At the end of this 4-credit course students will be able to:
Advance and practice skills gained in previous levels and during this course.
Construct arguments and logically develop a conversation based on opinions.
Research has demonstrated that study abroad can enhance every aspect of language ability. One of the most important general findings of this research is, however, that study abroad is most beneficial for the development of abilities related to social interaction. Students who go abroad are able to learn how to produce language in a variety of situations, such as the making of requests, the use of compliments, and apologies, and they also may develop skills to interpret such interactions within the local cultural context. In short, and logically, study abroad has been shown to enhance the aspects of communicative competence that are most difficult to foster in classroom settings (IES Abroad MAP for Language and Intercultural Communication, p. 6).
Prerequisites:
Proficiency at a level equivalent to the outcomes mastered through IES Abroad's SP 301, as determined by placement test.
Attendance policy:
Attendance is mandatory for all IES classes, including field studies. Any exams, tests, presentations, or other work missed due to student absences can only be rescheduled in cases of documented medical or family emergencies. If a student misses more than three classes in any course half a letter grade will be deducted from the final grade for every additional absence. Seven absences in any course will result in a failing grade.
Learning outcomes:
Students who are placed in this level should be capable of achieving the outcomes in the Novice Abroad level as defined by the IES Abroad MAP for Language and Intercultural Communication.
By the end of the course, students will be able to achieve some of the outcomes for the Emerging Independent Abroad level as defined by the MAP for Language and Intercultural Communication. The key learning outcomes from the MAP are summarized below:
I. Intercultural Communication
A. Students will be able to solve many daily troublesome situations and meet needs with limited help.
B. Increasingly, students will be able to make informed comparisons between the host culture and the students’ home cultures.
C. Students will be able to distinguish and begin to imitate verbal and non verbal communication that reflects politeness, formality, or informality.
D. Students will be able to recognize some patterns of intonation, their meaning, and cultural implications.
II. Listening
A. Students will be able to understand some interactions of increasing complexity (media, speeches, music, conversations, etc.), especially if the speaker is used to interacting with non-native speakers.
B. Students will be able to understand many direct requests, questions, and basic conversations on familiar and concrete topics.
III. Speaking
A. Increasingly, students will be able to talk about persons and things in their immediate environment, as well as their plans and their experiences, and they can provide a limited amount of supporting details.
B. Students will be able to address and attempt to resolve moderately complicated situations involving familiar subjects.
IV. Reading
A. Students will be able to read passages and short texts (advertisements, schedules, menus, recipes, etc.) and understand overall meaning.
B. Students will be able to support their understanding of texts through the use of context, dictionaries, or with the assistance of others at times.
V. Writing
A. Students will be able to communicate with some effectiveness through notes, emails, and simple online discussions and chats.
B. Students will be able to write short essays on concrete topics of limited levels of complexity with some reliance on the communicative patterns of their native language.
Method of presentation:
Language instructors direct tasks, group and pair work, individual and group oral presentations, intensive and extensive readings, listening activities, class discussion, role plays, and audiovisual activities that will lead students to develop and improve their language skills in and out of the classroom.
Required work and form of assessment:
Midterm: 10%; Final Exam: 20%; Oral Exams (2 exams): 10%; Quizzes (6 quizzes minimum on listening, speaking, reading, writing, intercultural communication): 15%; Video/Oral presentation: 10%; Compositions: 15%; Field studies: 10%; Class participation: 10%.
content:
Week
Content
Assignments
Corresponding Learning Outcome(s)
Week 1
Unit 1
1.Functional: Asking for/Giving information; talking about coincidences; describing oneself.
2.Grammatical: Indefinite/perfect and contrast; time expressions.
3.Vocabulary: Adjectives to describe personality.
4.Culture: University life (Erasmus / IES...); Spanish and American working life.
-Description of people/students using adjectives to describe character
- Past tenses and time expressions/markers
I.A ;III.A;IV.A
V.A
Week 2
Unit 1
1.Functional: Resume and letter of interest; talking about the past/present.
2.Grammatical: Expressing activities with relation to time.
3.Vocabulary: Information about oneself: Address, house, likes and dislikes; interests/hobbies.
4.Culture: Curriculum vitae and letters; Famous and relevant Spaniards.
- Talking about own experiences using expressions to talk about actions with relation to time
-The making of our Spanish curriculum vitae and letter of interest
I.B-C ;II.B
III.A-B; IV.A-B
V.A-B
Week 3
Unit 2
1.Functional: Describing a city: Locations, characteristics.
2.Grammatical: Uses of SER / ESTAR and contrast.
3.Vocabulary: Surveys; talking on the phone.
4.Culture: Spare time in Spain/USA.
- Description of places and people
-Same words, different meaning
-Field Study
I.A;II.A
III.A;IV.A.B
V.A
Week 4
Unit 2
1.Functional: Expressing recommendations for travelling.
2.Grammatical: Relative clauses with indicative and subjunctive; prepositions.
3.Vocabulary: Adjectives to describe people, places and objects; discourse markers.
4.Culture: Life in Spain (family, lifestyle, employment)
-Edward Hopper: Painting hypothesis
-The planet’s future
-Final exam
III.A.B; V.A
III. A.B; IV. B
Required readings:
Textbook. Estudios Hispánicos. Universidad de Barcelona. (2008). Destino Erasmus 2. Madrid: SGEL.
Recommended readings:
Dictionary
Brief Biography of Instructor:
Laura Vázquez was born in Madrid. She has been teaching Spanish and Spanish Cinema to American students for over 10 years, and has been a Faculty Regional Educational Technology Specialist at IES Abroad Barcelona since 2011. She studied Spanish literature in Madrid, during which time she also lived in Italy for a year studying literature and Italian as an Erasmus student. In 2001, she spent 7 months in the U.S., teaching Spanish and Spanish Cinema in Washington and Lee University (VA). She is now writing her doctoral dissertation on intercultural studies and cinema. She loves multiculturalism, new technologies, and learning about other cultures, which is always very important in her job.
Nieves Borrego was born in Burgos (Spain) and earned a degree in Spanish Philology at the University of Salamanca. Before finishing her degree, she completed her junior year at the University of Birmingham (UK). She earned a Masters degree in Spanish Literature at The Pennsylvania State University, where she was also a Teaching Assistant at the Department of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese from 2000 to 2003. She has been teaching Spanish at IES Abroad Barcelona since 2003.
Ataúlfo Portela Fraguela was born in Galicia (Spain), but has lived in a few places, including Barcelona and several cities in the United States. He has been teaching Spanish to American students for over 15 years. He earned a BA in Spanish language and literature at Indiana University and an MA in Spanish literature at Miami University, Oxford, OH.
Spanish Language in Context: Emerging Independent Abroad II
At the end of this 4-credit course students will be able to:
Research has demonstrated that study abroad can enhance every aspect of language ability. One of the most important general findings of this research is, however, that study abroad is most beneficial for the development of abilities related to social interaction. Students who go abroad are able to learn how to produce language in a variety of situations, such as the making of requests, the use of compliments, and apologies, and they also may develop skills to interpret such interactions within the local cultural context. In short, and logically, study abroad has been shown to enhance the aspects of communicative competence that are most difficult to foster in classroom settings (IES Abroad MAP for Language and Intercultural Communication, p. 6).
Proficiency at a level equivalent to the outcomes mastered through IES Abroad's SP 301, as determined by placement test.
Attendance is mandatory for all IES classes, including field studies. Any exams, tests, presentations, or other work missed due to student absences can only be rescheduled in cases of documented medical or family emergencies. If a student misses more than three classes in any course half a letter grade will be deducted from the final grade for every additional absence. Seven absences in any course will result in a failing grade.
Students who are placed in this level should be capable of achieving the outcomes in the Novice Abroad level as defined by the IES Abroad MAP for Language and Intercultural Communication.
By the end of the course, students will be able to achieve some of the outcomes for the Emerging Independent Abroad level as defined by the MAP for Language and Intercultural Communication. The key learning outcomes from the MAP are summarized below:
I. Intercultural Communication
A. Students will be able to solve many daily troublesome situations and meet needs with limited help.
B. Increasingly, students will be able to make informed comparisons between the host culture and the students’ home cultures.
C. Students will be able to distinguish and begin to imitate verbal and non verbal communication that reflects politeness, formality, or informality.
D. Students will be able to recognize some patterns of intonation, their meaning, and cultural implications.
II. Listening
A. Students will be able to understand some interactions of increasing complexity (media, speeches, music, conversations, etc.), especially if the speaker is used to interacting with non-native speakers.
B. Students will be able to understand many direct requests, questions, and basic conversations on familiar and concrete topics.
III. Speaking
A. Increasingly, students will be able to talk about persons and things in their immediate environment, as well as their plans and their experiences, and they can provide a limited amount of supporting details.
B. Students will be able to address and attempt to resolve moderately complicated situations involving familiar subjects.
IV. Reading
A. Students will be able to read passages and short texts (advertisements, schedules, menus, recipes, etc.) and understand overall meaning.
B. Students will be able to support their understanding of texts through the use of context, dictionaries, or with the assistance of others at times.
V. Writing
A. Students will be able to communicate with some effectiveness through notes, emails, and simple online discussions and chats.
B. Students will be able to write short essays on concrete topics of limited levels of complexity with some reliance on the communicative patterns of their native language.
Language instructors direct tasks, group and pair work, individual and group oral presentations, intensive and extensive readings, listening activities, class discussion, role plays, and audiovisual activities that will lead students to develop and improve their language skills in and out of the classroom.
Midterm: 10%; Final Exam: 20%; Oral Exams (2 exams): 10%; Quizzes (6 quizzes minimum on listening, speaking, reading, writing, intercultural communication): 15%; Video/Oral presentation: 10%; Compositions: 15%; Field studies: 10%; Class participation: 10%.
Week
Content
Assignments
Corresponding Learning Outcome(s)
Week 1
Unit 1
1.Functional: Asking for/Giving information; talking about coincidences; describing oneself.
2.Grammatical: Indefinite/perfect and contrast; time expressions.
3.Vocabulary: Adjectives to describe personality.
4.Culture: University life (Erasmus / IES...); Spanish and American working life.
-Description of people/students using adjectives to describe character
- Past tenses and time expressions/markers
I.A ;III.A;IV.A
V.A
Week 2
Unit 1
1.Functional: Resume and letter of interest; talking about the past/present.
2.Grammatical: Expressing activities with relation to time.
3.Vocabulary: Information about oneself: Address, house, likes and dislikes; interests/hobbies.
4.Culture: Curriculum vitae and letters; Famous and relevant Spaniards.
- Talking about own experiences using expressions to talk about actions with relation to time
-The making of our Spanish curriculum vitae and letter of interest
I.B-C ;II.B
III.A-B; IV.A-B
V.A-B
Week 3
Unit 2
1.Functional: Describing a city: Locations, characteristics.
2.Grammatical: Uses of SER / ESTAR and contrast.
3.Vocabulary: Surveys; talking on the phone.
4.Culture: Spare time in Spain/USA.
- Description of places and people
-Same words, different meaning
-Field Study
I.A;II.A
III.A;IV.A.B
V.A
Week 4
Unit 2
1.Functional: Expressing recommendations for travelling.
2.Grammatical: Relative clauses with indicative and subjunctive; prepositions.
3.Vocabulary: Adjectives to describe people, places and objects; discourse markers.
4.Culture: Urban furnishings; Spanish stereotypes.
- Contest to improve the urban furniture of your neighbourhood
- Role play of phone conversations
-Exam 1
I.B.C.D;II.B
III.B;IV.A-B
V.B
Week 5
Unit 3
1.Functional: Talking about books, expressing likes and dislikes about literature, talking about the past.
2.Grammatical: Past tenses, textual connectors for the past.
3.Vocabulary: Literary genres, resources for explaining an anecdote.
4.Culture: Spanish literature, short stories.
- Questionnaire about books.
- Who was...?
- Biographies of Spanish people.
- Telling a story about the past.
I.A, I.B, II.A, II, B, III.A, IV.A, IV.B, V.A
Week 6
Unit 3
1.Functional: Explaining anecdotes and narrating stories in the past.
2.Grammatical: Past tenses, textual connectors for the past.
3.Vocabulary: Literary genres, resources for explaining an anecdote.
4.Culture: Spanish literature, short stories.
- Two trues and a lie.
- Spanish short stories.
- Telling an anecdote.
- Trivial pursuit: who knows...?
I.A, II.A, II, B, III.A, IV.A, IV.B, V.B
Week 7
Unit 4
1.Functional: Expressing preferences about travel destinations, talking about habits and likes related to travelling, reacting to opinions.
2.Grammatical: Use of prepositions to describe movement and direction, resources for giving recommendations.
3.Vocabulary: Vocabulary related to travelling, cities and describing places.
4.Culture: Spanish cities, touristic places and monuments.
- Your preferences about travelling.
- Talking about cities and touristic sights.
- Giving directions.
- Giving recommendations for travelling.
- Spanish most touristic places.
I.A, I.B, I.C, II.A, II, B, III.A, IV.A, IV.B, V.A
Week 8
Unit 4
1.Functional: Locating objects, giving directions and describing how to get somewhere, expressing recommendations.
2.Grammatical: Affirmative and negative commands, direct and indirect object pronouns with commands.
3.Vocabulary: Vocabulary related to travelling, cities and describing places.
4.Culture: Spanish cities and touristic places.
- Describing places and touristic attractions.
- Giving orders and recommendations using pronouns.
- Spanish festivities.
-Exam 2
I.A, I.B, I.C, II.A, II, B, III. A, IV.A, IV.B, V.B
Week 9
Unit 5
1.Functional: Express and answer an opinion
2.Grammatical: Indicative/subjunctive with opinion
3.Vocabulary: Cinema
4.Culture: Spanish cinema
-Cinema survey
-Cinema vocabulary
-Movies synopsis
-Telling movies
-Field study
I. B;II. A. B
III. A
IV. A. B
III. A.B; II. A
Week 10
Unit 5
1.Functional: Deny actions, assess events. Express feelings.
2.Grammatical: Assess sentences. Subjunctive with feelings.
3.Vocabulary: Education system in Spain vs American system.
4.Culture: Habits and likes - cinema
-Things that people like and dislike.
- Differences between American and Spanish education system (composition)
- assess newspaper reports
I. A. B;II.A. B.
III. A. B
V.B
IV.A.B; III.B
Week 11
Unit 6
1.Functional: Events in the future: Hypothesis.
2.Grammatical: Hypothesis (indicative / subjunctive), future.
3.Vocabulary: Objects and tools.
4.Culture: Working life, ecology of the planet.
- Listening: Future hypothesis
-Reading: The labor market in Spain
-Science: Inventions
II. B
IV.B
III. A. B.
Week 12
Unit 6
1.Functional: Express opinion, describing objects.
2.Grammatical: Temporary sentences (indicative /subjunctive),consecutive sentences, causal sentences.
3.Vocabulary: Labor market.
4.Culture: Life in Spain (family, lifestyle, employment)
-Edward Hopper: Painting hypothesis
-The planet’s future
-Final exam
III.A.B; V.A
III. A.B; IV. B
Textbook. Estudios Hispánicos. Universidad de Barcelona. (2008). Destino Erasmus 2. Madrid: SGEL.
Dictionary
Laura Vázquez was born in Madrid. She has been teaching Spanish and Spanish Cinema to American students for over 10 years, and has been a Faculty Regional Educational Technology Specialist at IES Abroad Barcelona since 2011. She studied Spanish literature in Madrid, during which time she also lived in Italy for a year studying literature and Italian as an Erasmus student. In 2001, she spent 7 months in the U.S., teaching Spanish and Spanish Cinema in Washington and Lee University (VA). She is now writing her doctoral dissertation on intercultural studies and cinema. She loves multiculturalism, new technologies, and learning about other cultures, which is always very important in her job.
Nieves Borrego was born in Burgos (Spain) and earned a degree in Spanish Philology at the University of Salamanca. Before finishing her degree, she completed her junior year at the University of Birmingham (UK). She earned a Masters degree in Spanish Literature at The Pennsylvania State University, where she was also a Teaching Assistant at the Department of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese from 2000 to 2003. She has been teaching Spanish at IES Abroad Barcelona since 2003.
Ataúlfo Portela Fraguela was born in Galicia (Spain), but has lived in a few places, including Barcelona and several cities in the United States. He has been teaching Spanish to American students for over 15 years. He earned a BA in Spanish language and literature at Indiana University and an MA in Spanish literature at Miami University, Oxford, OH.