2012 - 2013 Spanish Program (SPAN)

Program Goals | Objectives | Program Requirements | Academic Minor | Additional Requirements | Examinations | Course Descriptions

Faculty: Deyanira Ariza-Velasco, Alan Davison, Luis Prádanos-García, Joy Woolf

Program Goals

• To achieve proficiency in the "5 C's" of language learning: communication, culture, connections, comparisons, and communities.
• 1st Year: Students will master the basic structures of grammar in the target language, demonstrate a "survival" level of written and oral proficiency, and gain a foundation in cultural traditions.
• 2nd Year: Students will achieve standard proficiency in conversation, composition, and the reading of short fiction. They will continue to deepen their knowledge of Spanish culture and history.
• 3rd Year: Students will understand and be understood by native speakers and be knowledgeable about the major aspects of Hispanic literature and cultural history.

Objectives

The Spanish Program offers a minor (academic or teaching) in Spanish and an interdisciplinary academic major in Spanish-Latin American Studies. Our courses cultivate and deepen a student's intellectual sensibilities for the communication potential of a foreign language and its cultural value.

The Language Faculty can advise entering students with prior foreign language study on proper course placement. Student placement at a 2nd or 3rd year level does not reduce the total number of hours required for a Spanish major or minor.

Generally, but subject to advisor and/or instructor recommendation, students who have studied one or two years of secondary level Spanish are excluded from registering for the first semester Spanish 110 course (Spanish I).

Program Requirements

A maximum of 12 external hours (transfer, CLEP, Prior Learning. Challenge Exam, or other approved external language exams) may be applied toward the minor (see below under "Additional Requirements and Procedures").

Students are advised that, due to the size and staffing of the Language Department, some Spanish courses have only one section in a given semester. Night students wishing to major or minor in Spanish should anticipate that some classes are not offered in the evenings and must be taken during the day. For further information and advising please schedule an appointment with any member of the Spanish faculty.

Academic Major in Spanish-Latin American Studies

Recommended Plan of Study for Spanish

*Two May Term (SPAN 300) classes worth a total of 4 hours may substitute for Spanish 301.
**Summer Semester Study Abroad possible--consult with study abroad director and Spanish faculty.

Academic Minor

To fulfill the requirements for an academic minor in Spanish, students must complete a minimum of 20 credit hours in Spanish coursework. (SPAN 110 is not counted toward the minor.)

Study Abroad

In general, Spanish-Latin American studies majors must complete one semester of study abroad during the Fall or Spring semester of their junior or senior year at a foreign university. Exceptions to this policy are made for natives from a Spanish-speaking country, and in some cases for non-natives who have spent a significant amount of time in a Spanish-speaking country (for example, those who have completed one to two years of Spanish-speaking volunteer work abroad. Check with the program chair for further clarification.) The foreign university that a student attends is to be decided upon in consultation between the student and major advisor.

When an exception is made and a student is not required to study abroad for a semester, the alternative is to satisfy the 12-hour study abroad requirement through a community-based internship, by taking additional upper division Spanish course work, or a combination of these two.

Additional Academic Requirements and Procedures for the Spanish Programs

Students with prior study or knowledge of Spanish should take a Spanish placement exam such as the CLEP, or consult with program faculty, before registering for a Spanish class. This will help determine whether the student should register for Spanish 110, 111, 220, or higher.

Only students who have never studied Spanish before may register for Spanish 110. This class does not count toward a Spanish major or minor, but it does count toward graduation hours or the foreign language requirement of other majors.

Native Fluency--Students demonstrating native fluency in a language other than English may request and receive, upon interview and documentation, a waiver for the foreign language requirement in their major (see individual major advisor for verification and procedure). No transcript credit is awarded for this major waiver. Also, the total number of required hours for Westminster graduation must be fulfilled.

Transfer Credit--A maximum of 12 credit hours of transfer credit or credit by examination may be applied toward a Spanish major or minor. Transfer hours exceeding this limit may be applied toward total hours for graduation, if needed (consult your major audit form for verification). For Spanish majors, the 12 hour maximum does not affect or overlap with their Semester Study Abroad requirement (12 hours).

Examinations

Credit by exam is not counted as in-residence credit.

CLEP Exam: the CLEP exam is a national standardized test of listening/reading comprehension in Spanish. (See START Center for details.) Westminster students successfully passing this exam receive up to a maximum of 12 semester credit hours equivalent to SPAN 110, 111, and 220.

Note: Only partial CLEP credit may be applied toward a language major or minor if the student is applying transfer or other credit toward the same major or minor.

External Foreign Language Exam--up to 12 credit hours may be obtained by successfully passing an accredited foreign language exam administered by another institution, (e.g., University of Utah, Brigham Young University; contact the individual institution directly for foreign language exam information). It is the student's responsibility to pre-approve transfer credit with the Registrar's Office. External tests generally cover the equivalent of the first year and one-half of the second year of a language.

Challenge Examination--students who have an advanced academic ability in a subject matter may "challenge" a course for credit. (See Catalog listing and/or Language faculty for details.

Advanced Placement (AP)--Students who received a score of 3 or higher on the Spanish AP exam earn 8 credit hours, distributed as 4 credit hours for SPAN 110 (applicable to foreign language requirements of the student's major but not to a Spanish major or minor), and 4 hours of 100T credit (applicable to the total hours needed to graduate but not to a Spanish major or minor).

Students with AP credit are encouraged to continue their Spanish studies at Westminster and should register for Spanish 111 or higher. Please direct placement questions to the START Center or Spanish faculty member.

Further questions regarding Spanish exams and placement should be directed to START Center or Spanish faculty member.