NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE

COURSE SYLLABUS

COURSE AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Course title: Beginning Spanish I

Course prefix, number, and section number: Span 1411.942 (Corinth), .930 (Flower Mound), .911 (Gainesville), and .901 (Synchronous Online)

Semester/Year of course: Fall 2024

Semester start and end dates: August 26-December 14, 2024

Modality: Interactive TV and Synchronous Online

Class meeting location, days, and times: Mondays and Wednesdays 3:30-4:50pm

Semester credit hours: 4

Course description: Basic Spanish language skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing within a cultural framework. Students will acquire the vocabulary and grammatical structures necessary to communicate and comprehend at the beginner level.

Course prerequisites: None

Required course materials: Access to a computer compatible with Canvas, reliable internet, and access to a webcam and microphone in order to record audio and video for homework assignments. If you desire to test remotely, your system must be compatible with the free Respondus Lockdown Browser and Monitor available for free download. If your system does not work with Respondus, or if you prefer not to use those programs, you will need to schedule your exams on campus through the Testing Center. All other instructional materials are available for free in our Canvas site.

Name of instructor: Dr. Sara Gottardi

Office location: Corinth campus room 309

Telephone number: 940-498-6451

E-mail address: sgottardi@nctc.edu

Office hours for students (Webex or Corinth309):  Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays 8:00am-10:50am. Mondays and Wednesdays, 1:00-2:30pm. Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:00-5:00pm. By appointment only: Tuesday evenings 7:00pm-8:30pm via Webex.

Office hours are times when you usually can meet me for tutoring or receive quick responses to emails, or meet me online or in person. Unless we have set up a time and place to meet, it is best to contact me via email as the Webex notifications do not always alert me in the moment. The link to the Webex office hours is in Canvas on your homepage.

SYLLABUS CHANGE DISCLAIMER

The faculty member reserves the right to make changes to this published syllabus if it is in the best interest of the educational development of this class. Any such changes will be announced as soon as possible in person and/or writing.

SUMMARY OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS

List of graded assignments:

Tarea 10%

Exámenes orales  (2) 18%

Proyecto cultural (4^th credit hour) 17% 

Exámenes escritos (3) 55%

Final grade scale:  

At the end of the semester, I apply standard rounding to everyone. An 89.44 will remain a B, but an 89.45 will round up to an A.

90-100%          A

80-89%            B

70-79%            C

60-69%            D

0-59%              F

Late work policy:

In general, no late work awarded credit. However, if you have a situation that merits an exception, contact your instructor to arrange a reasonable solution. 

SEE CANVAS FOR THE COMPLETE COURSE CALENDAR, OUTLINE, DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF GRADED WORK, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIAL.

COURSE POLICIES

Academic Integrity Policy:

Scholastic dishonesty shall include, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, academic falsification, intellectual property dishonesty, academic dishonesty facilitation and collusion.  Consequences for academic dishonesty may include:

1) The student will receive a grade of "O" on the assignment. 

2) A "Scholastic Dishonesty Report Form" will be submitted regarding the incident

3) Student may be dropped from the course with a failing grade (letter grade of “F”)

Misrepresenting your language abilities falls under scholastic dishonesty. 

AI Writing and Acceptable Use: Submitting work generated by ChatGPT or any other AI language tool on assignments is considered academic dishonesty, even if cited as a source. 

Generally speaking, students are not authorized to use artificial intelligence and related products like large language model applications to produce work for this class EXCEPT on assignments that the instructor has identified and for which the student will have received significant guidance on the appropriate use of such technologies. Students should not, however, construe this limited use as permission to use these technologies in any other facet of their coursework. Students who submit AI generated content as original work will be subject to the same disciplinary actions listed above in the college's academic integrity policy.

Attendance Policy:  

Attendance is taken each class period. If you miss 4 class sessions, you become at risk for withdrawal from the course. Students who do not attend class prior to the date of record will be dropped.

Withdrawal Policy

A student may withdraw from a course on or after the official date of record. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate and complete a Withdrawal Request Form. Students who do not attend class prior to the date of record will be dropped. 

Last day to withdraw from the course with a “W” is: November 4^th, 2024

Student Learning Outcomes:  Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

• Engage in conversations using level-appropriate grammatical structures including narrating events that take place in the present and producing questions and responses on a variety of topics dealing with everyday life.
• Demonstrate understanding of level-appropriate spoken Spanish.
• Write simple sentences and organize them into short paragraphs.
• Read and comprehend level-appropriate texts.
• Identify and discuss traditions, customs and values of the Hispanic world.
• Compare and contrast the traditions, customs and values of the Hispanic world with characteristics of their own culture.

Core Objectives:

Critical Thinking Skills (CT)- to include creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information

Communication Skills (COM)- to include effective development, interpretation and expression of ideas through written, oral, and visual communication

Social Responsibility (SR)- to include intercultural competency, knowledge of civic responsibility, and the ability to engage effectively in regional, national, and global communities

Personal Responsibility (PR)- to include the ability to connect choices, actions, and consequences to ethical decision-making

COLLEGE POLICIES

STUDENT HANDBOOK

Students are expected to follow all rules and regulations found in the Student Handbook.

ADA STATEMENT

NCTC will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the Office for Students with Disabilities to arrange appropriate accommodations.  See the OSD Syllabus Addendum. 

STUDENT SERVICES

NCTC provides a multitude of services and resources to support students.  See the Student Services Syllabus Addendum for a listing of those departments and links to their sites.

QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, or COMPLAINTS