CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE SYLLABUS FOR SPAN 1411/1412 BEGINNING SPANISH I INSTRUCTOR: OFFICE HOURS: 1. INTRODUCTION A. This course is designed to help learners build proficiency in Spanish and appreciation for the Spanish Language. It will also help students to develop an understanding of Hispanic cultures and their importance in the world, while providing contexts that reinforce usefulness of the Spanish language in today’s global economy, particularly in North America. B. This course may be used to fulfill language requirements as outlined in your degree plan as well as satisfy one of the humanities requirements. C. This course is occupationally related and serves as preparation for careers in bilingual education and many occupations where there is need because of the high numbers of Spanish speakers that will be encountered. I.e. Social Work, Hotel Motel Management, Medicine and many other jobs dealing with the public. 2. Learning outcomes Upon successful completion of the courses, the student will be able to: A. Identify basic vocabulary in context orally and in written form. B. Create sentences and questions to describe and illicit information about people, places and ideas. C. Explain various cultural practices throughout the Spanish speaking world.
3. Instructional materials Required text: (this means, you have to have this text): Con Brío package
4. Course requirements and rules. A. To attend class and laboratory sessions regularly. Leaving early, this means without my approval will result in an absence and points will be taken from your participation grade. Be very careful with absences, there are 25 points taken with each one of them from the participation grade and once you are in 0, points began to be taken off your other class activities. B. Complete all projects and activities on time, there is no make up work in this class. Please do not miss any exams and if you miss an exam you must bring the documentation to avoid penalties within a week after coming to class again. You must be prepared for class every time. C. Oral interviews will be conducted throughout the semester. Students are expected to perform on a daily basis and to participate in the activities assigned, remember a participation grade is at stake. D. To be present on all examinations, this includes quizzes also. There are no make up quizzes, there will be some in class make up activities but none will be dropped. E. The students must be present throughout the entire class time, leaving early or coming late 5 minutes will result in a tardy, and three (3) tardies equal an absence, coming 15 minutes after class equals an absence plus a tardy for interrupting. Please be very careful with your timing!. A student is allowed one tardy with no penalty, but each subsequent tardy takes 5 points off from participation grade. Each absence, (15 minutes late) and coming in the class late equals 25 points taken off at once. All the points are deducted from the participation grade and other activities. Interruptions of class, talking with your friends, listening to music, your cell phone not being turned off, text messaging or anything done that distracts the instructor from teaching will result in 5 points off participation grade as well. F. No eating and drinking (including water) in the classroom at any time, if you need to take medicine please go to the restroom. No chewing gum allowed in the class since this is a Language class and you need to speak clearly working on your accent. Violations of these rules will result in the deduction of 10 points after the first time I warn you and 25 points for each subsequent violation of this. G. No plagiarism in this class will be tolerated H. On the 6th absence, a student could face withdrawal from the class for classes that meet every day (4 days a week) or at the end of the third absence if your class meets twice a week, there are no excused absences at CTC. I. The pace of the course is based on the amount of material that must be covered throughout the semester not on individual student needs, please keep up. At the end of the semester the Final exam will include all the material that was agreed whether it was covered or not since this is the only way to guarantee the chance of success in the next level. J. If a student misses a class, he/she must refer to the list of phone numbers and email list to find out what the assignments are. K. A student can be also withdrawn if they miss 2 major exams (not quizzes) since the completion of the assignments required for the course is in jeopardy. Taking the Final is also imperative, the student must have taken the Final Exam, a grade of FN (an F as final
grade in the course) will be administered if this requirement is not met. During exams the door is locked to prevent interruptions, you must be on time for exams. L. All the rules are to benefit those students that are responsible and protect them from interruptions and distractions in the class. M. In order to practice your Spanish with different people and in order to hear different accents, as it would be in real life, the students must not sit next to the same student two days in a row. Failure to this can result in the deduction of participation points. Only students with medical conditions do not have to move. N. It is also recommended that if a student has a question or does not understand something in class to please wait for the instructor to finish explaining to the rest of the class and lift their hand up until called upon. It is not recommended that the student seek help from other students at the same time the instructor explains the material. This is considered an interruption and points will be deducted from participation. Those students who understand the material must refrain from explaining or helping other students while the instructor is talking. This is in order to avoid confusion and distraction to other students. 5. Tips for studying There are many different ways to study for this class; the key is being able to memorize a large amount of information in a short period of time. Start this process early, it is always recommended to be ahead of the instructor and the material presented any given day in a class. 1. Make sure you are getting enough sleep since staying late at night hampers your chances of retaining material in your memory bank the next day. 2. You can create your own flashcards with vocabulary words. Remember, the more you are involved in the process of writing, talking, listening, and reading in the language the faster you will learn. 3. Bring a tape recorder (digitals are the best) to class in order to get used to my accent and to be able to review the lectures in the comfort of your house. This will also help you with note taking since you will not be distracted in class taking notes and repeating after me when I ask you. You also need a dictionary in this class, without that you are going to be lost. I cannot stop my class to translate every single word for the student since they can do that with a dictionary. 4. Read newspapers in Spanish, even if you don't understand make an effort, read stories that you are a bit familiarized with in English so it will be easier. Remember the more time you spend using the language the faster you will understand. 5. Stay during lab if you don't understand, I always ask if there are questions, if there is no answer I assume you understand and move on. If you have questions don't hesitate in asking, sometimes it's even better to wait until lab to ask because I can address your question with more time than in regular class time. Remember during class time I must cover an X amount of material and I might not be able to hold the class without covering the material required. Newspapers in Spanish:
www.clarin.com.ar (Argentina) www.elmundo.es (Spain) www.eltiempo.com (Colombia) www.eluniversal.com.mex (Mexico) www.emol.com (Chile) Some sites that can help with Spanish besides the one with the textbook: www.wordreference.com www.Studyspanish.com (exercises) www.verbix.com/webverbix/ (verb conjugator) www.spaleon.com (exercises with verb conjugations) www.elmadrid.com (also verb conjugator) http://www.trinity.edu/mstroud/grammar/ (exercises) http://www.lingolex.com/accents.htm (accent explanations) http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~edrod/span/rules.jpg (explanation for accent marks)
Distribution of the grade. Exam 1 Exam 2 Exam 3
20% 20% 20%
September 8-11 October 13-16 November 17-20
Class assignments 20% (quizzes, oral interviews, workbook, homework, participation, online activities) Final 20% (12pm MW class: 11-1 pm Monday Dec 8 ------ 12pm TTh class: 11-1 pm Tuesday Dec 9------3pm class MW 2-4 Monday Dec 8----- 6pm MW class: 6-8 pm Monday Dec 8) . Holidays September 1 Labor Day November 11 Veteran's day November 27 Thanksgiving Day Dec 8-11 Finals week