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You are watching the evening news at a friend's apartment in Medellin. The anchor on Noticias Caracol reports on a proposed tax reform, and suddenly everyone in the room has an opinion. Your friend's father says "Si bien es cierto que el pais necesita mas ingresos, no obstante, esta reforma castiga a la clase media." His wife counters: "Por un lado entiendo la preocupacion, pero por otro lado, alguien tiene que pagar los programas sociales." Their daughter adds: "A pesar de que el gobierno promete transparencia, la verdad es que nadie confia en que eso se cumpla." Three speakers, three different argumentation structures, all operating at B2 level. You understand the words, but the architecture of the arguments -- the connectors, the concessive clauses, the subjunctive tucked inside doubts -- that is what you need to master.
This lesson teaches you the grammar of argumentation for debating current events in Colombian Spanish. You will learn to build two-sided arguments, make concessions, and use the concessive subjunctive structures that separate B2 speakers from B1 speakers.
B2 Language Objectives
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
Colombian debate culture values ponderacion -- the ability to weigh both sides before committing to a position. The structures below signal that you are a thoughtful, educated speaker.
Structure 1: Por un lado... por otro lado
This is the workhorse of two-sided arguments. It literally means "on one hand... on the other hand."
| Component | Grammar | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Por un lado... | Introduces first perspective (indicative) | Por un lado, la economia esta creciendo... |
| por otro lado... | Introduces second perspective (indicative) | ...por otro lado, la desigualdad sigue aumentando. |
Structure 2: Si bien es cierto que..., no obstante...
This is the more sophisticated version. Si bien es cierto que concedes a point as true, then no obstante introduces a counterweight.
| Component | Grammar | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Si bien es cierto que... | Concession (indicative -- accepting as true) | Si bien es cierto que el turismo genera empleo... |
| no obstante / sin embargo... | Counter (indicative or subjunctive depending on claim) | ...no obstante, no creo que sea la solucion unica. |
Concessive clauses are the grammar of "even though." They are essential for debate because they let you acknowledge obstacles or opposing facts while maintaining your position.
The key rule: A pesar de que and aunque can take indicative OR subjunctive, and the choice changes the meaning.
| Structure | Mood | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aunque + indicative | Acknowledging a KNOWN fact | "Even though (and it IS true that)..." | Aunque el precio es alto, vale la pena. |
| Aunque + subjunctive | Hypothetical or conceding possibility | "Even if (it might be that)..." | Aunque el precio sea alto, vale la pena. |
| A pesar de que + indicative | Conceding a KNOWN fact | "Despite the fact that..." | A pesar de que la inflacion sube, la gente sigue consumiendo. |
| A pesar de que + subjunctive | Conceding something uncertain | "Even if it turns out that..." | A pesar de que la inflacion suba, debemos mantener el plan. |
The B2 distinction: Using indicative after aunque means "I know this is true AND I still hold my position." Using subjunctive means "Even IF this turns out to be true, I still hold my position." The first is stronger because you are conceding reality. The second is more hypothetical.
Complete: 'A pesar de que el gobierno _____ (prometer) cambios, nadie los ha visto todavia.'
At B2, you need connectors beyond pero and porque. Colombian debate uses a specific set of connectors that signal educated speech.
Concessive connectors (introducing a counterpoint despite what was just said):
| Connector | Register | Example |
|---|---|---|
| sin embargo | Neutral-formal | La propuesta es interesante. Sin embargo, tiene fallos importantes. |
| no obstante | Formal | Los resultados son positivos. No obstante, quedan dudas. |
| con todo / con todo y eso | Colloquial Colombian | Es caro. Con todo y eso, la gente lo compra. |
| aun asi | Neutral | Hubo protestas. Aun asi, el gobierno aprobo la ley. |
Additive connectors (building on an argument):
| Connector | Register | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ademas | Neutral | Ademas, hay que considerar el impacto ambiental. |
| de hecho | Emphatic | De hecho, los datos muestran lo contrario. |
| es mas | Escalating | Es mas, la situacion ha empeorado. |
| incluso | Inclusive/emphatic | Incluso los expertos estan divididos. |
Contrastive connectors (showing opposition):
| Connector | Register | Example |
|---|---|---|
| en cambio | Neutral | Bogota invierte en metro. En cambio, otras ciudades no. |
| por el contrario | Formal | Por el contrario, la evidencia sugiere otra cosa. |
| mientras que | Comparative | Mientras que Medellin avanza, otras regiones se quedan atras. |
Radio Debate on Colombian Education
Host: "Hoy debatimos: Es la educacion publica en Colombia suficiente?"
Panelista 1: "Si bien es cierto que ha habido mejoras en cobertura, no obstante, la calidad sigue siendo un desafio enorme. De hecho, las pruebas SABER muestran que el 60% de los estudiantes no alcanzan el nivel esperado en matematicas. Es mas, la brecha entre colegios publicos y privados se ha ampliado en la ultima decada."
Panelista 2: "Entiendo su preocupacion. Sin embargo, hay que reconocer que Colombia ha invertido mas en educacion que nunca. Aunque los resultados no sean perfectos, a pesar de que todavia hay mucho por mejorar, el progreso es real. En cambio, si miramos otros paises de la region, Colombia esta avanzando mas rapido."
Notice how each panelist uses 3-4 different connectors to build layered arguments. This density of connectors is what sounds "B2."
A B2 debate turn on a current event should follow this architecture:
"Este es un tema que afecta a todos los colombianos..." or "Es una pregunta que merece un analisis profundo..."
Use si bien es cierto que + indicative or aunque + indicative to show you have considered the other side.
No obstante, sin embargo, aun asi -- choose based on register.
Your Turn: Debate on Colombian Tourism
Topic: Should Colombia prioritize mass tourism or sustainable ecotourism?
Model B2 response: "Este es un tema crucial para el desarrollo del pais. Si bien es cierto que el turismo masivo genera mas ingresos a corto plazo, no obstante, no creo que sea sostenible para ecosistemas fragiles como la Sierra Nevada o el Amazonas. De hecho, segun datos de MinCIT, el ecoturismo ha crecido un 30% en los ultimos anos. Es mas, regiones como el Eje Cafetero han demostrado que el turismo sostenible puede ser rentable. Aunque el turismo masivo ofrezca numeros impresionantes, a pesar de que parezca la opcion mas rentable, yo diria que el ecoturismo protege lo que hace a Colombia unica. No deberiamos preguntarnos cual nos da mas dinero hoy, sino cual nos permite seguir teniendo algo que ofrecer manana?"
In formal Colombian debate, which opening is most appropriate for a B2 speaker?
To debate current events, you need topic-specific vocabulary. Here are high-frequency debate domains in Colombia with their key terms:
| Topic | Key B2 Vocabulary |
|---|---|
| Economy | la reforma tributaria (tax reform), la inflacion (inflation), el desempleo (unemployment), el salario minimo (minimum wage) |
| Environment | la deforestacion (deforestation), la mineria ilegal (illegal mining), las areas protegidas (protected areas), el cambio climatico |
| Education | la cobertura (coverage), la calidad educativa (education quality), las pruebas estandarizadas (standardized tests), la brecha (gap) |
| Security | el proceso de paz (peace process), la seguridad ciudadana (public safety), los grupos armados (armed groups) |
| Infrastructure | el metro de Bogota (Bogota metro), las vias terciarias (rural roads), la conectividad (connectivity) |
Which connector would you use to introduce a CONTRASTING example between two Colombian cities?
Weekly Debate Practice
Monday: Read an opinion column from El Espectador. Highlight every connector. Classify each as concessive, additive, or contrastive.
Tuesday-Wednesday: Choose a Colombian current event. Write a 5-sentence debate turn using the full structure (concession + pivot + evidence + escalation + close).
Thursday: Rewrite your debate turn, changing all indicative concessions to subjunctive hypotheticals. Notice how the meaning shifts.
Friday: Listen to a Colombian radio debate (Blu Radio or W Radio). Count how many times you hear sin embargo, no obstante, de hecho, and en cambio. Which is most common?
Weekend: Find a language partner and debate a topic for 5 minutes. Record it. Listen back and count your connectors -- a B2 speaker uses at least 3 different connectors per minute in debate.
Use de hecho, los datos muestran que, segun [source] to ground your position.
Add a second, stronger point that builds on the first.
Seria importante considerar..., No deberiamos preguntarnos si...?