¡Hola! 🙂 ¡Bienvenidos a la clase!
| We are living in unprecedented moments that, among many issues, have pushed us to cover all teaching and learning online. This semester (Fall 2020), this course will be online, and we will face many challenges, but we will work together (synchronously and asynchronously) to build a community, learn from one another, collaborate and (why not?) have an impact outside our virtual classroom – the world really needs it! Yes, these are not ideal conditions: we are experiencing a pandemic, we are worried about our health and the health of our loved ones; we are continuously confronted with many emotions, anxiety, and frustrations; we are dealing with unexpected economic and social conditions and a very charged political moment. We will make it work. Let’s be understanding, compassionate, listen and learn from one another. |
This course (SPA 114) is the second level of a course designed for bilingual speakers to allow these students to obtain and develop the necessary skills to communicate (con énfasis en la lectura y escritura) in Spanish. This class is designed for students who have been reared in a Spanish-speaking environment and speak or understand some Spanish as a result of having heard it in the home and community by parents or grandparents, family, friends, and neighbors.
In this class, we will build self-assurance and confidence in our language practices. We will also stress the development of our agency in the process of building relationships between language and sociopolitical issues and establish connections between our own lives and the world(s) we live in.
| Objectives: |
1) Promote students’ communicative competences as well as cultural, social and political awareness.
2) Improve their understanding of their own society through comparison with the cultural aspects of people in Spanish-speaking societies, allowing relevant connections within diverse communities outside the classroom setting.
3) By honing their already-present skills in Spanish, students will gain confidence in their language practices and develop more functionality in their use of written and spoken Spanish.
4) By developing their knowledge about Spanish-speaking communities in their own city, students will also gain a greater understanding of Spanish’s presence in the United States and increase their understanding of Spanish’s significant role in the U.S.’s history and society.
5) Engage students in inquiry, research, writing, and reflection (individual and collaboratively).
| Additionally, by the end of the semester students are expected to be able to: |
1) Develop their agency and feel comfortable making their own language choices.
2) Question and think critically about the connection between language and power in order to challenge the established societal status quo.
3) Question how (our) linguistic practices influence current socio-political issues.
4) Develop their literacy skills:
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- Reading: read critically, interpret and discuss texts from different genres
- Writing: Write descriptive and argumentative compositions, becoming aware of the academic conventions within institutions
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5) Improve and strengthen technology/computer skills using software that combines text, images, audio, and other media
