Davis, Fall 2011, SPAN 1- SEC 001
PENN STATE UNIVERSITY- ALTOONA
DEPARTMENT OF SPANISH, ITALIAN AND PORTUGUESE
SPANISH 1 -SEC 001
FALL 2011
WELCOME TO SPANISH 1!
Instructor: Marianela D. Davis Voice mail 949-5300- Ext No. 6227
http://www.profemaridavis.net/
SPAN 001 Sec 001 – credits 4
Monday: 1:00 PM -1:50 PM Room 146 Hawthorn
Tuesday & Thursday: 1:15 PM - 2: 30 PM Room 145 Hawthorn
Office hours: By appointment only.
Monday 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM Room 129 Hawthorn Building
Tuesday & Thursday 3:00PM - 4:00PM Room 129 Hawthorn Building
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
REQUIRED TEXTS:
1. Knorre, Dorwick et al. Puntos de Partida 8th Ed.
2. Sharon Foerster, Jean Miller- Supplementary materials to accompany Puntos de partida .
3. Quia Puntos de Partida lab manual- registration code required at http://www.mhcentro.com
COURSE POLICIES & OBJECTIVES
¡Hola y Bienvenidos! Welcome to Español I – Beginning Spanish. Aquí se habla español. It is important that you know that SPAN 1 is designed for students who have not previously studied Spanish and for students who have taken 1 year of high school Spanish. This course combines content-based language instruction with an interactive task-based approach in its orientation. In other words, we apply different teaching strategies and methods of teaching. One of them is the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) (Appendix, p.10). This means that the communicative competence should be the goal of language education, central to good classroom practice and that we emphasize interaction. Learning a language is interactive, co-operative, learner-centered and content-based, but that CLT approach does not mean that learning a second language involves just 'conversation'. Therefore, this course will develop the four basic language skills (speaking, reading, listening and writing in Spanish) in addition to providing opportunities to learn more about the culture of Spanish-speaking countries. Likewise, our teaching practices emphasize the Standards for Foreign Language Learning (Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons and Communities) (Appendix, p.12). These standards promote the idea of “knowing how, when, and why to say what to whom” and an “effective human-to-human interaction.” Please, read the articles included in the Appendix in order to know what is involved in learning a second language and some advice to be successful in this course.
DISCLAIMER:
Please be advised that we will encounter in this course material that may seem offensive to some students in terms of strong language or subject matter.
GRADE DISTRIBUTION
Extra credit is not available in this course. Your final grade will be determined according to the following components:
Participation and attendance 15%
Chapter exams (3) 30%
Quizzes 5%
Homework (includes textbook, ‘escrituras’ and SM) 5%
Centro –lab (6) 5%
Compositions (2) 10%
Oral Exams (2) 10%
Final exam 20%
GRADING POLICY:
95 and ABOVE A 75-79.9 C+
90-94.9 A- 70-74.9 C
87.7-89.9 B+ 60-69.9 D
83.3- 87.6 B 59.9 and BELOW F
80-83.2 B-
ATTENDANCE POLICY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF SPANISH, ITALIAN AND PORTUGUESE
You must be exposed to Spanish in order to learn it. Therefore you must come to class. I understand that periodically things happen that might prevent your attendance. Please also be reminded that your daily participation grade is based on your attendance in class (as well as your timely arrival to class). Class attendance (physically and mentally) is absolutely essential and required. Try to live a balanced healthy life; eat well; get plenty of sleep; come to your classes prepared to participate. You are a resource for other students in the class!
PARTICIPATION AND ATTENDANCE (15%)
A significant percentage of your grade depends on your daily effort in class. Skipping classes, failure to hand in assignments and lack of participation will lower your final grade. See 42-27 Class Attendance http://www.psu.edu/ufs/policies/
Please note that good test grades alone are not sufficient to pass this course. This component of your grade takes into account a number of variables including but not limited to: 1) your use of Spanish, 2) your willingness to participate, 3) your cooperation in group and pair work, 4) your respect and attitude towards the class and your classmates, 5) your attendance 6) your timely arrival to class 7) your homework. These grades will be given weekly, beginning the first full week of class. Please study the Participation Grade Criteria included in the syllabus in the Appendix. You are required to participate every day. If you are not in class, you are not participating. Absences reduce the number of points you can earn each week. Tardiness will have a negative effect on your participation grade, as will absences. Reading the sections in the textbook ahead of time is recommended so you can participate more actively.
ABSENCES: According to the University Senate Policy, “Legitimate, unavoidable reasons are those such as illness, injury, family emergency, or religious observance.” For a calendar of religious observances, please see http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/spiritual/calendars.shtml .Senate policy no longer requires that a student provide official documentation (doctor’s note, funeral notice, etc.), since some of the documents may violate the privacy rights of students. The goal is for faculty and students to engage in reasonable practices and dialogue. If you participate in university functions as a member of athletic, academic, or other extracurricular teams, and you will miss class because of your involvement in those activities, you must provide written documentation within the first two weeks of class. It is expected that you let your instructor know about your absence ahead of time (except for last minute emergencies) by email using Angel or the Webmail .
TARDIES: 5 late arrivals (more than 5 minutes late each) equal one full absence. Each of your late arrivals will be recorded every day and included in the participation report.
ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Students are not allowed to use cell phones, laptops, iPods or any other electronic device that can interfere with the regular development of the class or distract their classmates and instructor. Be aware that if you insist on using them there will be a negative impact on your participation grade.
CHAPTER EXAMS (30%)
There will be three (3) exams scheduled throughout the course. Exams will test listening skills, vocabulary knowledge, grammatical points, reading comprehension and writing ability. Exams will not be curved. No make-up exams are given. No exams will be dropped!
QUIZZES (5%)
Quizzes may be announced (the ones included in this syllabus) or unannounced (the ones that are not in this syllabus) and may cover any material covered in class or assigned for reading, including but not limited to specific grammar points, vocabulary, cultural topics, and listening activities. Quizzes will be given periodically based on the assigned homework and readings. Quizzes will not be curved. No make-up quizzes will be allowed, but one quiz grade will be dropped at the end of the semester. Quizzes prepare you for the chapter exams, so they can be as hard as the exam or harder.
CENTRO-LAB (5%)
Assignments from the lab manual must be completed by the date indicated on the dashboard of Centro. There will be more information about how to register during the first week of class. Be aware that the instructor can include activities of Centro as part of the homework or the quizzes in order to reinforce the concepts studied in class.
HOMEWORK (5%)
Homework will be assigned on a daily basis from the Textbook Puntos de Partida and the Supplementary Material Activity book . Also there will be several Escrituras as part of your homework. Escrituras must be typed, double spaced and must include the date, your name and your section. No handwritten Escrituras will be accepted. You will be expected to come to class with all homework completed. Homework is due during the next class meeting. No late work will be accepted. We review in class all the homework, but only certain homework will be collected. I will let you know ahead of time.
NOTE: If you miss class, it is your responsibility to contact a classmate and get the homework assignment. Feel free to consult with me during my office hours if you have any questions before or after a homework assignment. Also, check Angel. That is the main way I use to communicate with my students every day. Please, be aware that I see students during my office hours by appointment only.
COMPOSITIONS (10%)
The class will be completing two in-class compositions that are designed to utilize the material that you learn in a comprehensive manner. These compositions must be your own, original work. Your grade for these compositions will be based on the information conveyed, organization, vocabulary and language. You will be permitted to use your text and a dictionary to write these compositions. You will not be permitted to use any notes or any previously written material of any kind. As the compositions will be written in class, it will be mandatory to write every other line to facilitate grading. The composition is departmental, on topics assigned by the instructors on the day of the composition. Grading for the compositions follow the Evaluation Criteria for “Escrituras”and Compositions that can be found in the syllabus Appendix.
ORAL INTERVIEWS (10%)
Each student will complete two oral interviews at the beginning and at the end of the semester. There will be enough practice in class both in pairs and in groups that will prepare you for these oral assessments. Therefore, your attendance and participation are very important in order for you to feel prepared and succeed. The purpose of the oral interviews is to assess your ability to communicate in Spanish according to the level of your class and the material covered. The situations will be related to the contents of lessons studied in class.
1.The Oral Interview No.1 will be in pairs and with your instructor during class time. Each interview will last approximately 5-7 minutes. On Interview day, your instructor will pick two students at random to do the interview. The two students will ask and answer questions of one another, based on the chosen situations. At Interview time, your instructor will have pieces of paper with numbers corresponding to a particular topic. These papers will be face down and you will pick one at random and your interview classmate will pick up another one. This makes a total of two (2) situations that you and your partner will be communicating on. Grading for this interview follow the Evaluation Criteria for Oral Expression that can be found in the Syllabus Appendix.
2. The purpose of the Oral Interview No.2 is to assess your ability to ask and answer questions as well as to connect and express ideas while talking with your instructor about a topic that you have already studied. The oral presentation will last no more than 5 minutes per student. Grading for this interview follow the Evaluation Criteria for Oral Expression that can be found in the Syllabus Appendix.
FINAL EXAM (20%)
The final exam is comprehensive in nature and will cover all material taught throughout the course of the semester. The final exam date and time are available at Angel after August 15th.
LATE WORK: I will not accept late work unless due to a legitimate excuse.There must be a reasonable explanation for the absence. Scheduling a doctor appointment or advisor appointment during class is absolutely NOT acceptable.
TUTORING SERVICES
Tutoring is free and available to all students by filling out the online form on the PSU Learning Resources Center homepage http://www.psu.edu/dept/altoonalrc/altlrc.html. A tutor is a great resource if you would like to make regular appointments for help, especially if you anticipate having difficulties in foreign language, or just want to be sure to stay on track. The drop-in hours will also be listed on the LRC page. Please contact me as soon as you think that a tutor would be helpful. It is a good idea to start checking in with a tutor once a week with your work at the beginning of the semester, before your grade has a chance to go down, or before minor gaps in learning snowball into total dysfunction. Also check with a tutor, or myself, for study tips and analysis of your study habits (very helpful). A tutor is an individual hired by the university to assist students in a specific subject area. A tutor is not a friend, roommate, classmate, or any other acquaintance that is not hired by the university to perform that function. If you feel you need help with your errors, work or studies, consult the University’s specially trained tutors, not your peers or acquaintances (you could face problems with plagiarism and/or academic integrity).
SPECIAL NOTE ON THE USE OF TUTORS and ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Tutors help you to understand and learn Spanish by explaining any aspect of the language that you may not completely understand. Tutors will examine your completed work; they will not, however, watch while you complete an assignment, will not complete your work for you or “give” you answers, and they will not translate what you want to say form English to Spanish. When editing your work with the help of a tutor, the tutor will indicate an error and explain the nature of the error, but it is your responsibility to correct each mistake. This is a necessary process in order to identify and correct any gaps in learning, as well as to reinforce the self-sufficiency of the student. Allowing a tutor or anyone else to complete or supplement your work constitutes a matter of academic dishonesty, which you should take as seriously as do the faculty and administration of the University. Any work completed or supplemented in any way with the words or ideas original to anyone other than the student-author will receive a zero for plagiarism, and that student may face disciplinary action in accordance with the policies of the Penn State University.