B1938 - Spanish Language and Laboratory II

Learning outcomes

The linguistic-textual knowledge of the Spanish political situation and its Latin American relationships from 1975 until today. Socio-political news in Spanish-speaking countries

Course contents

The Spanish Language and Language Laboratory II programme consists of:

• A 30-hour course
• A 40-hour B1/B2 Language Laboratory

Both are held during the first semester of the academic year.

Throughout the course and the laboratory, the non-linguistic topics addressed will focus primarily on the sociopolitical context of Spanish-speaking countries.

COURSE – Attending Students (First Semester)

30 hours

The Spanish Language II course includes the study of the following topics:

1. General Overview of Spanish-Speaking Countries in the Contemporary World (THEORY)

• Spatial and historical factors: the influence of geography and historical roots.
• From Franco's dictatorship to democracy in Spain: the 1978 Constitution.
• Sociopolitical conflicts in Latin America since the last third of the twentieth century.

2. Current Issues in Spanish-Speaking Countries (DEBATE)

• Migration (Borders and walls, social transformations).
• Environmental crises (Climate change, destruction of nature, urban degradation).
• Structural violence and populist discourse.
• Sociocultural issues (Indigenous peoples, gender identities, memory management).

3. Cultural Expressions of the Political and Social Situations of Hispanic Civilization (WORKSHOP)

• In cinematic representations of the past and present.
• In singer-songwriter music as well as commercial and traditional music.
• In theatrical performances and contemporary stage productions.

COURSE – Non-Attending Students

All units from Modules C and D of Debate (see bibliography).

Please note: The supplementary worksheets indicated immediately after each main text, as well as the reading comprehension exercises, are also included in the assessment.

Readings/Bibliography

BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR ATTENDING STUDENTS

• MANUALS

  • Santos Juliá: Transición. Historia de una política española (1937-2017).Barcelona, Galaxia Gutenberg, 2017. [Capítulo 8: LIBERTAD, páginas 347-408]
    
  • Jesús A. Martínez: La democracia amenazada. Siete años que cambiaron la historia de España /1975-1982). Madrid, Cátedra, 2025. [Capítulos 1: 1975-776. Y después de Franco, ¿qué?, páginas 17-34, 2: 1977. Habla, pueblo, habla, páginas 35-76 y 3: 1978. Todo abierto y bien abierto, páginas 77-89.]
  • Héctor Pérez Brignoli: Historia global de América Latina. Del siglo XXI a la Independencia. Madrid, Alianza, 2018. [Capítulo 2. Utopías latinoamericanas, páginas 119-227.]

  SUPLEMENTARY TEXTS

  • Eduardo Galeano: Las venas abiertas de América Latina, México DF, Siglo XXI, 1971.
  • Javier Cercas: Anatomía de un instante. Barcelona, Mondadori, 2009.

  NOTE: The cited reading list complements and expands the class explanations and will help students prepare for the corresponding tests. The teacher will explain the use of the books listed in due course and will recommend others as the sessions progress.

  TEXTS FOR NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS

• J. C. Barbero, F. Bermejo and F. San Vicente, Contrastiva. Grammatica della lingua spagnola. Bologna: CLUEB, 2010. (Grammar reference.)
• J. C. Barbero and F. San Vicente, Quaderni di esercizi di lingua spagnola. Bologna: CLUEB, 2017. (Self-study exercise book.)
• F. San Vicente and H. E. Lombardini, Debate. Bologna: CLUEB, 2010. Modules C and D (complete).

Teaching methods

COURSE

The 30-hour Spanish II course will be held in the first semester. The subject sessions (each lasting two hours) will be organized into three blocks of variable length: the first, focused on the expository development of the program contents; the second, organized around debates on the issues indicated in the aforementioned program; finally, the third, dedicated to the exploration of literary, cinematographic, iconographic or musical resources, as sources for the cothe critical understanding of the socio-political and cultural realities of the Hispanic world.

STUDENTS WITH SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITIES (SLD) OR DISABILITIES

Students with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) or temporary or permanent disabilities are strongly encouraged to contact the University's dedicated support office as early as possible:

https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it

The office will propose any appropriate accommodations for the students concerned. Such accommodations must, however, be submitted to the course instructor at least 15 days in advance for approval. The instructor will assess their suitability in relation to the intended learning outcomes of the course.

Assessment methods

Attending Students

To be considered an attending student, attendance of at least 60% of the classes (21 out of the 35 sessions comprising both the Course and the Language Laboratory) is strongly recommended in order to ensure adequate coverage of the material presented during the course.

The final course grade consists of:

• the average mark obtained in the Course and Language Laboratory, plus
• an oral examination mark ranging from 0 to 3 points.

The Course and Laboratory average is calculated from:

• the mark obtained in the first midterm examination;
• the mark obtained in the second midterm examination;
• the mark awarded for continuous assessment, which includes both qualitative and quantitative evaluation.

For all written examinations and written assignments completed during the course, particular reference is made to Article 25.2 of the University Code of Ethics.

Students may retake only one of the two midterm examinations, either because they were absent, failed to obtain the minimum passing mark, or wish to improve their average. Resit examinations will take place only during the first official examination session, and exclusively during that session. Students who do not attend or fail the resit examination will automatically be considered non-attending students.

The oral examination (following verification of reading ability) consists of a conversation on everyday topics in which students must demonstrate oral communicative skills corresponding to A2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Students should be able to interact on personal topics using familiar everyday expressions and common formulae; introduce themselves, describe, narrate, express opinions, formulate hypotheses, and give instructions using appropriate, although simple, grammatical structures with no frequent errors.

To sit the oral examination, students must register through ALMAESAMI.

Attending students may take the oral examination while retaining the Course/Laboratory average until the September examination session of the following academic year.

Alternatively, attending students may replace the oral examination with a presentation on a historical or political topic. General guidelines for this alternative assessment will be provided during the course.

Students are reminded that they may sit only one examination per examination session (this regulation applies only to undergraduate students).

Non-Attending Students

Depending on the public health situation, examinations for non-attending students will be held either in person or online, according to the following procedure.

Stage 1 – Identification

Students must attend a virtual or physical classroom at the scheduled date and time for identity verification. General instructions regarding the examination will be provided at this stage.

For online examinations, students must use a device equipped with a functioning microphone and webcam.

Stage 2 – Written Examination (Moodle/EOL)

Students will then complete the first three parts of the examination through the Moodle (EOL) platform.

Part 1 – Language Component

• 30 B1-level questions (multiple-choice or short-answer).
• Maximum score: 30 points.
• A minimum of 18 points is required to proceed to Part 2.
• Time allowed: 25 minutes.

Part 2 – Historical and Political Component

• 15 questions (multiple-choice or short-answer) based on Debate, Modules C and D.
• Maximum score: 15 points.
• A minimum of 9 points is required to proceed to Part 3.
• Time allowed: 13 minutes.

Part 3 – Written Production

Students will read a newspaper article and complete a series of tasks, including:

• identifying the main ideas;
• transforming direct speech into reported speech;
• expressing opinions and value judgments;
• making proposals.

The maximum score for this section is 15 points.

Time allowed: 35 minutes.

Stage 3 – Oral Examination

After completing the written sections, students will return to the virtual or physical classroom for the oral examination.

Part 4 – Oral Component

Students who obtain at least 36/60 (equivalent to 18/30) in the written examination will take an oral examination covering all units included in Modules C and D of Debate, either online or in person.

To take the examination as a non-attending student, registration through ALMAESAMI is mandatory.

For all written examination components, particular reference is made to Article 25.2 of the University Code of Ethics.

Students are reminded that they may sit only one examination per examination session (this regulation applies only to undergraduate students).

Teaching tools

The following teaching resources are used throughout the course:

• course textbook;
• practice materials;
• grammar reference book;
• exercise book;
• dictionaries;
• Internet resources;
• electronic slides;
• newspaper articles;
• printed materials;
• CDs and DVDs;
• transparencies; and other supplementary materials.

Additional self-study exercises (up to B1 level) are available at:

https://e-cla.unibo.it/course/index.php?categoryid=45

Access requires University of Bologna credentials.

Office hours: To be announced.

Office hours

See the website of Pedro Sáez Ortega