Spanish 301 - Spring 1997
TR 10:30AM-11:45AM Room: T110
Professor: Esperanza Román Mendoza
Telephone: 993-1232
E-mail:
eromanme@osf1.gmu.edu
Department of Modern and Classical Languages
George Mason University
Office: Thompson 235A
Office hours: TR 12:00-1:00PM and by appointment

Textbook

E. Dozier and Z. Iguina, Manual de gramática, Grammar Reference for Students of Spanish. Boston: Heinle and Heinle, 1995.

Course Objectives

1. Be able to supply a grammatical form when requested, such as the past subjunctive of traer, or the object pronoun necessary in a given situation. This involves knowing some grammatical terminology.

2. Be able to explain, by relating meaning to form, why a particular structure is used in a given context.

These two objectives will be evaluated in about seven in-class quizzes. The dates of these quizzes will be agreed on in class and posted in this space. The last quiz, not a comprehensive final exam, will be given during the final exam period, and if you have taken all the other quizzes you may choose to skip the last one. You will receive two separate grades for each quiz: one for accuracy (objective 1) and one for analysis (objective 2).

3. Find examples of particular grammatical structures.

For this objective you will keep a card file in which you record examples of structures from a list of categories that will be distributed and discussed in class. You need to find only one example from each category. No one is expected to find all of the items on the list, but the grade for this project will be determined by the number of different examples you are able to find in newspapers, magazines, and books, not including grammar books. The hidden agenda here is to get you to read material that you have selected because of its interest to you personally. You are also required to contribute to the electronic version of the class card file (more details in class).

4. Write narrative prose in Spanish with grammatical accuracy; spell accurately, including accent marks.

This objective will be evaluated in written paragraphs of 50-100 words. These papers will be graded entirely in light of the objective. An opportunity is provided to improve your grade by correcting inaccuracies. For this reason, please double space or write on alternate lines. Count the number of words in your paragraph and write the total at the end. The final versions of your compositions will be posted on the Web (more details in class).

The first paper is due Thursday, January 30, and should be a description of a store. The second is due Thursday, February 6; subsequent dates and topics will be announced in class and posted on the Web.

Determination of Course Grade

Each of the four objectives counts 25% of your final grade. For objectives 1 and 2 (quizzes) and 4 (writing), there will be several grades; for the card file there will be a single grade. A grade of A will be awarded for 90 per cent; B for 80, C for 70, D for 60.

Policy for Late and Makeup Assignments

1. If you have taken all of the first six quizzes you may exercise one of the following choices: skip the last quiz on the final exam day, or take the final quiz and drop your lowest quiz grade in each of the two categories. If you miss one quiz it does not need to be made up. If you miss two or more quizzes you will have to make a proposal stating what you propose to do in place of each missed quiz. Further discussions will then take place to determine how the missed work will be made up.

2. Writing assignments will not be accepted late. If you have an emergency on the date an assignment is due, you may have your paper delivered to the Department of Modern and Classical Languages within 24 hours. The Department's fax number is 993-1245. E-mail submissions will be accepted.

3. For the card file it is unfair to allow anyone extra time; therefore, only cards submitted by May 1 will be counted.

Schedule

The topics of this class will be studied in the following order. Few of the textbook exercises will be discussed in class; they should be completed on your own and checked against the answer keys in Appendix 3. Supplementary exercises and materials will also be distributed and posted on the Web, and will be discussed in class. These exercises will not be collected or graded, but they will form the basis for the quizzes. We will spend as much or as little time on each topic as seems appropriate. Each quiz will cover whatever has been discussed in class up to that date.

Reading Exercises
Accent Marks, Agreement, Prepositions
Chapter 1, section D2

Chapter 4, sections 3A, 3D, 3E, 3F

2-15 on pages 232-234; 7-9 on pages 245-246

Present, Imperfect, and Preterit Tenses

Chapter 5, sections 1A and 1B

Chapter 6, sections 1 and 2

all on pages 247-249; 1-4 on pages 256-257

Indicative vs. Subjunctive

Chapter 5, sections 3A, 3B, 4A1, 4A2

Chapter 6, section 7

1-6 on page 251; 1-2 on page 252; 1-5 on pages

252-253 and all exercises on pages 258-261

Future and Conditional Tenses

Chapter 5, sections 1C and 2A

Chapter 6, sections 4, 5, 6

"Simple Future" on page 250; "Present Conditional" on pages 250-251; "Future, Conditional, Probability" on pages 257-258

Ser vs. Estar

Chapter 7, sections A, B, C All exercises on page 264 except D

Pronouns

Chapter 3, sections A, B

Chapter 6, sections 9, 10

A and B on pages 239-242; exercises 1-5 on page

262; exercises 1-2 on page 263

Participles and Compound Tenses

Chapter 5, sections 1B3, 1B4, 1C2, 2B, 6A, 6B

Chapter 6, sections 3B,8B

"Present Perfect, Pluperfect, Future Perfect" on p. 250; "Conditional" on p. 251; "Participles" on p.255; exercises 3-6 on pp. 261-262