SPAN 4001 - Honours Latin American Culture

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2020

The course represents advanced learning, scholarship and research in the area of Latin American Studies. It is the final stage of formal culture tuition in the Spanish language as well as extending students' knowledge and research skills in Latin American cultures, building on the learning and research capabilities gained in the Spanish Studies major. It focuses on skills of higher order spoken and written expression, through tasks such as literary analysis and academic writing exercises. It will also develop skills of textual analysis and documentary scholarship in relation to specific forms of cultural expression, such as literature, film and music.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code SPAN 4001
    Course Honours Latin American Culture
    Coordinating Unit Spanish Studies
    Term Semester 1
    Level Undergraduate
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 6
    Contact 2 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange N
    Prerequisites Completed degree (72 units) including 24 units Spanish Studies Major or completed Diploma of Languages
    Restrictions Available only to students admitted to relevant Honours program
    Assessment Bibliography on Latin American culture (15%), oral presentation in Spanish (25%), 2000 word short essay in Spanish (20%), 4000 word long final essay in Spanish (40%)
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Sergio Holas

    Napier Building 807,
    Phone: 8303 4744
    sergio.holas@adelaide.edu.au

    Consultation Hours: TBA
    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    After successfully completing this course the student should be able to:

    1. Comprehend the cognitive nature of artistic practices in Latin America;
    2. Explore a wide range of diverse Latin American literary practices/discourses;
    3. Better your interpretative competence in the target language;
    4. In depth and critically discuss Latin American Literary texts;
    5. Consolidate your communicative competence in the Spanish language;
    6. Enhance his/her intercultural competence;
    7. Reach an understanding of the diversity of ways in which Latin American artistic communities creatively decolonize;
    8. Reach an understanding of the diversity of ways in which Latin American artistic communities represent themselves under processes of continuous colonization.
    9. Understand the different loci of enunciation from which Latin American writers speak from as an expresion of situated knowledge;
    10. Enhance your reading & writing skills in the Spanish language.



    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)
    Deep discipline knowledge
    • informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
    • acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
    • accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
    3, 4, 8, 10
    Critical thinking and problem solving
    • steeped in research methods and rigor
    • based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
    • demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
    2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9
    Teamwork and communication skills
    • developed from, with, and via the SGDE
    • honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
    • encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
    3, 5, 6, 7, 8
    Career and leadership readiness
    • technology savvy
    • professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
    • forward thinking and well informed
    • tested and validated by work based experiences
    5, 6
    Intercultural and ethical competency
    • adept at operating in other cultures
    • comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
    • able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
    • demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
    5, 6, 7, 8
    Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
    • a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
    • open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
    • able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
    1, 8
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources

    María Luisa Bombal, La última niebla.
    Ernesto Cardenal, Homenaje a los indios americanos.
    Ernesto Sábato (2000), La resistencia. Buenos Aires: Planeta.
    Roberto Bolaño (2008), Estrella distante. Barcelona: Anagrama.
    Gioconda Belli, El país de las mujeres.
    Recommended Resources
    Agosín, Marjorie (1986), Silencio e imaginación. México, D. F.: Katún.
    Lindstrom, Naomi (1998), Social Conscience of Latin American Writing. Austin: University of Texas.
    Mignolo, Walter (2005), The Idea of Latin America. Oxford: Blackwell.
    Quijano, Aníbal (1999), "Colonialidad del poder, cultura y conocimiento en América Latina", Dispositio, Vol. 24 (51), pp. 137 - 148.
    Sábato, Ernesto (1980), Hombres y engranajes. Madrid: Alianza.
    Sábato, Ernesto (1968), Tres aproximaciones a la literatura de nuestro tiempo. Santiago: Universitaria.
    Sábato, Ernesto (1979), El escritor y sus fantasmas. Barcelona: Seix Barral.
    Sommers, Doris (1991), Foundational Fictions. Berkeley: University of California Press.
    Online Learning
    a. Consejo Latinoamericano de Ciencias Sociales. CLCSO.

    A vast and up to date internet access point for research for Latin America. It has an updated library with most of the most important research in Spanish.

    http://www.clacso.org.ar/iniciophp?idioma-esp

    b. Latin American Network Information Center, University of Texas:

    http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/history/

    This is a vast internet access point of research based on countries, economy, education, government, media, culture, communication, science, and many other aspects. In English, Portuguese and Spanish.

    c. Library of the Congress - Hispanic Reading Room:

    http://www.loc.gov.rr/hispanic/

    The primary access point for research for the Caribbean, Latin America, Iberian, the indigenous cultures of those areas; and peoples throughout the world historically influenced by Luso-Hispanic heritage, including Latinos in the US, and peoples of Portuguese or Spanish heritage in Africa, Asia and Oceania.
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    This course is taught as a directed-reading exercise, in whichj the students will critically read a minimun of 5 books in Spanish on their own time and following a reading calendar agreed upon by both the lecturer and the student. There will be six sessions of two-hour meetings to discuss the books read and to analize different historical components in the books.

    Workload

    No information currently available.

    Learning Activities Summary

    No information currently available.

    Small Group Discovery Experience
    This Honours course is designed for small group discovery. All activities through the semester are designed so as to produce experiences that reflect on the specificities and diversity in cultural productions by Latin American artists.
  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    5 book reports (500 words in Spanish......................30%
    Final essay (3500 words in Spanish)........................70%
    Assessment Detail

    No information currently available.

    Submission
    The submission of the first tasks will be in week six.

    The second task must be submitted in week twelve of the semester.
    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M11 (Honours Mark Scheme)
    GradeGrade reflects following criteria for allocation of gradeReported on Official Transcript
    Fail A mark between 1-49 F
    Third Class A mark between 50-59 3
    Second Class Div B A mark between 60-69 2B
    Second Class Div A A mark between 70-79 2A
    First Class A mark between 80-100 1
    Result Pending An interim result RP
    Continuing Continuing CN

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

  • Student Feedback

    The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

  • Student Support
  • Policies & Guidelines
  • Fraud Awareness

    Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

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