Spanish & Portuguese Basic Language Program

TULANE UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE

SPANISH 1010: INTRODUCTORY SPANISH I       

EXTENDED SYLLABUS

Required Texts:

Cuadrado, Charo, Pilar Melero, Enrique Sacristán and Jan Underwood. Protagonistas: A Communicative Approach, Vista Higher Learning, 2012, plus accompanying Supersite Access (ISBN: 978-1-61767-072-5)

Bilingual Visual Spanish-English Dictionary. New York: DK Publishing, 2005.

Recommended Materials:

A Spanish-English dictionary of your choice (Larousse Concise or Oxford recommended).

Electronic Resources:

www.vhlcentral.com
www.wordreference.com

I. Goals

A. Tulane University Department of Spanish and Portuguese Basic Language Program Objectives:

The main objectives guiding the program are to:

• introduce students to the language and culture of the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking world
• promote the development of students' communicative competence in the target language
• develop students’ intercultural understanding and social conscience of problems that affect this cultural complex.

B. Course Goals: Following the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages’ (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines 2012, Spanish 1010 seeks to increase students’ Spanish-speaking ability to a novice mid-novice high proficiency level via the Course Objectives listed below. For an extended explanation see http://actflproficiencyguidelines2012.org/

In general terms, a Novice High speaker can converse about "basic personal information, basic objects and a limited number of activities, preferences and immediate needs in straightforward social situations; respond to simple, direct questions or requests for information; and ask formulaic questions" (ACTFL).

II. Course Objectives for Spanish 1010

Based upon the National Standards for Foreign Language Learning, the course objectives are centered around the 5Cs of:

A. Communication: the use of Spanish.

Students will learn how to:

• Exchange basic greetings       
• Discuss their university studies
• Talk about their family structure and relatives
• Describe their homes and hometowns
• Talk about and order food and drinks
  
• Explain their daily routine
• Discuss their leisure time and activities, including sports, pastimes and parties
  
• Talk about other people and their lives
  
• Complete a purchase at a store               
  
• In each of these situations, ask the other person about their own life

To do the above, students will use, with some control:

• gender and number agreement in nouns and adjectives
• present, preterite, present perfect and ir+a+future tense
• relevant vocabulary and syntax for question formation
  
• the verb gustar
• some uses of the verbs ser and estar
• formal and informal registers
  
• some prepositions
  
• possessive adjectives

B. Cultures: gain knowledge and understanding of Hispanic cultures.

Through the accompanying readings and videos, students will learn about a range of peoples and cultures from Latin America and Spain.
 
C. Communities: participate in a community of language learners and in a multilingual world.

Through group and class work, students will participate in a community of language learners, preparing themselves to use Spanish throughout their lives. As a group, students will explore their own notion of community as this compares to this concept in the Hispanic world.  

D. Comparisons: make informed comparisons between English and Spanish and between themselves and others.

Students will compare ideas with each other in pair and group work based upon the conversational goals of each chapter. Students will compare their own life with that of the interviewees presented throughout Protagonistas. In linguistic terms, students will reflect on how the structures of Spanish compare to the structures of English and other languages they know.

E. Connections: the ability to connect this course to other courses and self to others.

The different themes explored in each chapter will allow students to make connections between their own cultural traditions and those of some members of the Hispanic world, with particular emphasis on the ideas presented in the interviews that the students watch and read.

III. Outcomes

Students will demonstrate that they have met the...

A. Communication Objectives via their ability to produce the vocabulary and structural forms necessary for the stated topics in written (exams, essays, quizzes, on-line assignments) and oral (oral exams, skits, presentation, debate, participation) work.

B. Cultures Objectives via their ability to discuss these points during in-class discussions as well as reflectively in the writing exercises and exams.

C. Community Objectives via their oral work and class participation.

D. Comparisons Objectives via their class participation and written work.

E. Connections Objectives via their class participation work and through their written work.

IV. Assessment

A. Grades are based on the standard 10-point scale:

B. Grade Breakdown: Your grade will be determined according to the following criteria:

20% Unit Exams (2)
15% Final Exam
15% Essays (3)
5%   Listening Comprehension Quizzes (2)
10% Oral exams (2)
5%   Skit
5%   Presentation
10% Debate (Oral 5%, Written 5%)
10% Participation and Quizzes
5% On-line Assignments

C. Expectations for each category are as follows. Students will demonstrate that they have met the Objectives stated above by successful completion of these assignments. See calendar for assignment due dates.

Unit Exams (20%): There will be 2 communicative, essay-based exams, each worth 10% of the final grade. Language learning is inherently cumulative: each exam will focus upon the material of study for that unit, with the assumption that all previously studied material will be utilized as needed. Each exam will focus on interpretive, interpersonal and presentational modes of communication as well as intercultural competencies. Students can expect exams to include short readings, essays and reflective questions.

Final Exam (15%): The final exam will be similar in format to the written exams, with short readings, essays and reflective questions, but it will also include a listening comprehension portion. The vocabulary and cultural information will primarily be drawn from the last chapters studied; however, the entire range of grammatical material studied throughout the semester is expected to be utilized.

Essays (20%): Students will complete a series of four writing assignments based upon activities in the textbook. Each entry will be graded individually for accuracy as well as creativity. USING TRANSLATION PROGRAMS OR HAVING ANOTHER PERSON DO THIS WRITING ASSIGNMENT CONSTITUTE CHEATING AND ARE CLEAR VIOLATIONS OF THE HONOR CODE.

Listening Comprehension Quizzes (5%): Students will complete two short listening comprehension quizzes. The format of the quizzes will vary and may include use of the interviews utilized for a given chapter; listening to short anecdotes read by the instructor, after which the student would respond to discrete questions about it; or listening to a series of questions posited by the instructor, with the student expected to write their responses to the questions.

Oral Exams (10%): At two points in the semester, students will engage in a conversation about their personal interests that includes the instructor and a classmate (5% each). Students will be graded individually, based upon their accuracy and the content and fluidity of their side of the conversation.

Skit (5%): At two points in the semester, small groups of students will perform short skits to demonstrate their ability to use the material they have been studying to complete a given task (i.e. ordering food in a restaurant; negotiate a price at a market). All students will complete one (1) skit for a grade.

Presentation (5%): At two points in the semester, individual students will give short presentations to demonstrate their ability to use the material they have been studying to present a specific issue (i.e. present the schedule of a professional, narrate the life of a friend or family member). They also have to hand in written documentation of the presentation. All students will complete one (1) presentation for a grade.

Debate (5%): At the end of the semester students will have a full class debate about a particular topic. Small groups will present their take on the designated issue to the class, and all students will then have to discuss arguments in favor of and against the issue. As a class, you will have to come to an agreement on the topic. The debate will last at least 30 minutes (including the initial presentations). Students will be evaluated based upon their individual contributions to their group’s presentation AND their participation in and contributions to the full class discussion.

Participation and Quizzes (10%): Active participation and regular attendance is crucial to the learning of a language. The participation grade is based both on the quantity and the quality of a student’s participation, with quality being determined by active, on-task participation in class, group and pair activities, obvious preparation of homework, volunteerism, use of Spanish in class, and overall preparedness. Excessive absenteeism will result in a substantial drop in this grade, as will tardiness. Inappropriate use of technology during class will negatively affect this grade. Short announced and unannounced quizzes will be administered regularly over the course of the semester. Quizzes may cover any of the course materials including grammar, culture and vocabulary. No make-ups will be given; however, at your instructor’s discretion, the lowest grade may be dropped.

On-line Manual (5%): Regular usage of the electronic manual (vhlcentral.com) is required and will be monitored. All students should complete at least 25% of the on-line exercises. At the instructor's discretion, specific exercises may be indicated or students may be asked to select based upon their individual needs. Students should note that a direct correlation has been observed between final grade in the course and regular completion of the manual exercises, with students who work regularly on the manual generally attaining higher grades in the course, in all grading categories.