Spanish Studies
STUDENT PLACEMENT IN SPANISH
To be placed at the appropriate level of proficiency in Spanish, students registering for a course at TLU for the first time must consult with the chairperson or his/her designate.
Students returning to TLU who have successfully completed the prerequisite course at TLU during the IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING TERM may simply enroll in the next level course suggested in this catalog.
INSTITUTIONAL AND ADVANCED PLACEMENT CREDIT*
Majors and Minors may receive a maximum of six hours of institutional credit in Spanish if they earn a “B” or higher in any course beyond Spanish 131 at Texas Lutheran University the first time they take the more advanced course. Students must apply for the credit through the Registration and Records office and must also pay an institutional credit fee of $15 per hour.Students may also receive College Board Advanced Placement credit (AP), International Baccalaureate Program credit (IB) or College Level Examination Program credit (CLEP) in Spanish. The total advanced placement credit in Spanish at Texas Lutheran University shall not exceed 12 hours.
SPANISH STUDIES
Major in Spanish Studies: 29 hours, including eighteen advanced credit hours from the following: SPAN 375, 376, 377, 378, 434, 473, 474, 477, plus five additional hours in Spanish. Three hours of Languages Across the Curriculum (LAC) coursework may be substituted for three hours at the 400 level. With advisor’s permission, SPAN 439 or a Texas Lutheran University sponsored study abroad program in Spanish may replace SPAN 131, 132, 231, 232, 375, and 376. Successful completion of 376 is a prerequisite for LAC coursework. With the advisor’s permission, SPAN 379 may be substituted for an upper division course.
Supporting work options (select Option A or B):A. Liberal arts: 27 semester hours including HIST 332 A-F (with Latin American content); ENG 235; MAS 231; SOC 238; 6 hours from three of the following areas: art history, history, communication studies, philosophy, political science, sociology, theology; three hours to be determined in consultation with the advisor.
B. A major or minor (24 semester hours minimum) in another discipline. Students must take at least 18 semester hours in a single discipline. The remaining hours will be determined in consultation with the student’s advisor.
Minor in Spanish Studies: 18 semester hours in Spanish Studies chosen in consultation with the student’s advisor. Twelve of the 18 hours should be at the 300-400 level. Recommended courses are SPAN 375, 376, 473, and 477. Students may take three hours of LAC (Language Across the Curriculum) courses, participate in a TLU-sponsored study abroad program in Spanish, or perform an internship. SPAN 375 is a prerequisite for LAC coursework.
SPANISH STUDIES
SPAN 131. Spanish Language and Culture I (3:3:0)An introductory course for those with little or no knowledge of Spanish. While integrating language and culture, classroom activities will focus on listening and speaking in personal contexts. Reading and writing strategies will be introduced.
SPAN 132. Spanish Language and Culture II (3:3:0)Classroom activities focus on student interactions in personal and survival contexts. Students will read simple connected texts and write creatively, using rudimentary discourse strategies.
SPAN 210, 220, 230, 310, 320, 330. Directed Study (X:X:X)See the section in the university catalog entitled “Special Studies,” and consult the Spanish instructor for details.
SPAN 231. Spanish Language and Culture III (3:3:0)While integrating language and culture, classroom activities focus on conversational strategies in a wide range of concrete contexts likely to be encountered in the Spanishspeaking countries. Students read short texts about concrete topics and write coherent paragraphs in past, present, and future time frames.
SPAN 232. Spanish Language and Culture IV (3:3:0)Continued emphasis on concrete discourse strategies in practical and social situations, with an introduction to those strategies needed to sustain a more complex conversation. Cultural clichés and realities are further explored through a variety of readings and classroom activities. Students write short descriptive and narrative essays.
SPAN 235. Spanish Language and Culture for Heritage Speakers I (3:3:0)This course is intended to serve the needs of students who have grown up in an environment where Spanish was used to varying degrees around them by relatives, friends, or other community members. The course presumes that the student cannot speak the language to any significant extent, does not know the grammar of the language, and has had little or no formal study of the language. The student can, however, understand bits and pieces of the language. Certainly, the student will have a command of Spanish-language pronunciation, though he or she may have acquired this important ability quite unconsciously. Thus, this course is conducted bilingually in English and Spanish, with English predominating in the first part of the semester. The course intends to realize a smooth, seemingly natural transition from English to Spanish as the course progresses toward its end.
SPAN 236. Spanish Language and Culture for Heritage Speakers II (3:3:0)A continuation of Spanish 235 with more emphasis on reading, writing, and speaking.
SPAN 375. Advanced Conversational Spanish (3:3:0)This course is for students who wish to improve their ability to speak Spanish. While the student will read and write in this class, the goal of the course is to produce a student who can speak and understand Spanish fluently and comfortably. Topics for discussion will come from various media sources: television, radio, movies, the internet, magazines, guest lectures, etc. Prerequisite: SPAN 232, 236 or instructor permission.
SPAN 376. Advanced Practice in Reading and Writing (3:3:0)This course offers students the opportunity to improve their reading and writing skills in Spanish. The students will read texts and write coherent narrative essays using advanced Spanish grammar skills. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or instructor approval.
SPAN 337. Academic Spanish for Professional Purposes (3:3:0)This course examines and offers practice in the content and form of various discourse styles as well as the cultural patterns particular to the professional world. While the course will be useful in any profession, majors in business, bilingual education, allied health, pre-law, sociology and theology will find the course especially beneficial. Prerequisite: SPAN 236 or any Spanish 300 level course.
SPAN 338. Latin American Literature in English Translation (3:3:0)Readings in English translation from the vast literary treasure of Latin America. The readings may include the works by Nobel Price laureates such as Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Miguel Angel Asturias, Octavio Paz, Gabriela Mistral and Pablo Neruda as well as other world renowned writers: Jorge Luis Borges, Carlos Fuentes, and Isabel Allende. Prerequisite: ENG 131, 132 and GEC 134.
SPAN 377. Spanish Literature from its origins through the Golden Age (3:3:0)This course examines the literature of Spain from the XII through the XVI centuries, including the origins of primitive lyrical and epic poetry, early masterpieces of narrative prose and the beginnings of Spanish drama. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or above.
SPAN 378. Masterpieces in Spanish Literature (3:3:0)Readings will include classics of the picaresque genre, Cervantes and Golden Age Drama. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or above.
SPAN 379. Special Topics (3:3:0)Special monographic topics to be taught as special topics courses include, but are not limited to, Ruben Dario and the Modernist Poets; Postmodernist and Feminist Voices in Spanish American Literature; Memory, Community and Identity in Contemporary Latin American Literature, Latin American Short Story, Latin American Essay. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or above.
SPAN 410, 420, 430. Independent Studies (X:X:X)See the section in the university catalog “Special Studies,” and consult the Spanish instructor for details.
SPAN 419, 429, 439. Internships (X:X:X)Designed to provide Spanish majors and minors experience using their Spanish in a work environment.
SPAN 434. Latin American Literatures from its origins to the end of the 19th Century (3:3:0)This course studies the writings by early Spanish explorers/chroniclers, the Colonial and Independence Periods and includes the XIX Century costumbrista writers. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or above.
SPAN 473. The Novel of the Mexican Revolution (3:3:0)A course devoted to the study of the novel of the Mexican Revolution, including masterpieces by Mariano Azuela, Agustin Yanez, Juan Rulfo and Martin Luis Guzman. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or above.
LANG 474: COMPARATIVE AND CONTRASTIVE LINGUISTICS (3:3:0)A review of the literature and methodology for teaching foreign languages with an emphasis on sociolinguistics theory and practice. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or above.
SPAN 472. Chicano and U.S. Latino Literature (3:3:0)Readings from U.S. authors within or about the cultural traditions and historical background of the Spanish-speaking communities in the United States, particularly Mexican-American, Puerto Rican and Cuban American.
SPAN 475 Research Seminar (3:3:0)A research course for advanced students involving intensive reading and writing on selected topics from literature, linguistics, or cultural aspects of the Spanish-speaking world, including the Spanish-speaking communities of the United States. Prerequisite: SPAN 371 or 374, 431 or 471, and 472.
SPAN 477. Women Writers of Latin America (3:3:0)This course is a survey of the lives and literature written by women of Latin America from its origin through the 21st century. Prerequisite: SPAN 331 or above.
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