Course Description
Spanish 1411 is the first in the lower- and intermediate-level Spanish language classes offered by UTPB and is designed to acquaint the student with the four basic skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. It will also include an introduction to Hispanic culture.
In SPAN 1411 students will acquire novice low- to mid-proficiency in Spanish (ACTFL guidelines) in all four skill areas: listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
Listening: Students will be able to understand some short, learned utterances, particularly where context strongly supports understanding and speech is clearly audible. Comprehends some words and phrases from simple questions, statements, high-frequency commands and courtesy formulae about topics that refer to basic personal information or the immediate physical setting.
Speaking: Oral production continues to consist of isolated words and learned phrases within very predictable areas of need, although quantity is increased. Vocabulary is sufficient only for handling simple, elementary needs and expressing basic courtesies. Some novice-mid speakers will be understood only with great difficulty.
Reading: Students will be able to recognize the symbols of an alphabetic and/or syllabic writing system and/or a limited number of characters in a system that uses characters. The reader can identify an increasing number of highly contextualized words and/or phrases including cognates and borrowed words, where appropriate.
Writing: Able to write simple, fixed expressions and limited memorized material and some recombination thereof.
A VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: The course requires continuous and independent work to consolidate the knowledge and linguistic skills developed during the semester. Because of the nature of this course, learning is built up on previous material. To be successful, you must have determination, good study habits, and be able to meet deadlines. Remember you are responsible for your own learning! The beginning student of Spanish, to build a strong foundation in the basics of the target language and to be able to expand toward good conversational, reading, and writing abilities, should mater the following:
- the Spanish alphabet
- basic phonetic system and syntax (word order)
- the subject pronouns, and definite/indefinite articles
- approximately 650 vocabulary words
- the meaning and conjugation of the most common of the -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs
- the meaning and conjugation of some common irregular verbs
- the formation of questions
- the concept of masculine and feminine gender
- the placement and agreement of adjectives
- possessives, adjectives, and pronouns
Course Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Beginners and students with fewer than two years of high school Spanish should register for this course. This course is not designed for heritage or native Spanish speakers.
Student Learning Outcomes
This Spanish course pays equal attention to developing all four language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing), with a special emphasis on the oral aspects of the Spanish language. After studying all materials and resources presented in the course, the student will be able to:
- Engage in conversations using level-appropriate grammatical structures including narrating events that take place in the present and produce questions and responses on a variety of topics dealing with everyday life in discussion forums.
- In terms of level-appropriate spoken Spanish, develop speaking and pronunciation skills through voice recordings and one oral exam.
- Write simple sentences and organize them into short paragraphs in composition assignments.
- Rewrite and revise those compositions for grammar accuracy.
- Interpret level-appropriate texts in Spanish by answering questions in complete sentences, and/or expressing reactions and opinions in reading assignments.
- Identify and discuss traditions, customs, and values of the Hispanic world through discussion forums.
- Apply grammar skills covered in this course to the completion of evaluation sheets, one midterm exam, and one final exam.