SPANISH 302

 

Spring 2006

 

TR 1:30pm-4:15pm  IH333

 

 

Course Syllabus

 

Prof. Erin McCabe

Instructor, Spanish Department

Office: Thompson 215b

Telephone: 703-993-1229

Office hours: TR 1030-1130am, and by appt.

Email: emccabe@gmu.edu

Website: http://mason.gmu.edu/~emccabe (You will find many useful links here)

 

Course description

SPAN 302 is designed for students who have completed SPAN 202 or 209 or, achieved an appropriate placement test score (or, can demonstrate an equivalent level of proficiency) and plan to continue studying the language. This six-credit course introduces reading and writing strategies to begin studying Spanish at an advanced level.

 

Objectives

·        To develop reading skills in Spanish so that students can understand different kinds of texts and interact with other readers about their content, structure, and style.

·        To develop written skills in Spanish so that students can produce different kinds of texts.

·        To enhance the process of writing by means of both a peer review process and a draft/feedback/revision process.

·        To incorporate the reading and writing abilities learned throughout the course into class discussions, daily conversations, and creative endeavors.

·        To learn how to use different types of reference materials, especially printed dictionaries.

 

Materials

·        Colombi, Pelliterri & Rodríguez. Palabra abierta. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001.

·        The Oxford Spanish Dictionary. Spanish-English/English-Spanish. Oxford: Oxford University Press (Please do not purchase any other dictionary).  

·        Selection of readings prepared for the course and distributed in class.

·        GMU E-mail account and experience in using the Web.  If you are not familiar with the Web, STAR offers classes.

·        Diskette or ISB Memory Stick to store your work.

·        Money on your MasonCard to print your class assignments.

 

Assessment

The progress made by students in this class will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

        Preparation, participation and homework     20%    Carpeta      15%
        Graded written assignments                          30%    Final exam 20%

        Film project                                                    15%

 

The final letter grade for the class will be assigned as follows:      

98-100  A+             87-89   B+      77-79  C+          60-69 D

93-97    A               83-86   B        73-76  C             0-59  F

90-92    A-              80-82   B-       70-72  C-

 

Preparation, participation and homework (20%)

Students are required to contribute to all class discussions and are expected to speak only Spanish. In order to actively participate in class, students need to read the material assigned for each class, and do the homework and class activities assigned by the instructor.  Please see Participation explanation at the end of this syllabus for further clarification.  Daily class activities will include a variety of readings and writing 150-200 word paragraphs every class meeting, which will be turned in for a homework grade. All work submitted for a grade has to be typed, double-spaced, and labeled correctly (including a word count, assignment title, etc.). Students that arrive late are being disruptive and may also miss some important information given at the beginning of class. Students are responsible for all material covered in class. It is important to exchange phone and e-mail information with at least two classmates in the event absence from class is unavoidable.

 

Graded written assignments (30%)

Five graded written assignments (Ensayos 1-5) will be collected throughout the semester which will be completed at home and in class through a peer review process as well as a draft/feedback/revision process. The written assignments will start with a 300-word composition and end with a 500-word composition as the semester progresses. All work submitted for a grade has to be typed, double-spaced, and labeled correctly (including a word count). Late Assignments will not be accepted. 

 

 Tabla de errores and guia de correcciones

 

Film project (15%)

The end-of-the-semester film project will be based on one movie related to the topics covered in this course; movies will be assigned by mid April. The project includes an oral presentation as well as a research paper. There will be two separate grades for the film project: the first one will be based on the oral performance of each student, the second grade will be based on the research paper. More details will be given in class.

 

Carpeta (15%)

Students will compile a portfolio in which they will include:

 

a) the daily homework from Acercándonos al tema, Acercándonos al texto, Interactuando con el texto   and  Actividades;

b) short, typed class assignments from Creando textos A y B;

c) long, graded written assignments from Creando nuevos textos;

d) reflexions from the section Palabra abierta- Carpeta de escritura; and

e) a 500-word essay on the writing process performed in this course  (due at the end of the course).

 

Every written assignment must be corrected and a final version, along with the original draft, must be included in the portfolio. More details will be given in class.  The Carpeta will be collected twice during the semester.

 

Final Exam (20%)

There will be one written test in this course.  This in-class exam will evaluate the students’ ability to interact with a text and write about it using the strategies and skills learned in class. 

 

hONOR cODE

Exams, presentations and all written assignments must be done independently unless I tell you otherwise. Please be aware that “proofreading” from an outside source is a violation of academic honesty.  Consult the GMU Honor Code for complete information and description of the Honor Code:

(http://jiju.gmu.edu/catalog/apolicies/honor.html). 

 

Disability Services:

If you are a student with a disability and you need academic accommodations, please see me and contact the Disability Resource Center (DRC) at 993-2474.  All academic accommodations must be arranged through the DRC.

 

 

All cell phones and pagers must be off and out of sight during class time.  Otherwise, you will be serenading us. :)

 

 

 

 

PROGRAMA* SPAN 302

FECHA

CONTENIDO

 

24, 26 y 31 de enero

2 y 7 de febrero

 

Introducción

1. Las relaciones: Descubriendo los lazos humanos

Textos de Tony Mendoza, Peri Rossi.

La comunicación periodística

9, 14, 16 y 21 de febrero

2. La familia: Explorando la evolución del mundo humano

Textos de Alfonso Reyes, Inmaculada de la Fuente y Elizabeth Subercaseaux

Introducción al ensayo

23 y 28 de febrero

1 de marzo

3. La sociedad: Integrándonos en el entorno social

Textos de Carol Michaels O'Laughlin y leyenda de los indios Miskitos

Tema, tesis y tono de un ensayo

7, 9, 21, 23 y 28 de marzo

4. Mujer y sociedad: Una exploración de perspectivas diferentes

Textos de Alfonsina Storni, Rosario Ferré y Rosa Montero

Párrafos de desarrollo

 

30 de abril

4, 6 y 11 de abril

 

5. El realismo mágico: Una visión latinoamericana del mundo

Textos de Arturo Uslar Pietri, Isabel Allende, Julio Cortázar y Gabriel García Márquez

La cohesión entre los párrafos de desarrollo y la conclusión y

La conclusión del ensayo

13, 18 y 20 de abril

 

6. Fronteras: La experiencia latina en los Estados Unidos

Textos de Manual Martín-Rodríguez y Francisco X. Alarcón

La argumentación

25 y 27 de abril

 

7. La identidad de los latinos:

«Dos culturas, dos lenguas y dos visiones del mundo»

Textos de Dolores Prida y Esmeralda Santiago

La monografía

2 y 4 de mayo

 

Presentaciones en grupo

11 de mayo

1:30 p.m. - 4:15 p.m.

 

EXAMEN FINAL

*sujeto a cambio

 

 

 

 

 

 

Participation Criteria:

 

The A student: Attends class on time, has prepared all the homework, pays attention to the instructor and fellow students, asks questions and speaks in Spanish all the time, actively participates and volunteers, stays on task in group and class work, learns from mistakes.

 

The B student: Attends class on time, has prepared the homework, speaks Spanish but also uses some English, participates and volunteers most of the time, stays on task in group and class work, makes a few mistakes that have been discussed in class.

 

The C student: Misses class, has not prepared all the homework, does not make an effort to speak in Spanish, sometimes participates in group and class work, does not learn from mistakes.

 

The D student: Misses a lot of classes or comes in late, does not prepare homework, does not make an effort to speak in Spanish, is disruptive during class, and does not stay on task during group or class work.

 

Please note, active participation is integral to this class; showing up for class does not constitute an A participation grade.  Since this is a Spanish class, you must use your Spanish.  We’ll help you! :)