University of Bristol
SCHOOL OF MODERN LANGUAGES
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS OF
SPANISH
DEPARTMENTAL STAFF
Head of Subject
Professor David Hook
david.hook@bristol.ac.uk
Head of Education
Dr Caroline Williams
caroline.williams@bristol.ac.uk
Full-time members of staff
Ms Carmen Brauning
Mr Juan López-Ramal
Dr Matthew Brown
Dr Joanna Crow
Dr Sally-Ann Kitts
Dr Lorraine Leu
Dr Paul Lewis-Smith
Ms Madalena Pires
Dr Francisco Romero-Salvadó
Mr Rogelio Vallejo
Ms Rossana Vanni
Dr Caragh Wells
C.Brauning@bristol.ac.uk
J.Lopez-Ramal@bristol.ac.uk
Matthew.Brown@bristol.ac.uk
Jo.Crow@bristol.ac.uk
S-A.Kitts@bristol.ac.uk
Lorraine.Leu@bristol.ac.uk
P.Lewis-Smith@bristol.ac.uk
Madalena.Pires@bristol.ac.uk
F.Romerosalvado@bristol.ac.uk
R.Vallejo@bristol.ac.uk
Ross.Vanni@bristol.ac.uk
C.Wells@bristol.ac.uk
Please note that the following members of staff will be on research leave
during the academic year 2006-07:
Dr Sally-Ann Kitts (1 August 2006 to 31 July 2007)
Dr Caragh Wells (1 August 2006 to 26 January 2007)
Professor David Brookshaw (29 January 2007 to 18 May 2007)
Part-time members of staff
Mr J Cosme
Prof. M Costeloe
Dr I Cusack
Mr M Goebel
Mr J Hollyman
Mrs P Sullivan
Mr J Vilaró
Dr M Vizcaya
Mr Edmond Schnitker
Ms Sarah Kent
Mrs Augusta Hole
j.a.d.cosme@bris.ac.uk
m.p.costeloe@bris.ac.uk
igor.cusack@bris.ac.uk
thomasmichaelgoebel@yahoo.co.uk
johnhollyman@hotmail.com
palmira59@onetel.com
spjvb@bris.ac.uk
martavizcaya@hotmail.com
edmondschnitker@hotmail.com
sarah@lawsonkent.co.uk
romaria@btopenworld. co.uk
STRUCTURE OF YOUR PROGRAMME OF STUDY
The course of studies leading to a particular degree is called a programme. The
School of Modern Languages offers the following programmes in Hispanic,
Portuguese and Latin American Studies:
Spanish (sometimes called ‘Single Honours Spanish’ to avoid ambiguity). In the
first year of this programme, you will be required to take 80 credits of language and
‘culture’ units in Hispanic Studies, as well as a further 40 credits worth of Open
Units.*
Hispanic Studies (Spanish with Portuguese or Catalan).
Joint Honours (Spanish combined with another Modern Language - French,
German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian or Czech - or with another subject which is not a
language – Drama, History of Art, Philosophy or Politics).
All these programmes last four years and include a year abroad, which is always the
third year.
* OPEN UNITS FOR SINGLE HONOURS SPANISH STUDENTS
Depending on your interests, you may take these Open Units within Hispanic,
Portuguese and Latin American Studies – HISP 10106 Portuguese Language (20
credits) and/or HISP 10108 Catalan Language (20 credits) – or elsewhere in the
School of Modern Languages, or elsewhere in the University. Further details on Open
Units are given in the School Handbook.
Please note that it is your responsibility to register with the department offering the
Open Unit you want to study during Registration Week. You must inform the
School Office of your choice of Open Unit or Units once you have been accepted
and enrolled for that unit or units. Please note that if you enrol on Open Units
worth more than 40 credits, you still have to complete 80 credits in this Department.
All information concerning timetabling, teaching and assessment of Open Units must
be obtained from the departments in which the units are taught. Before signing up for
any Open Unit, check that your timetable in this Department will allow you to
fulfil all the timetabled requirements of the Open Unit.
YOUR PROGRAMME OF STUDY & DETAILS OF UNITS IN HISPANIC,
PORTUGUESE, AND LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES
Each programme is built up out of a number of units, some of which are mandatory i.e. units which are taken by all students – and some of which are optional – i.e. you
may choose the units that best correspond to your interests.
In your first year, all units taken in Hispanic, Portuguese, and Latin American Studies
are mandatory. Students of Single Honours Spanish only may take optional units
totalling 40 credits in another subject (these are Open Units, as described above).
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UNITS STUDIED IN YEAR 1
Students reading Spanish take the following units:
Credits
HISP 10001
HISP 10011
HISP 10012
HISP 10013
Spanish Language (post A-level)
Introduction to the History of Spain & Latin America
Introduction to the Literature of Spain & Latin America
The Linguistic History of Spain
Open Units
TOTAL
20
20
20
20
40
120
Students reading Hispanic Studies take the following units:
HISP 10001
Spanish Language (post A-level)
HISP 10011
Introduction to the History of Spain & Latin America
HISP 10012
Introduction to the Literature of Spain & Latin America
HISP 10013
The Linguistic History of Spain
In addition to either
HISP 10106
Portuguese Language for Hispanic Studies
HISP 10304
Introduction to Portuguese and Brazilian History
HISP 10303
Introduction to Literature and Culture in Portuguese
or
HISP 10108
Catalan Language
HISP 10305
Catalan Institutions
HISP 10306
Literary History of Catalonia
TOTAL
Credits
20
20
20
20
20
10
10
20
10
10
120
Students reading for a Joint Honours degree with Spanish
(post A-Level and post-GCSE) take the following units:
Credits
HISP 10001
Or
HISP 10101
And
HISP 10011
HISP 10012
Spanish Language (post A-Level)
20
Spanish Language (post-GCSE)
20
Introduction to the History of Spain & Latin America
Introduction to the Literature of Spain & Latin America
20
20
TOTAL IN SPANISH
60
The remaining 60 credits are taken in your other subject.
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Students reading for a Joint Honours degree with Spanish (ab initio) take the following
units:
Credits
HISP 10116
HISP 10114
HISP 10115
Spanish Language (ab initio)
Survey Course on the Literature of Spain & Latin America
Survey Course on the History of Spain & Latin America
TOTAL IN SPANISH
40
10
10
60
The remaining 60 credits are taken in your other subject.
In your second and fourth years, the language units are mandatory, but all other units
are optional – that is, you will be offered a choice of units which will allow you to
build up a programme that suits your strengths and interests. Details of second year
units will be made available to you during the second teaching block of your first
year; you will be informed of details of final year units during your Year Abroad.
Please note that optional units in years 2 and 4 have a maximum number of students
and when a unit is oversubscribed, performance in related subjects in the previous
year is taken into account in deciding who gets their first choice of units. In other
words, you maximize your chances of taking the option units you really want in Year
2 by having a good performance in the assessment and examinations in Year 1;
similarly, a good performance in Year 2 will maximize your chances of getting your
chosen units in Year 4.
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BUYING BOOKS
It is essential to buy copies of the set texts, which are listed with the details of
Literature units. If no edition is specified, you may buy any inexpensive paperback
edition. Unless clearly specified otherwise, set texts will be studied in the order they
appear in the unit information on the Hispanic Studies pages of the School of Modern
Languages website.
Throughout your programme you will also need to consult:
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a Spanish grammar book;
at least one bi-lingual Spanish-English/English-Spanish dictionary;
a monolingual Spanish dictionary;
an English dictionary;
a Thesaurus or dictionary of synonyms;
a specialised dictionary of literary terms.
While it is not essential to buy all of these reference books before coming to Bristol,
as there are copies available in the University Library, in the long term you will find it
convenient to have your own copies so that you can work at home: you are advised,
therefore, to buy these as and when you can. You will find the titles and publication
details of reference books recommended in the appropriate sections of this Handbook.
You may have bought some or all of your first year books during the summer
vacation before you come up to Bristol, in order to do preliminary reading. Should
you have decided to wait until your arrival in Bristol, please bear in mind that books
in Spanish, Portuguese and Catalan are difficult to obtain at short notice, except
from specialist bookshops, or academic bookshops in Bristol that have our reading
lists.
Second-hand Books: It is sometimes possible to obtain second-hand copies of books
in the Fry Haldane Bookshop in the Student Union, Blackwells bookshop in Bristol,
or Grant and Cutler in London. Lists of books for sale privately are also often posted
on the students’ notice-board within the School.
More information is given in the main body of the School Handbook.
CALL (COMPUTER-ASSISTED LANGUAGE LEARNING)
At present, the Faculty of Arts computer laboratories offer:
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Elements of Spanish Grammar – a series of five tutorials on central aspects of
Spanish grammar, designed specifically for second-year students who were
beginners/post-GCSE in their first year, but suitable for all students wishing to
revise their grammar.
Catacroc – a package of Catalan syntax and morphology exercises, suitable for
students of all levels of Catalan as a useful grammar reinforcement exercise.
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Fun With Texts – a text-manipulation and reconstruction package offering a series
of graded texts in Spanish, Portuguese and Catalan labelled 1, 2 or 4 depending on
the year at which they are aimed.
Spanish Encounters – a CD-ROM course for ab-initio students, also useful as a
revision tool for post A-level students.
Portuguese Encounters – a CD-ROM course for ab-initio students, also useful as
a revision tool for post A-level students.
Caminos a la expresividad – computer-based learning tutorials for second and
fourth-year students (Please see also the Second and Fourth Year Handbooks).
Your Language tutors will provide details of how to access these facilities at the
beginning of term.
SPANISH, PORTUGUESE AND CATALAN ON THE INTERNET
The Hispanic section of the School website offers a variety of useful information on
matters of interest to students of Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies
(including details, for instance, of the Semana Cultural), and links to interesting sites
relating to the subjects taught in those fields. Those Web pages provide you with
access to, for example, many on-line periodicals, as well as information on
universities in Spain with a number of interesting links to Catalonia, Portugal, and
Latin America. In addition, a number of verb-conjugation and simple language
courses will also be accessible on-line to our students, with links from our home page:
http://www.bris.ac.uk/Depts/Hispanic/
STUDENT REPRESENTATION: THE STAFF-STUDENT LIAISON
COMMITTEE
Student representatives from each year are elected to the Joint Staff-Student Liaison
Committee. Elections are held as soon as possible after the start of each academic
year. The Committee normally meets once a term to discuss issues of general
relevance (issues concerning a particular unit should be raised in the first instance
with the lecturer or language tutor concerned). Should you wish a matter to be raised
and considered by the Joint Staff-Student Liaision Committee, you should inform
your representative on this committee. The names and contact details of student
representatives will be posted on the webpage at the beginning of the academic year.
Elections are also held for student representatives on the Board of the Faculty of
Arts and on Senate.
STUDENT SOCIETY
There is a society, Movida Latina, run by students, which arranges social events
related to Spain, Portugal and Latin America. You can join this society by paying a
subscription during Freshers’ Week.
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CHOICE OF YEAR 2 UNITS
Towards the end of Teaching Block 2 of the first year you will have the opportunity
to discuss with your tutor your choice of units for the second year. Full information
about the choices available will be posted on the School website together with the
relevant forms.
Please note that where units are over-subscribed, performance in Year 1 will be
used to determine which students are enrolled.
STUDENT PRIZES
The School awards the following prizes annually, nominees being chosen at the end
of the examination period:

Cervantes Prize. Awarded for outstanding performance in the field of Spanish
Studies.

Camões Prize. Awarded for outstanding performance in the field of
Portuguese Studies.

Eça de Queiroz Prize. Awarded for outstanding performance in the field of
Portuguese Studies.

Juan Ruiz de Alarcón Prize. Awarded for outstanding performance in the
field of Latin American Studies.

Manuel Azaña Prize. Awarded for outstanding performance in the field of
19th and 20th Century Spanish History Studies.

Bristol Enterprise Centre Prize for Spanish and Business Studies. Awarded
to finalists for outstanding performance in Spanish for business purposes.

Mark Mueller Prize. Awarded to any student studying in joint honours
German and Spanish who is deemed to be academically outstanding.
A list of students who have been awarded these prizes in previous years is
displayed in a cabinet in the foyer of 15, Woodland Rd.
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ACCENTS AND LEXICAL VARIATIONS FOR ORAL PRESENTATIONS
AND WRITTEN WORK IN SPANISH
The strength of the Spanish language resides in the wide variety of peoples and
cultures using it, and it constitutes a strong bridge for communication between widely
separated and hugely diverse countries and regions. To avoid any misunderstanding,
this Department has always emphasised that any authentic regional accent or lexical
variation is acceptable, both in oral presentations and all written work in Spanish,
provided that language is used correctly, intelligibly and follows the general
grammatical rules and structures currently observed and taught. Regional vocabulary
or particular dialect usage must be used with care and sensitivity – and always in the
appropriate context! Similarly, the use of slang or street neologisms must be limited
to illustrate particular experiences or situations. Just as the North Americans and
British understand that a pavement and sidewalk, or elevators and lifts, are different
names for the same object, we believe serious students of Spanish should be fully
aware of variations in usage and have the capacity to employ and explain them in
order to communicate with others as appropriate.
The Department has been fortunate in having professional language teachers from
different parts of both Spain and Latin America in order to reflect the wealth of
cultural and linguistic variety. We believe that we must be highly attuned to cultural
difference and respect and appreciate ‘otherness’. It is not always a simple matter of
correct grammar and vocabulary; it is also extremely important to be aware of
register, whether in expressing ourselves or interpreting another’s meaning. Mastering
the appropriate nuance of register always needs practice but also awareness,
knowledge and sensitivity are essential, particularly when dealing with a foreign
language.
R. Vallejo
Senior Language Tutor
Languages Teaching Programme Coordinator
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