Tompkins Cortland Community College

SPA 102: Beginning Spanish II

Course Information: Professor Information:

Credit Hours: 3 Name: Dr. Gina Gammage-Sikora

Semester/ Year: Spring 2006 Phone: 756-5275 (TC3)

758-3670 (H)

FAX: 756-4047

E- mail: sikora777@aol.com

Texts and other materials required.

AVENTURAS by Donley, Benavides and Márquez

Workbook/Video Manual

Interactive CDs, Video CD, Pocket Dictionary

Lab Manual

Lab audio CD-rom.

Highly Recommended: English Grammar for Students of Spanish. by Emily Spinelli. In the bookstore of Cortland College, in AED 437 or in www.amazon.com.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Continuation of introduction to the skills of listening, reading, speaking and writing, with emphasis on developing communicative strategies in Spanish, and exposure to Hispanic culture. Prerequisite: SPA 101 or equivalent.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK:

This course as is the case with all my course offerings, is rooted in the ideas of liberal learning. The underlying ideal in all of my classes whether they are literature-, culture-, or language based, is that all three of these elements are interwoven. The specific knowledge and perspectives that will be acquired in this class reflects the college's commitment to instilling in our students an acumen of themes and issues pertaining to Global Understanding (knowledge of the interconnectedness of the natural and human experience through exposure of the political, social, economic and religious differences of the target language's literature and civilization) and Social Justice (comparison and contrast of issues of social justice, equality and democracy between our society and those of the target language).

Prerequisites:

Before you can register for this class, you have to pass Spanish 101 with at least a "C" or take a placement test. I will re-evaluate your Spanish language skills during the first week of class. If you are inappropriately placed in Spanish 102, I will recommend that you change levels.

COURSE OBJECTIVES AND GOALS:

The students will continue to develop the four basic language skills: spoken communication, listening comprehension, reading and writing.

Student will continue building their vocabulary and grammatical concepts, as well as learning about cultural aspects of Spanish-speaking countries.

COURSE ATTENDANCE POLICY:

Class attendance is mandatory and daily participation is essential in view of the course objectives. Students should come prepared to actively participate by reading, listening, speaking and writing.

Remember that language courses require at least one hour of preparation daily outside the classroom to successfully learn the language.

Persistent lateness may cost points off your course grade.

You are expected to attend every class session. Absences will adversely affect your class performance and might be reflected in your grade.

Because participation is an important component of this class, a maximum of 3 unexcused absences are allowed during the semester before you lose points for attendance.

Be on time for class. When you are late, you distract others and of course you miss material yourself.

I will consider an absence as excused only if you e-mail me the day of the absence or before letting me know that you will not be in class. A copy of that e-mail is your written excuse.

Participation

To succeed in this course, you need to be in class to take notes and ask questions. Lots of class participation will be required.

Missing class even a few days will make it extremely hard for you to catch up.

Breakdown of Class Participation: Three (3) components will be factored in to determine your participation grade.

1. Attendance

2. Attentiveness (note-taking, alertness, paying attention to instructor and classmates)

3. Participation (interacting and contributing during group discussions and activities and independent, in-class assignments.) IN SPANISH !!

Class is schedule to meet for 42 academic hours of 50 minutes each during the semester. You are allowed 3 absences during the semester. With this in mind, the following system will be used to determine your participation grade.

42 hours counted

Absent= F

Attended = C

Attended + Attentive = B

Attended + Attentive + Participated = A

Grades will be given for each day. All grades will be averaged to determine your final class participation.

Method of Instruction:

1. The course format will be a combination of individual and group aural and written work. The instructor will also lecture on grammatical structures in real-life contexts, however, large part of each class will be devoted to different exercises and activities in class that promote the use of the language. There will also be use of multi-media instructional aids in and outside of class.

2. In class, if you have a question ask it! Someone else probably has the same question.

3. Work with you fellow students. A regular study group can be especially effective.

4. See instructor (time permitting) before or after class.

5. Lab drills are essential to improve your pronunciation.

6. From day one, try to memorize the vocabulary and verb forms presented in class.

7. Allow 15 minutes every day to practice the spelling of the vocabulary words. Write five times each of the easy words in Spanish and 10 times the difficult words.

8. Make use of all the tools and resources available in and outside the College to reinforce your knowledge of the Spanish language and culture.

Homework

Homework will be assigned most days. The professor may collect any homework without notice at the beginning of the class and it will be graded. Graded homework will be based on a scale of 1-10.

Homework assignments will come from the textbook, movies, handouts, internet resources, activities manual and other sources. For these assignments there are not extensions whatsoever.

All written assignments need to have your name and the course and section number.

Make sure that you use pencil when you prepare the assignments, other assignments should be written in a separate piece of paper, ready to hand in and will be collected on a spot check basis.

- Cultural assignments to be obtained from the internet will not be accepted late. Moreover, you are required to bring a hard copy of the information (a print out of the page), in which the date and web address are indicated.

Keep all written work in your binder. Keep a record of your points earned. (No one is perfect!) Please think of your work and points as if "on the job' - if you worked, especially overtime, you want to be paid! Keep your own record of your work, points and progress.

Rating scale for homework & lab work:

The homework and lab work collected will be checked on a credit/no credit bases, using the following rating scale:

X : no credit: assignment is too incomplete; assignment evidence little time,

care, or effort; assignment completed incorrectly, or incorrect assignment completed.

5. : partial credit: assignment is deficient in one or more aspects; incomplete, or

shows a lack of sufficient time, care and effort spent in it; no self corrections etc.

V : assignment is "satisfactory", and meets all minimum requirements.

V+ : assignment goes well beyond minimal requirements in length and degree of

development; also: a great deal of time, care and effort are evident.

Presentations

As a class we will determine whether these should be done individually or as a group. See appendix 1 of this syllabus to get an idea of the guidelines and expectations for the presentations.

Oral Evaluations: There will be two oral evaluations. The topics to be tested in these evaluations will be taken from the material presented during the course of the semester.

Tests:

There will be short oral quizzes frequently, without notice. The quizzes will be drawn from recent class work and written assignments. Your best preparation for quizzes is to do the homework conscientiously. At the professor's discretion, a quiz may be given as a take-home, or a homework assignment may be collected and counted as a quiz. This procedure is intended for keeping you "on your toes" with the material covered in class.

No make-up quizzes will be given whatsoever. Pencil and eraser are preferred in quizzes and exams

There will be an hourly exam at the end of every chapter. Students who know in advance of a schedule conflict for a scheduled exam should make arrangements to reschedule before the exam day. Make up exams will only be given in the case of an excused absence.

Getting Extra Help:

1. Internet: The textbook has its own website where you can find additional on-line activities and quizzes. There are also many Spanish language resources on-line, including the site www.studyspanish.com. Here you can, if you wish, sign up for a daily mini-lesson in Spanish delivered in your email.

2. Other support services: The Learning Assistance Center offers a variety of other support services. If you need help with your other course work, tutors and study groups are available. Career and counseling services are available to help with questions regarding career planning, job opportunities, transfer to other academic institutions, immigration and legal concerns, and any other personal problems you might need help with.

EVALUATION OF STUDENT'S PERFORMANCE:

Participation and Attendance 35%

8 Exams 16%

2 oral evaluations and presentations 10%

Final Exam 4%

Homework assignments, pop quizzes and Activities Manual assignments 30%

Cultural Activities 5%

Your final letter grade is determined as a function of the percentage of points you earned out of the total minimum points possible according to the following table:

% of minimum available points Grade

96-100 A +