Syllabus LS 101: Beginning Spanish Fall 2009

Bridgewater State College
Pamela Hayes-Bohanan, M.A., M.L.S

Students can get in touch with me by sending e-mail to phayesboh@bridgew.edu.  I can be reached by phone or voice mail at (508) 531-2893. My campus mailbox is in  Tillinghast Hall on the third floor. If you leave something in my campus mailbox please call or e-mail me to let me know, otherwise I only check it once a week. Students can also find me on the web at  http://webhost.bridgew.edu/phayesboh. I am available for students to discuss grades, problems with the class, or simply to chat. I am not available to consult with students during the fifteen-minute break between classes. Students may use this time only to make an appointment to meet in my office.

I work full-time as a reference librarian at the Maxwell Library, so students may often find me at the reference department. However, I may not always be available to consult with students. As a librarian I have desk duty, prepare and teach classes on using the library, and have meetings. It is best to call ahead and arrange a time to meet if my regular office hours are not convenient.

Required Materials:

Imágenes 2nd ed. by Debbie Rusch, Marcela Domínguez and Lucía Caycedo Garner 

Textbook Web Page

Course Objectives:

This is an introductory course to the Spanish language and Hispanic culture.  Students will learn the foundations of Spanish, with the expectation that they will achieve a basic level of proficiency by the end of the semester. The four skills that we shall focus on are: reading, writing, speaking and listening. The course will be student-oriented and thus involve considerable interactive work in class.  It will also require preparation at home, as well as computer work on Blackboard and the Internet. Specifically this will entail learning vocabulary and verb forms before the day these are practiced in class. Class time will be used primarily to engage these skills in various contexts. You will  also learn study, reading, writing and critical thinking skills, and discover things about English you did not  know. You may learn something about yourself as well. This course fulfills one of the Core Distribution requirements in the Humanities, and in Global Culture.

Attendance:

Because practice is a necessary part of  language learning, attendance is mandatory for this class. Language learning is a discipline that requires steady, cumulative preparation; a discipline in which each point builds upon its predecessor, such that if you do not master a given grammatical point or vocabulary lesson, this will prevent assimilation of the following lesson.

Unexcused absences will have an adverse effect on a student's participation grade. You cannot participate if you are not here! Students with seven or more unexcused absences will receive a failing grade in class participation. Students with ten or more unexcused absences will fail the course.

If an absence is excused (e.g. illness, death in the family) please tell me about it. Missing class for reasons such as family reunions and weddings, while understandable, are not excused. Students are responsible for finding out what was missed on the days they were absent whether excused or not.

In addition to the daily attendance taken by the instructor the Office of the Registrar sends out a Student Census several times during the semester. If such a census comes and any student has missed two or more consecutive classes, without contacting the instructor, the student will be marked as "no longer attending" class and will be dropped by College Administration.

Lateness:

It is not polite to arrive habitually late, or leave early from class. Any student who arrives more than 5 minutes late, or leaves early by any amount of time, on more than two occasions will have five points deducted from his or her class participation grade for each offense. If you believe you will have trouble coming to class at this 8:00 in the morning please look into changing your schedule. There are many other sections of  LASP 101.

Make-Ups:

I only give make-up exams in extreme cases when the following conditions are met: 1) the student has a valid excuse for missing the exam (e.g. severe illness, death in the immediate family) 2) the student does not wait until the next class period to contact me, in other words - call or e-mail as soon as you know you will not make the exam 3) a make-up can be scheduled before the exams are returned to the rest of the class. 

Late Work:

I will accept late work, for reduced credit, up to one week past the due date of the assignment. After that time a grade of zero will be entered in the grade book. Exceptions can be made in cases of emergency, but students will need to contact me to make arrangements.  

Please be aware: all course requirements must be completed in order to receive a passing grade.

In other words, regardless of your total number of points if you fail to do a major assignment, or take an exam without a valid excuse you will fail the course.

Grading Criteria:

Class work: is based on the instructor's perception of  how well the student has prepared for each day's lesson through attendance and participation. In order to prepare effectively for class students should be working 2 hours at home for every hour spent in class. Additionally, students can be negatively evaluated in class participation through disruptive behavior, demonstrating rudeness to the instructor or fellow classmates, missing class and habitual lateness.

Class work Rubric

Exams: Three chapter exams and one final exam. The chapter exams will be created by the instructor and each will include a variety of question types (short answer, multiple choice, matching, vocabulary, verb conjugations). The final exam is created by the Spanish department will be multiple choice and written sentences.

Homework Assignments: There will be seven homework assignments. Some will be online, others will be written. See the schedule below for due dates.

Writing Assignment: Movie Discussion  - more information will be provided at a later date.

Group Presentation - As a class we will be researching the Day of the Dead, then divide into groups to prepare presentations on what we learned.

Extra Credit: There will be occasions during the semester that students may do an extra-credit assignment. I will post them on Blackboard. Take advantage of these if and when they come up. There will be no other opportunities to do extra credit work. If students do the work they are assigned, and come to class regularly there is no reason to do extra credit. Please do not ask the instructor for an extra-credit assignment. Students will earn 10 extra credit points for each Extra Credit activity, up to 50 points.

Communication:

To facilitate communication this class uses Blackboard. All students must register for an account and should check the announcements daily. It is also useful for sending e-mail. Some grades will also be posted there. Also see my page on "How to Communicate with Your Instructor".

Incompletes:

Incompletes will only be considered under extenuating circumstances, as specified in the Student Handbook. Students must request an incomplete in writing to the instructor no later than the final exam hour for the course. The request will be forwarded to the Department Chair for consideration.

Where to go for Help:

Bridgewater State College has numerous resources to help students with academic, personal, social and career issues. You can contact the following offices for help:

Academic Achievement Center - For tutoring, study groups, writing lab, math lab and learning disabilities ext. 1214
Career Services - Testing materials for graduate and professional school, help with resumes, internship opportunities, full-time job listings (for those about to graduate) ext. 1328
Counseling Center - For personal or group counseling due to academic stresses, personal or family problems or any other reason. ext.1331
Maxwell Library - For research - ask a reference librarian! ext.1394
Campus Police - Emergency situations, locked keys, escort service ext.1212
Office of Multicultural Affairs - Support and programmatic services for students of color
Student Affairs - Assistance with co-curricular life x1276

Please note: The instructor reserves the right to revise the syllabus as necessary. Students who are absent are responsible for any revisions/directions/assignments given on the day of their absence.

Daily Assignments:

Return to Pam Hayes-Bohanan's Simplify Your Life page.

You can contact me at phayesboh@bridgew.edu

Last updated 08/26/09