Year
2021Credit points
10Campus offering
No unit offerings are currently available for this unitPrerequisites
SPAN202 Intermediate Spanish B or equivalent
Unit rationale, description and aim
Proficiency in an additional language enhances employment opportunities and cross-cultural awareness.
This unit is designed for independent users of Spanish and is linked to B2 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). It aims to provide students with the ability to interact with Spanish speakers with ease and confidence. Students should be able to produce a clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects. They should be able to understand the main ideas of complex texts on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions within their discipline or profession. Students should be able to express opinions and talk about future plans, goals and possibilities.
Upon completion of this unit, students should have a reasonable command of the grammatical, lexical and syntactical elements of Spanish so that they can communicate complex ideas with little inaccuracy.
The unit will include an intercultural reflection, allowing students to demonstrate their intercultural awareness and their ability to effectively interact in Spanish.
Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:
LO1 - Demonstrate knowledge of the target language (its sound system, vocabulary and grammar) in professional or academic contexts such as listening to a lecture, attending a meeting, or writing a short paper (GA5)
LO2 - Demonstrate intercultural competence and the capacity to reflect on intercultural interactions and students’ own interactions in the target language (GA4)
LO3 - Communicate in Spanish with members of Spanish-speaking communities at the level of proficiency inked to ‘can do’ statements at B2 on the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). For example, students should be able to communicate complex ideas, write detailed passages of text, explain and debate a viewpoint (GA1, GA5, GA6)
LO4 - Demonstrate the ability to solve problems and combine ideas collaboratively in a professional or academic context (GA7)
LO5 - Demonstrate independent learning skills and strategies to continue developing language proficiency and intercultural awareness (GA4, GA5, GA7).
Graduate attributes
GA1 - Demonstrate respect for the dignity of each individual and for human diversity
GA4 - Think critically and reflectively
GA5 - Demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession
GA6 - Solve problems in a variety of settings taking local and international perspectives into account
GA7 - Work both autonomously and collaboratively
Content
Topics may include:
- Academic culture
- Professional and academic communities
- Education systems and practices
- Spanish cultural influences
- Genres in academic writing
- Academic vocabulary
- Spanish Art, Music and Dance
Language Functions and Competencies:
- Listening and note-taking
- Researching and presenting a short paper
- Developing an argument
- Outlining and defending a point of view
- Comparing and contrasting
- Reflecting on cultural differences
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
Mode: 4 hours per week (8 hours per week in intensive mode). The usual semester pattern is 2 hours by video conference/virtual classroom across campuses and 2 hours face-to-face laboratory sessions. Presentation of new materials will be available for review on LEO.
Duration: 12 week-semester or equivalent in intensive block mode.
Students should expect to undertake 150 hours of study for this unit, including class attendance, weekly online exercises in LEO, interactive language practice and assignment preparation.
The approach to language learning and teaching is communicative with new language material presented in context using video and audio dialogues and readings. Students are expected to be active participants in all class activities including individual, pair and group work. Students will have the opportunity to demonstrate their independent learning skills and strategies, and their ability to reflect upon intercultural communication, by completing their Spanish Portfolio.
Assessment strategy and rationale
A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes consistent with University assessment requirements.
Overview of assessments
Brief Description of Kind and Purpose of Assessment Tasks | Weighting | Learning Outcomes | Graduate Attributes |
---|---|---|---|
Reading and Writing Task: Write a short academic paper on an agreed discipline-specific topic | 30% | LO1, LO2 | GA4, GA5 |
Group Presentation and tutorial discussion on a topic of professional or academic interest including a reflection on cultural differences | 30% | LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5 | GA4, GA5, GA6, GA7 |
Proficiency test: Listening, Reading, Language Use, Writing | 40% | LO1, LO2, LO3 | GA1, GA4, GA5, GA6 |
Students will complete their Spanish Portfolio to showcase their achievements in Spanish, their learning strategies and their ability to reflect upon the cultural aspects of effective communication. The Spanish portfolio will be submitted through LEO and specified times throughout the semester. | Hurdle task | LO1, LO2, LO4 | GA4, GA5 |
Representative texts and references
Students will be advised of textbook requirements in the first week of semester.