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Santander

Spanish Language and Culture Trimester - Spring 1 2009
Spanish Language

100
Language Level: Intermediate
Placement Exam Required
Spanish Language * Required
Language of Instruction: Spanish
Course taken with: International Students
Menéndez Pelayo International University-Santander (Santander, Spain)

Course Description

Area of Study

Language and Culture

Hours & Credits

100

Hours of Instruction

6

Semester Credit Units

10

Quarter Credit Units

Prerequisites and Language Level

Note: A placement exam will be required when you arrive on site.

Intermediate
This course is designed for students who have completed or tested out of a minimum of two semesters (or three quarters) of college-level Spanish. However, students must take a placement exam to determine the course level into which they will be able to enroll.

Overview

Overview:
This course studies the grammatical and communicative aspects of the Spanish language. This course is designed for those students who have had at least 2 semesters of college level Spanish. The overall objective of this class is to increase vocabulary and communicative competency. Students work on the aspects of describing, giving directions, getting information, narrating and describing in the past, reacting to events through the use of the subjunctive, comparing, narrating in the future, and hypothesizing. Specific grammar covered but not limited to: preterite versus imperfect, future, superlatives, gustar and similar verbs, sentences with porque and para, si clauses, and formation and derivation of words.

Evaluation: The student will be evaluated on daily oral and written exercises, classroom participation, a mid-term exam, and a final exam.There will be written and oral practice exercises.

The section on Spanish Culture gives an organized and systematic view of contemporary Spain focusing primarily on history, art, and culture.
The following subjects will be covered:
a) Contemporary history of Spain from the Second Republic until the present.
b) Principle artistic and cultural movements within the above period.
c) Institutions: a description of the present-day Spanish State.
d) Economic and political life: a panorama of present-day Spain.
e) Aspects of everyday life: Schedules, food, customs, and past times of Spaniards.

Within these general guidelines, the professor in charge of this course will strive to make sure all explanations reference the everyday life that the students will experience while in Spain.

The material the students work with will be presented and elaborated by the professor who will keep in mind the necessities and suggestions of the students. Some sources that will be used include: newspapers, magazines, television news, etc. This course requires the active participation of the students.

The evaluation will consist of classroom participation, projects, and a final exam.