BaseLang Real World vs. DELE: How to Pick a Program

UPDATE: Students with a Real World subscription now get access to DELE for free.

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So want to signup with BaseLang, but don’t know which program is for you? Or perhaps you’re already a student, and want to know how DELE is different from Real World?

You’re in the right place.

In this post, I’m going to explain the differences between our Real World and DELE programs, so you can decide which one is better for you.

These programs really could not be more different. Not only do they use different sets of teachers, but how the classes and curriculums are setup are complete opposites.

Real World

Real World is completely focused on real world conversations. It’s focused almost completely on listening and speaking, and spends little to no time on reading and writing, though you’ll still be able to do both decently if you can speak. This is the right program for the vast majority of people, as it’s designed to get you conversational and then fluent as quickly as possible, for real-world conversational uses.

Real World uses a lot of conversational classes and pure conversation time, which is extremely effective for this purpose. The curriculum has ten levels, which progress you through vocab and grammar in a way to give you what you need for conversations, and then fluency.

DELE

Meanwhile, DELE is very academic. This program is for two types of people: those who want a much more rigid, academic program, and those prepping for the DELE exam. There is very little free-flowing conversation time in this program. Instead, there are four types of classes in DELE:

Test-Prep.
This is DELE-specific test preparation, with a heavy focus on listening and reading.

Grammar.
These are deep-dive classes to explain the details of specific parts of Spanish grammar.

Skills Improvement.
These are classes that work at improving your skills in all four major areas: reading, writing, speaking, and listening. These are not DELE-specific, but very structured. While not “built” for DELE, they will help you prep for it.

Coaching.
Coaching classes are a more free-flowing class, not structured like the other three types. In these, which you can do just by requesting it at the beginning of the class, the teacher can:

• Look into your progress and help you find areas where you are weak, and tell you what to work on based on that.
• Have a free-flow conversations with you for practice.

It’s important to understand, again, that BaseLang DELE has almost no free-flow conversation built in. While you can do this with your coach, if conversational is the style of learning you prefer, this program is not for you – Real World is.

Depending on your goals, you’ll spend time in different class types.

Students prepping for the DELE exam will focus on the Test-Prep category, and supplement with Grammar and Skills Improvement as needed and suggested by their coach.

Students who just want more structure will focus on the Skills Improvement classes, and supplement with Grammar classes. They may also take some Test-Prep classes to test their skills, but these are not needed.

For both types of student, the occasional classes with your Coach will let you have some free-flow conversations, and to get advice on where to focus your time.

Unlike Real World, DELE sometimes includes homework, which you’ll be able to submit on that Lesson’s page. Instructions will be included on the lesson page, and the place to submit the homework (text and/or voice recording) will be at the bottom of the page. Not all classes have this, though.