Intermediate Spanish Language and Culture I
Course Description
SPAN 201
4 (four) credit class
Sec. 02- MWF 10:00 - 10:50 a.m.
Room: RH 121 (Rayzor Hall)
Syllabus
Homework and Special Assignments
Materials Extra Resources
Course Objectives Assessment and Grading
Attendance & Punctuality Honor Code
Participation Disability Support Services

Materials


* Textbook: Metas, Spanish in Review-Moving Toward Fluency, 2008. Pgs. 1–154; 306-335, 1st. edition by Sharon Foerster & Anne Lambright

* Literature Book: Lecturas Literarias para acompañar; Punto y aparte by Lambright, Marcano-Ogando and Foerster, 3rd. ed.

* Workbook: Manual que acompaña; Metas by Foerster & Lambright, 2008

* Website: Metas

* Dictionary: A good quality Spanish/English dictionary is recommended

* Blue Book Examination Book: 11x 8.5 for Diarios de conversación (Diarios)

* Cd-Rom: Gramática Viva (available only on LRC)

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Course Objectives


Class time will be spent helping you to develop the ability to communicate in both spoken and written forms of Spanish. In order to effectively communicate and interact in Spanish you must have the knowledge of vocabulary, certain grammatical structures, and some sociocultural understanding of the Spanish-speaking world.

This course will offer students the opportunity to expand their vocabulary, improve grammatical accuracy, write and speak paragraph length discourse, and gain greater social, cultural, political, and historical understanding of the Spanish-speaking world. To accomplish our vocabulary and grammar goals, we will focus on the four communicative functions shown below and the key grammatical structures needed to perform these functions. These are found "puntos clave" sections of the textbook:

• Describe
• Compare and Contrast
• React and Recommend
• Narrate in the past

Below you will find all the activities and requirements necessary for this course.

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Attendance and Punctuality
All students are allowed 3 unexcused absences. After 3 unexcused absences, your final course grade drops by one letter grade per missed absence (eg. A+ to A, or B- to C+). Excused absences are only allowed in the case of participation in university-sponsored activities, interviews, school visits, religious observance, or serious illness. It is your responsibility to provide evidence no later than the last day of class (it is best if you provide evidence in advance), so that your absence may be documented. Punctuality is required. Chronic late arrival and/or early departure will negatively affect your attendance grade.

You are responsible for catching up with the assignments done in class during your absence. Your course syllabus will help you. It is recommended for you to get one or/and two classmates' phone #, e-mail addresses to contact to check about your missing class.

Participation
Students are expected to come to class every day, and actively participate in it. Good participation means that you need to use Spanish as much as possible in class, be proactive and attentive, have a positive attitude, be prepared, listen respectfully to others, and actively participate in small group and whole class activities and discussions. We do a large amount of pair and group work in this class, and you will have to be proactive about finding a partner(s) to work with. Simply showing up for class is not enough to earn a good participation grade; rather, your presence should make a positive difference in the quality of the class. Your participation is related to your effort and your improvement in the class, and together these form an important component of how you are evaluated in the course.

A daily self-evaluation sheet in which you will take into account attendance, punctuality, preparation and active participation, and interaction in Spanish will be provided. The criteria and scoring guidelines are shown in the Participation Criteria. Your honest self-evaluation will help you to be aware of the participation portion of your grade; however the instructor will decide the final percentage points based on observance throughout the semester.

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Homework and Special Assignments


This is a four-credit class. Three credits are for attendance/punctuality, daily homework and participation in regular class-work.  The other credit is gained by extra work by using the LRC lab to complete on-line assignments (Tell Me More), on-line speaking assignments (Wimba), The A+ section, and the e-pal exchange.

Late work will only be accepted without a penalty if you contact me ahead of time, or as soon as possible following an incident such as an emergency or a serious illness.   If you know in advance that you will not be able to turn something in on the due date because of University-sponsored events or religious observance, you must make arrangements with me. There is a deadline for every assignment indicated in the class syllabus.  Each homework shown in the syllabus has to be turned in before the end of the class that day.

Here are the specifics about your assignments

Para conversar
Textbook & Lecturas Literarias
Workbook (Manual)
Compositions
Oral Presentations
In-Class Chatting (BBS)
Tell Me More (TMM)
Wimba (ExTemplate)
Movie Discussions
Conversation “Diarios”
E-pals Exchange
The A+

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Extra Resources


Metas Website
This is an excellent resource where you can find vocabulary, practice tests, etc…

Mesa de español
The Mesa de español is a great opportunity to practice Spanish on campus in an informal environment.  All different levels of Spanish meet for lunch in different colleges.

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Assessment & Grading


There are no make-ups for unexcused absences to quizzes, and exams.  If you cannot be present due to university functions (ie. sports participation), illness or a personal emergency, you must notify me as soon as possible.  Proof is mandatory. 

Quizzes (Pruebas):
There will be six (6) quizzes throughout the semester covering vocabulary and grammar from the textbook.  These quizzes are only taken in class. Dates are noted in the syllabus.

Exams:
There will be three (3) exams, one for each chapter of the book. No final exam is given.
The exams will be based on the material taught in class, and daily homework assignments. Each exam has two parts: reading/writing and listening/speaking. These exams are only taken in the LRC lab. The only help you may use during the exam is the NotePad. No other materials are allowed then. Click here for the ExTemplate Exams Instructions. Dates are noted in the syllabus.

Grades:
Attendance, Preparation, Participation, Effort
15%
Tell Me More, Wimba
10%
“Cuentacuentos”, Final Presentation
10%
Diarios, Compositions, and E-pal Exchange
20%
Quizzes
15%
Exams
25%
The A+
5%

Evaluation is according to the following scale:

A+ 97 - 100 B+ 87-89.99 C+ 77-79.99 D+ 67-69.99 F 0-59.99
A 93-96 B 83-86.99 C 73-76.99 D 63-66.99   
A- 90-92.99 B- 80-82.99 C-70-72.99 D-60-62.99

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Honor Code


You may consult with your classmates and/or friends for projects and homework, but you may not copy someone else's work. All tests and quizzes are under the Honor Code. All sources in written work and presentations must be properly acknowledged. The provisions of the Honor Code at Rice University will be strictly enforced.

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Disability Support Services


Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments or accommodations is required to contact the Disability Support Services in the Ley Student Center. It is imperative for a student with a disability to speak with me sometime during the first two weeks of class. All discussions will remain confidential.

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Contact
 
CSL – MS 36
Rayzor Hall Room 320
Rice University
6100 Main Street
Houston, Texas 77005

Office Hours: M-W-F: 9:00 a.m. - 9:55 a.m.
or by appointment

Phone
: 713-348-2844
Fax: 713-348-5846
E-mail: varbizu@rice.edu or va1@rice.edu



 
 
 
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