I. General Information
1. Course Title:
Beginning Spanish II
2. Course Prefix & Number:
SPAN 1402
3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:
Credits: 4
Lecture Hours: 4
Lab Hours: 0
4. Course Description:
This course is a continuation of
SPAN 1401. Basic vocabulary groupings will be added (town, travel, social issues) at a more diverse topic level. Short readings related to Spanish-speaking countries are introduced for pronunciation and comprehension exercises. Grammar and vocabulary are practiced through writing and oral class participation. Advanced grammar includes preterite, conditional, imperative (commands), and present tense subjunctive. Cultural activities are an integral piece of each lesson. Students must have completed SPAN 1401 or at least 1 full year of High School level Spanish within the past 3 years with a final course grade of a "B-" or higher. MnTC Goals 7A and 8
5. Placement Tests Required:
6. Prerequisite Courses:
SPAN 1402 - Beginning Spanish II
Pre-Requisites for SPAN 1402
All Credit(s) from the following...
Course Code | Course Title | Credits |
SPAN 1401 | Beginning Spanish I | 4 cr. |
9. Co-requisite Courses:
SPAN 1402 - Beginning Spanish II
There are no corequisites for this course.
II. Transfer and Articulation
1. Course Equivalency - similar course from other regional institutions:
Bemidji State University, 1112 Elementary Spanish II, 4 credits
St. Cloud State University, Spanish 102, 4 credits
Metro State, SPAN 102, 4 credits
Normandale Community College, SPAN 1200, 5 credits
3. Prior Learning - the following prior learning methods are acceptable for this course:
- Advanced Placement (AP)
- CLEP
- Demonstration
III. Course Purpose
1. Program-Applicable Courses – This course fulfills a requirement for the following program(s):
Global Studies Certificate
Latin American Studies Certificate
Spanish Transfer Pathway AA
2. MN Transfer Curriculum (General Education) Courses - This course fulfills the following goal area(s) of the MN Transfer Curriculum:
- Goal 7A - Human Diversity
- Goal 8 – Global Perspective
IV. Learning Outcomes
1. College-Wide Outcomes
College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies |
Students will be able to: |
Demonstrate oral communication skills |
Participate in paired activities, role-play, directed – vocabulary mini-conversations. |
Demonstrate written communication skills |
Create short written conversations, thematic essays, sentences using specific grammatical points (verb tense, adjectives, negatives, etc), translate graded level pieces. |
Discuss/compare characteristics of diverse cultures and environments |
Identify common characteristics associated with the various Spanish-speaking countries. |
2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of
the course:
- Carry on a short conversation about personal interests including things they did, are doing and plan to do;
- Ask and answer a variety of questions giving reasons for the answers;
- Exchange personal preferences and feelings;
- Express agreement and disagreement;
- Read and respond to level-appropriate written materials on a broader range of familiar topics;
- Identify the main idea and demonstrate understanding of key words and phrases from selected authentic materials;
- Demonstrate understanding of spoken and written language that incorporates familiar vocabulary and structures;
- Write guided compositions on familiar topics in present and past time frames;
- Examine the similarities and differences between the target cultures (products, practices and perspectives) and the student’s own culture, with topics such as holidays, food, travel and shopping MnTC Goal 8;
- Analyze specific international problems, illustrating the cultural, economic, and political differences that affect their solution MnTC Goal 8;
- Understand the role of a world citizen and the responsibility world citizens share for their common global future MnTC Goal 8;
- Identify and describe contributions from the target cultures such as artwork, architecture, music, dance and literature;
- Understand the development of and the changing meanings of group identities in the United States' history and culture MnTC Goal 7A;
- Demonstrate an awareness of the individual and institutional dynamics of unequal power relations between groups in contemporary society MnTC Goal 7A; and
- Demonstrate communication skills necessary for living and working effectively in a society with great population diversity MnTC Goal 7A.
V. Topical Outline
Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.
1. Lecture Sessions
NOTE: Culture is an integral part of language and will be included contextually wherever appropriate. Typically, this level of language learning also includes many target culture "survival" language functions; such as: asking for/giving directions, shopping at a store and/or open-air market, ordering food/eating at a restaurant and taking the bus and/or subway.
- Basic Vocabulary
- Personal information
- Academic life
- Personal life/daily routine
- Relationships/stages of life
- Health
- Parts of the body
- Symptoms and medical conditions
- Healthcare customs
- Travel
- Transport
- Navigation
- Asking for help
- Giving and receiving directions
- Lodging
- Eating out
- Shopping
- Technology
- Classroom terminology
- Home electronics
- Car and accessories
- Verb Tenses
- Present tense review
- Reflexive verbs
- Past tense preterite continued
- Regular
- Irregulars (-car/-gar/-zar, irregular stems, stem-changing)
- Accompanying phrases
- Past tense imperfect
- Regular
- Irregular
- Accompanying phrases
- Present subjunctive
- Grammar Points
- Verbs like “gustar”
- Adverb formation
- Compare use of the preterite vs. use of the imperfect
- Common expressions for each
- Verbs which change meaning accordingly
- Imperative voice
- Informal/familiar commands (tú)
- Formal commands (Ud./Uds.)
- Modes of speaking
- Indicative
- Imperative
- Subjunctive
- Subjunctive voice
- Impersonal expression
- Emotion
- Doubt
- Por or para
- Qué or cuál
- Negatives
- Double object pronouns
- Culture Areas Covered Contextually
- Classroom and academic life
- Daily routines and family life
- Health customs
- Social customs and free time
- Social media
- Vacation and travel
- Hispanic countries
- Geography
- Historical clips
- Foods, rituals, religions
- Idiomatic variations