Heartland Community College
Master Course Syllabus
Division name: Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Course Prefix and Number: SPAN 101
Course Title: Elementary Spanish I
DATE PREPARED: April 2009
DATE REVIEWED: October 2014
DATE REVISED: September 2014
PCS/CIP CODE: 1.1-160905
IAI NO. (if available):
EFFECTIVE DATE OF FIRST CLASS: January 2015
CREDIT HOURS: 4
CONTACT HOURS: 4
LECTURE HOURS: 4
LABORATORY HOURS: 0
CATALOG DESCRIPTION:
Prerequisite:
- Placement into college level English and reading
SPAN 101 introduces general Spanish language concepts and develops students’ speaking,
listening, reading, and writing skills for real-life purposes. The course presents grammar,
vocabulary, and pronunciation as crucial tools for effective communication. Additionally,
knowledge and understanding of the cultures of the Spanish-speaking world play an integral part
in the learning process.
TEXTBOOKS:
Castells, M., Guzmán, E. E., Lapuerta, P., & Liskin-Gasparro, J. E. (2014). Mosaicos: Spanish as
a world language (6 ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
Or a comparable text as approved by the area coordinator that addresses at a minimum the
topics listed in the Course Outline and that provides students with the opportunity to achieve
the learning outcomes for this course.
RELATIONSHIP TO ACADEMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS AND
TRANSFERABILITY:
SPAN 101 fulfills 4 semester hours of elective credit for the A.A. and A.S. degrees. It should
transfer to most colleges and universities as an elective course. However, since this course is not
part of either the General Education Core Curriculum or a baccalaureate major program
described in the Illinois Articulation Initiative, students should check with an academic advisor
for information about its transferability to other institutions.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Course Outcomes
Essential
Competencies
CO 4
Language Program
Outcomes
LPO 1
Range of Assessment
Methods
Oral exams,
Participation/Selfreflection rubric
1. Provide and obtain
information, express
feelings and emotions,
exchange opinions, and
reflect on this process
through oral expression
in Spanish at the novice
level
2. Provide and obtain
CO 1
LPO 2
Written homework
information, express
sections, Essay
feelings and emotions,
sections from chapter
and exchange opinions
tests and the final
through written
exam
expression in Spanish
at the novice level
3. Recognize and interpret CT 1
LPO 3
Reading sections of
written Spanish at the
homework, chapter
novice level on a
tests, and the final
variety of topics
exam
through synthesizing
knowledge and/or
applying it to new
situations
4. Recognize and interpret CO 3
LPO 4
Listening sections of
spoken Spanish at the
homework, chapter
novice level on a
tests, and the final
variety of topics
exam
5. Examine the diversity
DI 1
LPO 5
Cultural sections of
of cultures, ethics,
homework, chapter
values, and aesthetics
tests, and the final
of Spanish-speaking
exam
regions
CO1: Students compose a message and provide ideas and information suitable to the topic,
purpose, and audience.
CO3: Students listen in order to comprehend information, critique and evaluate a message, show
empathy for the feelings expressed by others, and/or appreciate a performance.
CO4: Students are self-reflective of the communication process.
CT1: Students gather knowledge, apply it to a new situation, and draw reasonable conclusions in
ways that demonstrate comprehension.
DI1: Students are receptive to beliefs and values that differ from their own.
LPO 1: Through oral expression in the target language, students provide and obtain information,
express feelings and emotions, exchange opinions, and reflect on this process.
LPO 2: Through written expression in the target language, students provide and obtain
information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions.
LPO 3: Students recognize and interpret the written target language on a variety of topics
through synthesizing knowledge and/or applying it to new situations.
LPO 4: Students recognize and interpret the spoken target language on a variety of topics.
LPO 5: Students understand the diversity of cultures, ethics, values, and aesthetics of the target
culture.
COURSE OUTLINE:
 Structural topics
o Gender of nouns and forming plurals of nouns and adjectives
o Telling time
o Using definite and indefinite articles with nouns
o Agreement of the adjective with nouns
o Expressing quantity with “hay”
o Using “tener” to express age and feelings
o Verb tenses: present and progressive
o Pronouns: subject, direct object, demonstrative, and prepositional
o Using “gustar” to express likes and dislikes
o Using “ir + a + infinitive” as a simple future
o Adjectives: possessive, descriptive, demonstrative, and ordinal numbers
o Uses of “ser” and “estar”
o Making affirmative and negative expressions
o Comparing people and things using “más que,” “tanto como,” etc.
o Expressing possession with “de”
o Using the personal “a” and contractions
o Contrasting por and para, saber and conocer
 Vocabulary
Greetings, meals, eating out, classroom objects, college campus, course subjects,
family relationships, daily activities, the house, colors, descriptive words, free
time activities, and the weather
 Cultural topics
o The Spanish language and where it is spoken
o Hispanic influences in the United States
o Places to visit in the Spanish-speaking world
o Hispanic food
METHOD OF EVALUATION (Tests/Exams, Grading System):
Assessment Method
Written Work: Homework, other
Oral Work: Oral exams, other
Exams: Chapter tests, final exam, other
Participation
% of final grade
20 – 30 %
15 – 20 %
40 – 50 %
5 – 10 %
TOTAL
100 %
Grading System:
90-100%
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
Below 60%
A
B
C
D
F
REQUIRED WRITING AND READING:
For this course students typically read and write 2-5 pages per week between textbook,
workbook, and homework activities. This estimate is based on a 16 week course schedule. Please
note that if your class is not a 16 week class, your weekly reading assignment will be modified
accordingly.