Spanish 102

SPAN 102: Spanish II Beginning Spanish

Prerequisite: Spanish 101 or placement by examination

Credit Hours: (3)

A continuation of Spanish I with emphasis upon communication in both the present and past tense. Independent laboratory practice required. This course has been approved for credit in the Foreign Languages Area of the Core Curriculum.

Detailed Description of Content of Course

This course is conducted primarily in Spanish and represents the second semester of a four-semester sequence. The course is designed to develop the speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills in addition to instruction in basic information about Hispanic cultures in Latin America and Spain.

• Communicative functions focus on: describing an individual’s physical appearance and personality; talking about activities in the past; talking about food and ordering a meal; expressing obligation.
• Grammatical functions include: present and past tense verb forms; reflexive constructions; direct and indirect object pronouns.
• Task functions focus on: writing brief compositions; reading authentic materials (i.e. produced for native speakers) for information and pleasure.
• Cultural sections include information on: Argentina and other countries in South America; shopping hours; biographies of famous leaders; city profiles; literature; politics.

Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

Class instruction targets communication practice utilizing the situations, intentions, vocabulary, culture, and grammar introduced in a given chapter. Other activities include: grammar and vocabulary explanations, pronunciation practice, listening comprehension exercises, writing, and grammatical drills. Students must hand in workbook assignment based on taped materials in the laboratory and brief elementary compositions summarizing noncomplex texts dealing with cultural readings conducted on the WEB. Class is taught primarily in the target language.

Goals and Objectives of the Course

Speaking and listening goals (standardized ACTFL proficiency criteria): Students will be able to speak Spanish by relying heavily on learned utterances but occasionally expanding these through simple recombination of their elements. Students will be able to ask questions or make statements involving learned material. There will be some spontaneity, but speech will continue to consist primarily of learned phrases. Students will be able to pronounce nearly all Spanish sounds accurately when uttered in isolation and a growing number even in rapid speech. As regards listening skills, students will be able to understand short, learned phrases and some sentence-length utterances, particularly where context strongly supports understanding and speech is clearly audible.

Reading and writing goals (standardized ACTFL proficiency criteria): Students will be able to identify an increasing amount of learned material without assistance and to understand a limited amount of new material when supported by context or dictionary assistance. In writing, students will be able to reproduce a variety of learned phrases and some basic sentences by recombining learned material. Students will be able to meet a number of practical writing needs and write short, simple letters.

Students will achieve a degree of competence in a foreign language and culture. 

Students will be able to:

a. demonstrate language skills appropriate to the level of study

b. analyze similarities and differences between their own and the target cultures

c. xplain contemporary international issues from the perspectives of their own and the target cultures

Assessment Measures

Speaking progress is evaluated in class and in conversational practice. In addition, each student is required to pass two oral interviews. Written homework assignments provide a basis for the evaluation of writing progress. Listening and reading comprehension and grammatical accuracy are tested in homework assignments, hourly exams, chapter tests, and on the final exam. In most of these testing situations, SPAN 102 students will also either demonstrate or further expand their familiarity with cultural topics and current global issues. Students’ success in using Spanish will therefore reveal not only their linguistic abilities but also their cultural competence to anticipate and to simulate the use of different cultural perceptions and behaviors through the new language.

Other Course Information

To supplement linguistic and cultural encounters in class, students are expected to participate in some extracurricular activities such as conversations with native speakers, watching Spanish movies, and inquiring about Spanish-speaking cultures by means of the multitude of media available as informational resources. Additional taped materials, representing Spanish speakers from different areas and authentic video materials accompanying the subject matter of the text’s lessons are available in the language laboratory. The Foreign Language Department’s Homepage contains links to newspapers from every Spanish speaking country and to the most important newspapers published in Madrid, Mexico City, and Buenos Aires.

Approval and Subsequent Reviews

Date Action Reviewed by
September 2005 Reviewed Philip Sweet