is what study material to use.

In the last few years the industry of publishers dedicated exclusively or nearly exclusively to producing Spanish learning resources has experienced significant growth.

Below we offer an overview and evaluation of the learning manuals on offer from the point of view of a student learning Spanish.

The most relevant publishers offering these materials are, in chronological order according to their appearance on the market, the following:

• SGEL (http://ele.sgel.es/) is the veteran of the bunch. It’s existed since 1970 and in the last few years they’ve created a Spanish learning section. This publishing company has Spanish manuals that cover levels up to B2 and also separate titles for the rest of the levels (C1 and C2). Their books on DELE exam preparation don’t cover all levels. Useful titles for teachers are Vademecum and the magazine Carabela.
• Edelsa (http://www.edelsa.es/) has been exclusively dedicated to Spanish learning since 1986. They offer several manuals that cover all levels and they have DELE preparation manuals for all levels. They also have publication on culture and a wide catalog of graded readers. They also have books on educational research.
• Difusión (http://www.difusion.com/) has been exclusively dedicated to Spanish learning since 1988. They have a large assortment of manuals (15) that cover all levels. They also have manuals specifically designed to prepare for the DELE exam but not for all levels (they don’t have B1 for schools or C2). They have graded readers up to level B2.
• SM (http://www.grupo-sm.com/) is a publishing company that mainly produces material for grade school and high school education. They got into the field of Spanish language learning in 1992.
• Edinumen (https://www.edinumen.es/) has also specialized in Spanish learning material since 1999. They offer manuals for all levels and they have specific publications for preparing to take the DELE exam at all levels including B1 for schools. Their graded readers cover all levels and they have a number of titles for Spanish teaching.
• AnayaELE (http://www.anayaele.com/) is another publisher that’s present in grade school and high school education and which has worked in the field of Spanish language learning since the year 2000. They offer various general manuals but none of them covers all levels (from A1 to C2). They don’t have material specifically designed to prepare to take the DELE exam.
• SantillanaELE (http://www.sanillanaele.com/) is another publisher that’s present in grade school and high school education and that’s worked in the field of Spanish language learning since the year 2000. It receives support from the University of Salamanca.
• Enclave (http://www.enclave-ele.com/) is one of the latest to publish Spanish learning material. They’ve been present in the market since 2005.

We hope this review has been useful in your search for specific Spanish study or teaching resources.