This exam tips covers Errores frecuentes — Common Errors within Social media + digital world — Higher: complex opinions for GCSE Spanish. Revise Social media + digital world — Higher: complex opinions in Theme 2 — Popular Culture for GCSE Spanish with 13 exam-style questions and 12 flashcards. Use this page as part of a wider topic revision path rather than treating it as an isolated fact. It is section 3 of 4 in this topic. Treat this as a marking guide for what examiners are looking for, not just a fact list.
💡 Errores frecuentes — Common Errors
❌ Error 1: "Sigo muchos influencers en las redes."
✅ Correcto: "Sigo a muchos influencers en las redes."
Por qué: When seguir means "to follow a person", it requires the personal a before the human object. In Spanish, direct objects that are specific, identified people must be preceded by the preposition a — this is called the a personal. Examples: sigo a mis amigos, sigo a los influencers, sigo a esta cantante. The personal a cannot be omitted when you are following people. (Note: if the object were a non-specific or non-human noun — e.g. sigo una dieta — the personal a is not used. But for influencers, friends, and named individuals: always include it.)
❌ Error 2: "Sería mejor si habría más control en internet."
✅ Correcto: "Sería mejor si hubiera más control en internet."
Por qué: In conditional sentences with si expressing a hypothesis or wish, the si-clause requires the imperfect subjunctive — not the conditional. Habría is the conditional of haber; it belongs in the result clause, not after si. The correct pattern is: si + imperfect subjunctive (hubiera) → conditional (sería). So: si hubiera más control → sería mejor. Putting habría after si is one of the most common Higher-level errors in AQA writing and the examiner will mark it as a grammatical inaccuracy. Never write si + conditional.