Course Syllabus

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🔑 Course description

Introduction to Spanish grammar and development of all language skills in a cultural context with special emphasis on interpersonal communication.

🥅 Objectives

This course will:

  • emphasize language for meaningful interpersonal communication
  • present, practice, and assess appropriate language beginning abilities
  • develop listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills
  • increase cultural, communicative, and discursive competence
  • provide a safe environment to experiment with language

🎯 Student Learning Outcomes

  • Use the simple present, present progressive and preterit tenses, including high-frequency
     irregular verbs, subject and object pronouns, and adjectives.
  • Initiate and maintain simple conversations in Spanish on everyday topics using statements and questions with appropriate pronunciation.
  • Comprehend and respond to short messages and questions in spoken Spanish.
  • Write coherent paragraphs containing descriptions of people, places, and everyday activities.
  • Use appropriate vocabulary for greetings, school-related items, family members, clothes, food, days, months, weather, clock times, numbers, and colors.
  • Read and comprehend the main ideas presented in level appropriate Spanish texts and magazine articles.
  • Demonstrate cultural awareness and insights about the Spanish-speaking world as well as the Spanish-speaking communities in the United States.

Current SPAN 1 Course Outline of Record

📖 Required online textbook

This is a zero cost course. You do not have to purchase any textbook or workbook for this course.

We will use an open-source free textbook Naveguemos with a companion homework system called ADAPT.

Note: All students activate access to our homework system ADAPT by the end of the first day of class.

👨‍🏫 Teaching approach

This course emphasizes Spanish for meaningful communication and cultural understanding. The online spaces will be a place to practice and experiment through a range of activities and gain confidence in using the language in meaningful situations. Interactive activities with your classmates will reinforce grammar and vocabulary studied and practiced by you previously via the textbook. Assessment will mirror activities found in the textbook and those provided by the instructor.

🏫 Class format

This is an interactive online Spanish class. By being part of this class, you will be expected to interact respectfully with your classmates and professor through various online tools to help you practice Spanish. To be clear, this is not a correspondence course nor a self-directed, self-paced independent study; specific and frequent due dates will be given to ensure class members have roughly the same exposure to the Spanish language and for the professor to provide you with feedback and guidance.

🎓 Academic rigor

This is a four unit class which assumes significant time and work. You may need to invest a considerable amount of time and energy outside of online class sessions to make progress with the language and meet all academic requirements.

This course is a college-level CSU and UC transferable course and as such is academically rigorous and intellectually demanding; it is not a high school level or basic conversation class.

If you are having difficulties with the class material and/or requirements, please speak with me and/or a counselor as soon as possible. We are all here to help you be successful.

🏃‍♀️ Pacing and time commitment

We will be covering a full semester of college-level Spanish during this semester. That is 24 grammar topics and at very least 700 words. You may need to dedicate a number of hours into personal study, completing assigned work, and being available for online sessions and activities.

⚖️ Personal responsibility and accountability

Any college class requires you to be responsible and accountable for your learning. It is highly recommended that you plan out on how to you will complete your assignments to avoid waiting until the last possible minute. Furthermore, you may want to complete work well before the due by dates to give yourself adequate time and to avoid unforeseen technical or other issues.

Any issues that do arise should be communicated to the instructor promptly (within one day of occurrence) for resolution.

Generally, no late submissions, substitutions or makeup work will be accepted. Any exception is subject to instructor discretion and will be arranged through email.

Additionally, it is your responsibility to resolve technical issues that may arise including, including, but not limited to, software installation, internet access, using Canvas’ video and audio features or Zoom web conferencing, submitting work via ADAPT, etc. Please use the Canvas Help menu and the Useful links section of our class homepage.

If you are not sure how to resolve the issues you are experiencing, contact me.

🦾 Accommodations

All students have the right for equitable access to class content and participation in class. If you need disability-related accommodations for this class, please provide the Authorization for Academic Accommodations (AAA letter) from the Disability Resources Department (DRD) to the instructor as soon as possible. You can contact the DRD at (707) 527-4278 or disabilityinfo@santarosa.edu. Any other accommodations are subject to instructor discretion, campus policies, and legal considerations; please contact the instructor to discuss.

If you need captioning for Zoom web conferencing sessions, please contact me before the start of the course to coordinate with the DRD office

📱 Communication

I prefer email for communication; messages sent by Canvas are forwarded to my email. When writing your message, please include the course number as well brief informative subject line (eg. “SPAN 1 Questions about next quiz” vs. "Hola") to help speed up response time. Properly addressed and clear messages will usually be answered within the next business day. Email received after 5:00 pm on Fridays may not be answered until the following Monday.

It is not unusual for unforeseen events to happen that impact your studies. Please reach out to me when situations arise to discuss your options. Often, we can work out accommodations that will allow you to finish the class without having to withdraw or fail. Please do not wait until the end of the term to discuss issues when there may not be time or resources to resolve issues.

🕰 Instructor availability

I am available for contact during normal business hours (9:00 am–5:00 pm) Monday through Friday. Please be aware that I also have other teaching and professional commitments during the work day so responses will rarely be instantaneous.

Generally, I am not available during weekends for meetings or appointments; additionally, I reserve Sundays for personal and family matters and do not answer email or schedule appointments that day.

✅ Setting yourself up for success

Time with the language is the most important factor when learning a language. You will learn best as you spend time during and outside class practicing and reviewing the course content (grammar, vocabulary, readings, etc.) indicated in the syllabus. Think of assignment due dates as a milestone for completing work by a specific day.

All activities for the semester are available from the beginning of the course to give you more flexibility in balancing personal, work, and academic matters. You are encouraged to work ahead.

Some things students have done in the past that helped them included:

  • making a personal study plan
  • practicing a bit every day
  • attending all Zoom sessions
  • practice Spanish with a family member, friend, coworker, etc.
  • do extra work in the Naveguemos textbook
  • ask the professor for additional learning materials adapted to your needs
  • use other free Spanish study tools like Duolingo, conjuguemos.com, etc.
  • creating study groups
  • meeting with our class tutor
  • arranging an appointment with your professor
  • completing quiz corrections
  • watching media in Spanish on Youtube, Netflix, Hulu, etc.

🏛 Resources

The college offers many resources to help you be successful. Some include:

💯 Grading

Grading is weighted according to categories.

Grading criteria
Category Percentage
Preparation, practice, and review [ADAPT] 25%
Interaction and communication [Zoom] 25%

Quizzes (4)

25%

Proyecto cultural

5%

Final exam
  • Composition
  • 5%
  • Oral
  • 5%
  • Comprehensive
  • 10%

The course gradebook can be found in Canvas and will be updated at the end of each chapter.

Note: The gradebook on the ADAPT website does not show your final grade in the course; go to Canvas for this information. Grades are transferred from ADAPT after each quiz is graded.

There are no make-ups for late or missed work unless. Additionally, extra credit is not offered.

📅 Activity availability

Most activities are available from the beginning of the course to allow you more flexibility in balancing personal, work, and academic matters while completing assigned work on time. You are always welcome and encouraged to work ahead of the assigned due dates. You can see due dates on the ADAPT Dashboard and the Canvas To Do list and Calendar.

📨 Turning in work and late policy

Work is turned in via Canvas and through the ADAPT homework system. I do not accept work via email.

If late work is accepted, an automatic penalty will be applied.

Generally, no late submissions, substitutions or makeup work will be accepted. Exceptions may occur due to documented personal or family illness or extraordinary circumstances; all exceptions are subject to instructor discretion and relevant college policies.

Extra credit is not provided. However, quiz corrections for up to half-credit are available; please contact with me about setting up a meeting to discuss requirements.

ADAPT: Preparation, practice, and review 

💡 Preparation, practice, and review

These are the exercises that you will complete on the ADAPT homework system. They are spaced throughout the week to help you engage with Spanish a little bit each day. While cramming may allow you to get through the work, you will have better retention and learning if you do a little work every day. 

⚙️ Preparation

Since we will not spend much class time in lecture, it is important that you review the textbook and the interactive activities found there. You will be assigned sections of the textbook to read and review outside of class time. These readings often will include interactive activities for you to test your knowledge. This activities are not graded to give you the ability to try things out and notice where you may have questions.

🔄 Practice

These are follow up activities that are completed after your preparation in the ADAPT system and our in-class sessions. They are designed to increase your abilities with the language. These exercises are graded though you are welcome to redo them to improve your grade until the due date. These exercises are due generally on Fridays (at 11:50 pm PT). Any late work will be penalized ten percent for each day late.

🌐 Review

Reinforce what we have covered in class and prepare you for the quizzes. Review will be due before chapter quiz and will receive a letter grade. You are welcome to repeat exercises to improve their overall grade until the due date, generally Sundays (at 11:59 pm PT). Any late work will be penalized ten percent for each day late.

The following table summarizes the information discussed previously:

Assignment type overivew

Details 

Preparation

Practice

Review

Due by (recommend working ahead)

Sundays and Tuesdays by 11:59 pm

weekly, Thursdays by 11:59 pm

Saturdays by 11:59 pm

Grading

completion

points

points

Late work

not accepted

-10% daily

-10% daily

🗣 Interaction and communication

Using the language to interact with other classmates is a fundamental to learning and improving language skills. Your participation in this course is vital not only for your success, but the success of your classmates. Research and experience have shown that engaging with classmates, instructor, and course content through various activities is key to improving your language abilities.

There will be two mandatory one-hour video conference sessions per week. These sessions will be facilitated using Zoom. Any missed interaction or communication assignments or online sessions will negatively affect the category grade and cannot be made-up or substituted with other work. With prior arrangement with and email confirmation from the professor, a student may miss one Zoom web conferencing session without impacting the grade.

When participating in Zoom web conferences, please find a quiet, uninterrupted space where you can give your full attention to the presentations, conversations, and activities. You are strongly encouraged to use a headset to reduce echos and feedback. Please do not participate in Zoom while operating a vehicle or other situation which will require your divided attention; treat it as normal class time and be prepared to be actively engaged the entire course time.

📝 Quizzes

Comprehensives quizzes will be administered related to monitor language development. Questions will reflect the format of exercises done in the ADAPT website as well as the interactive activities in Canvas and Zoom. Before taking a quiz, you should complete all preparation, practice, and review exercises for that particular chapter. You are welcome to review non-assigned exercises in ADAPT or the optional documents in the Files tool in Canvas. These quizzes are timed and must be completed once they are opened. Due dates for major quizzes are listed in the course schedule and in Canvas.

Note: Quizzes are given in Canvas via the honor system. Students shall not consult other websites—including ADAPT or our course textbook Naveguemos—, people, or other resources while taking the quiz. Submission of a quiz implies that you have agreed that the work submitted is of your own authorship and you have not consulted any other sources. This includes the use of any online translators, artificial intelligence tools, or other electronic resources. Not following these guidelines may result in not only a failing grade on the quiz, but additional administrative action that could include failing the entire class, academic probation, or suspension. Please uphold the confidence I have in your honesty and integrity.

📑 Final exam

The final exam will have three parts. These activities will happen towards the end of the term and will be cumulative from all materials covered during the semester. While more details will be provided later, generally the exam will have a/n:

  • Composition: a timed-writing assignment with revisions after it is reviewed by the professor
  • Oral exam: a partner activity where you both have a conversation focused on speaking
  • Written exam: a comprehensive exam focused on the core vocabulary and grammar for the term

👩‍💻 Technical requirements and tools

  • Computer, tablet, or smartphone with a functioning microphone and web camera
  • Reliable high-speed broadband or mobile internet connection capable of uploading video and participating in live video conferencing
  • Headphones (optional) to reduce audio feedback during interactive sessions

Additionally, you must have the latest versions of the following software on your computer and/or device:

Note: While most of the activities for this course can be completed either on a computer, tablet, or smartphone, there are a few activities on ADAPT (mostly grammar videos) that only can be completed using a computer.

🤦‍♀️ Plagiarism, online translators, and artificial intelligence tools

As beginning language students, it is normal to use the language outside of accepted norms, eg. “saying it wrong.” However, using the language “incorrectly” is actually part of learning it. As your professor, I am not expecting perfect language.

For some students this "insufficiency" creates great anxiety. Some feel that they need to use electronic translators or artificial intelligence to complete work. Using an electronic translator does not allow your brain to learn the language and also is turning in work (language) that is not actually your own. Because of this, use of any electronic text translators (eg. Google Translate, etc.) and artificial intelligence (eg. ChatGPT) is considered plagiarism. Work suspected to be generated in part or completely using these tools may have various consequences, including no credit for the assignment, failure of the class, and possible referral to student affairs.

However, consulting online dictionaries for individual words and phrases is permitted to complete assignments; links to some dictionaries are listed on the main page of the course Canvas site.

🛡 Other important college policies

Furthermore, you are responsible to be aware of important University policies, such as: adding and dropping courses; academic integrity such as cheating and plagiarism; grade appeal procedures; accommodations for students with disabilities; and the diversity vision statement. These are outlined at the Student Conduct page and Frequently Asked Questions and Policies page. You may want to speak with a counselor about any concerns you may have. I am happy to direct you to appropriate campus services.

😫 Grievances

It is hoped that any concerns or complaints can be addressed directly with me. Those which cannot be resolved may be directed to the department chair, Sheryl Cavales Doolan at scavalesdoolan@santarosa.edu.

Course schedule

The document below provides a schedule for the course synchronized with our in-person sessions. It is subject to change due to class need. Any schemes will be communicated during class and posted to Canvas.

SPAN 1 24F full-term Horario.docx

Course Summary:

Date Details Due