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Language Learning Outcomes

(reviewed and revised Fall 2008)

SIS Department Learning Outcomes:
Language [FREN or SPAN] 1001, 1002: Elementary and
Language [FREN or SPAN] 1001, 1002: Intermediate

Students will be able to:

  1. Speak [Language] at the level detailed in the University System of Georgia (USG) standards.
  2. Understand spoken [Language] at the level detailed in the USG standards.
  3. Comprehend written [Language] at the level detailed in the USG standards.
  4. Construct passages of written [Language] at the levels detailed in the USG standards.

University System of Georgia
Learning Outcomes for Foreign Languages:

1001

SPEAKING

  • Use common greetings and short descriptions of themselves, family, friends, school, daily routine activities, pastimes, food.
  • Reproduce learned material in talking about what they are doing today, what they did yesterday, and what they are going to do tomorrow.  
  • Be able to make recombinations of learned material.
  • Ask questions about classmates, their facilities, daily routine activities, pastimes, food.

LISTENING

  • Understand classroom instruction.  
  • Understand the "edited" message spoken by the instructor even though not understanding every word.  
  • Understand classmates' utterances when supported by situation context.

READING

  • Read simple texts that describe target culture family, school setting, basic activities.
  • Read newspaper and magazine announcements of events, sales, and be able to understand the message.
  • Read most directions in exams and classroom activities.

WRITING

  • Be able to write short paragraphs about self, family, school, basic activities.   Sentences will be primarily recombinations of already learned phrases but will begin to be placed in sequential order.
  • Be able to compose a paragraph with internal structure and meaning.

1002

SPEAKING

  • Enter into basic dialogues with classmates.   Describe themselves, their families, and routine activities today, yesterday, tomorrow.   Be able to give a few statements about the past.
  • Have a command of interrogative words and be able to use them correctly
  • Start formulating opinions about predictable events.

LISTENING

  • When listening to a simple story, be able to distinguish between what they did and what they used to do.
  • Understand many classroom directions and recombinations of set phrases.
  • Understand simple summaries of last week, yesterday, and what we used to do.

READING

  • Read short segments of prose with familiar vocabulary.
  • Read and explain simple weather reports, movie ads, travel information.

WRITING

  • Write short notes to classmates about plans for the weekend or descriptions of last weekend.
  • Write descriptions of classroom activities including assigned vocabulary and recombinations of assigned phrases.
  • Write description of self, family, holidays, travel, daily activities.   Write about things that happened when they were children, yesterday, and plans for next summer.

2001

SPEAKING

  • Be able to engage in dialogue with classmates and instructor about task-oriented and social situations.
  • Be able to initiate and respond to simple statements about self; family, daily routine, holidays, travel.
  • Be able to initiate and respond to simple statements in the present, past and future.
  • Know some colloquial expressions and use them appropriately.

LISTENING

  • Be able to understand most classroom instructions.
  • Be able to understand clear narrative descriptions by the instructor.
  • Be able to understand the reading of a simple paragraph from a short article or story.
  • Be able to listen to and answer basic questions about something that has been read.

READING

  • Be able to read short, simple examples of authentic material with cognates and some definitions by the instructor on topics that are relevant and/or interesting to the students.  
  • Be able to read descriptive texts, chronological narrations, and dialogues.

WRITING

  • Be able to write compositions guided by a reading passage.
  • Be able to write narration about events that happened when they were children, yesterday, or last year.
  • Be able to write a paragraph about self; family, friends, with basic chronology.

2002

SPEAKING

  • Use the language in a spontaneous way communicating some opinions and views about self, family, etc.
  • Be able to maintain a simple conversation with someone who speaks only the target language.
  • Be able to answer predictable questions in a manner that does not impede comprehension.
  • Be able to lead the conversation on occasion by interrupting, asking questions, and disagreeing.

LISTENING

  • Be able to understand most everything that goes on in the classroom and follow "stories" told by the teachers about events last year, today, and next week.
  • Understand selected narrations about the way things used to be.
  • Understand some conjecture and opinions about the way things used to be.

READING

  • Be able to read simple short stories with some reading preparation exercises and glosses.
  • Be able to read short excerpts or ads from newspapers and magazines about familiar topics.
  • Be able to read and understand most classroom directions, news reports, weather reports, etc.

WRITING

  • Be able to write expository prose of one to two pages, consisting of a description or an opinion, about very familiar topics.   Sentences and paragraphs may be linked.

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SPAN 3001 Advanced Conversation:

Students will be able to:

  1. Exhibit oral fluency and listening comprehension in Spanish through appropriate activities.
  2. Exhibit oral fluency and listening comprehension in Spanish through culturally appropriate activities.
  3. Demonstrate knowledge of general, business, scientific, and technical vocabulary, among others.

SPAN 3002 Grammar and Composition:

Students will be able to:

  1. Effectively use the everyday language (in Spanish) of educated persons in writing and speech.
  2. Distinguish among various styles of writing.
  3. Differentiate among European and American dialects and adopt the most widespread usage.

SPAN 3003 Hispanic Cultures and Civilizations:

Students will be able to:

  1. Evaluate cultures of Hispanic civilizations as critical background for professional activities and international trade.
  2. Identify social values, institutions, customs and historical / cultural movements characteristic of Hispanic cultures.
  3. Read, write, and discuss the course content in Spanish.

SPAN 4001 Professional Spanish:

Students will be able to:

  1. Utilize Spanish to conduct business successfully.
  2. Exhibit greater cross-cultural awareness and competency.
  3. Demonstrate the following language skills at a level appropriate for professional purposes: speaking, comprehension, reading, writing, and translation/interpretation.

SPAN 4002 Techniques in Translation for Professional Spanish:

Students will be able to:

  1. Translate texts systematically and progressively from Spanish to English (and sometimes vice versa).
  2. Distinguish among various styles and themes of texts to translate.
  3. Recognize and use grammatically appropriate European and American dialects of Spanish.

SPAN 4003: Service Learning:

Students will be able to:

  1. Function culturally appropriately in an Hispanic professional setting.
  2. Use advanced conversational Spanish accurately in a Spanish-only professional setting. 
  3. Use advanced written Spanish accurately in a Spanish-only professional setting.