SPAN

3853-001/002 FA16 Syllabus 1

University of Oklahoma
College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Modern Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics
SPAN 3853-001/002: Introduction to Hispanic Literature and Culture
Fall 2016

Instructor: Dr. Julie Ward

Office: Kaufman Hall 120
Email: wardjulie@ou.edu
Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday, 2:30-3:30PM
Course Meeting Time and Location:
Section 1: 10:30-11:20 AM, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Kaufman Hall Rm. 319
Section 2: 12:30-1:20PM, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Zarrow Hall Rm. 115
Course Prerequisite:
Spanish 2223
Course Description and Goals:
This course initiates students into the literatures and cultures of the Hispanic world, both in Spain and
Latin America. Students will learn how to analyze literature by literary genres and movements.
Emphasis on all four language skills (hearing, speaking, reading, and writing) and culture. This course is
designed to improve reading comprehension and to introduce the language techniques of literary and
cinematic analysis. Representative works from various literary genres in Spain and Latin America will
be studied, including narrative, poetry, drama, essay, and film. It prepares students for more advanced
analytical and interpretive work in upper-level survey courses in the Spanish major at OU. In addition,
students will gain strong analytical skills to apply to many types of written discourse and media.
Required Texts and Materials:
Online textbook available via Canvas.
A good Spanish-English dictionary. (Recommended: Ramondino, Salvatore, ed. The New World
Spanish/English, English/Spanish Dictionary.)
MLA Handbook. Eighth Edition.
Materials posted on Canvas: Access D2L at http://oucanvas.com/; enter your OU Email or NetID
(4+4) and password, and select course to access material. Please contact Information Technology
(http://www.ou.edu/content/ouit/help.html) if you require assistance.

SPAN 3853-001/002 FA16 Syllabus 2

Expectations, Activities, and Assessment:

Attendance and Participation. This course requires both in-person and online participation. Over the
course of the semester, you will be expected to attend class prepared to discuss the assigned readings.
You should arrive punctually, participate in all class activities, bring all materials to be discussed that
day in either physical or digital format, and demonstrate prior preparation (reading, looking up unknown
words and important terms). Because of the discussion-based nature of this course, attendance is
mandatory. Excessive absenteeism will negatively affect your final grade.
Communication. Regular updates and relevant information regarding the course will be posted on
Canvas. In order to ensure that you do not miss any new information of relevance to the course, you will
be responsible for checking the class page at least once each week. Additional information, links, and
documentation will be posted on the content pages.
I will respond to your e-mails within two business days. For more urgent requests, please see me before
or after class, or in office hours.
Group Work. The class will be divided into four permanent groups of five or six students each. Groups
will work together in class, on online discussion forums (see Participation above), and on a research
project (see Scholarly Edition below). Group members will assess one anothers performance through
a Peer Evaluation process with an analysis-and-review activity, midterm evaluation, and a final
evaluation.
Asssignments:
Self-evaluation. There are several self-evaluation activities programmed in this course. Their
completion is required for a passing grade in the class. These include an essay entitled How I Got an A
in this Class, a mid-term consultation with me, at least four of the five reflective questions on the
scholarly edition project, and a mid-term self-assessment.
Readings and Comprehension Quizzes. To ensure preparation and reading comprehension, each
reading assignment has a corresponding cuestionario to be filled out on Canvas before the class
meeting in which the reading is discussed. While grammar is not directly assessed in this course, if
grammatical errors impede communication you will not receive credit for an answer.
Discussion Forums. You will complete reflections on discussion forums on Canvas. Three questions
related to the material covered in class will be posted each week. You will be expected to respond (in
Spanish, of course) to one of these questions as well as to at least one of your group members posts.
Thus, your first post should be a response to one of the posed questions, while your second post should
be a respectful and insightful response to one of your group members. Each post (original and
responses) should be between 150 and 250 words in length and reflect your own thoughts and words.
You will receive full credit for posts that satisfy these requirements, or a 0 for any missing, late, or
incomplete postings. No partial credit will be assigned on discussion forum posts. Discussion forum
posts are always due before the first class meeting of the week.

SPAN 3853-001/002 FA16 Syllabus 3

Scholarly Edition. Each group will produce a scholarly, annotated edition of a literary work studied in
class. This project will be undertaken with the guidance of a Graduate Research Guide and the professor.
The final products will be eligible for publication as additions to the textbook for SPAN 3853 in the
future. Each group will present their scholarly edition to the class in a short (~7 min.) presentation on
November 14. Specifications for this assignment are available on Canvas under Informacin esencial >
Edicin crtica. No partial credit will be assigned for the Scholarly Edition.
Ensayo analtico. You will write an analytical essay on a literary work. The paper must be written in
Spanish and be 2800-3500 words (excluding notes and bibliography) in length. It is preferable that
students choose the subject of their groups scholarly edition. Students will also present their work in
short (~7 min.) presentations on Nov. 30, Dec. 2 and Dec. 5. You will receive two separate grades for
the Ensayo analtico; one for the first draft, which must be at least 1400 words in length, and another for
the final draft. You must get credit for the first draft and participate in the peer review process in order
to receive credit on the final draft. You must get credit for the final draft in ordert to receive credit on the
presentation. There will be no partial credit for these assignments.
I encourage you to take advantage of the OU Writing Center. The writing consultants at the writing
center are available to talk with you about your writing, at any stage in the process and for any course
you are taking. You can make an appointment (online or by phone 405-325-2936) and you can drop in
whenever they are open. I urge you to visit the web site for more information.
(http://www.ou.edu/writingcenter.html)
Final Exam The comprehensive final exam for Section 1 will take place Friday, Dec. 16 from 8:00 to
10:00 AM. The comprehensive final exam for Section 2 will take place Monday, Dec. 12 from 1:30 to
3:30 PM. All students must take the final exam per College of Arts and Sciences Policy
(https://apps.hr.ou.edu/FacultyHandbook/ - 4.7).

SPAN 3853-001/002 FA16 Syllabus 4

Important Dates (subject to change):

Aug. 29:

How I Got an A in this Class

essay due

Sept. 2:

First Research Reflection Due

Sept. 5:

Labor Day Holiday, no class

sessions

Sept. 6-9:

Groups meet with GRG to

determine subject work for
scholarly edition

Sept. 7:

Discussion Forum 1 entries due

Sept. 9:

Digital Humanities Day @OU,

J.J. Rhyne Community Room,
Zarrow Hall

Sept. 12:

Discussion Forum 2 entries due

Sept. 16:

Second Research Reflection Due;

Oct. 17:

Peer review day for Scholarly

Editions (please bring 7
copies/group for peer review)

Oct. 19:

Discussion Forum 6 entries due

Oct. 21:

First draft of paper due on

Canvas (min. 1400 words).

Oct. 24:

Scholarly Editions Due

Group Presentations of Scholarly
Editions

Oct. 26:

Final Peer Evaluation Due

Discussion Forum 7 entries due

Oct. 31:

Discussion Forum 8 entries due

Nov. 4:

Last Research Reflection Due

Second draft due on Canvas for
peer review

Latin Americanist Lunch, noon,

Farzaneh Hall Rm. 145
Sept. 19:

Discussion Forum 3 entries due

Nov. 7:

Discussion Forum 9 entries due

Sept. 21:

Mid-term Peer evaluation due

Nov. 14:

Discussion Forum 10 entries due

Sept. 26:

Discussion Forum 4 entries due

Nov. 18:

Sept. 30:

Third Research Reflection Due

Peer review comments due on

analytical essays

Oct. 3:

Discussion Forum 5 entries due

Nov. 21:

Discussion Forum 11 entries due

Oct. 7:

Student Holiday, no class

sessions

Nov. 23-25:

Thanksgiving Vacation, no class

sessions

Oct. 10:

Mid-term self-evaluation due

Nov. 28:

Discussion Forum 12 entries due

Oct. 10-14:

Individual consultations with me;

Nov. 30:

Final versions of analytical

essays due on Canvas

Nov. 30,
Dec. 2&5:

Presentations of analytical essays

in class

Group meetings with GRG;

No class sessions
Oct. 14:

Fourth Research Reflections Due

Dec. 12: Sec. 2 Final Exam, 1:30-3:30PM

Dec. 16: Sec. 1 Final Exam, 8-10AM

SPAN 3853-001/002 FA16 Syllabus 5

Final Grades
Final grades will be awarded based on the following scale:
90-100% = A; 80-89% = B; 70-79% = C; 60-69% = D; 0-59% = F
Assignments will contribute the following approximate percentages to the final grade:
ASSIGNMENT

PERCENTAGE

Analytical Essay

15%*

*A student will only be eligible for credit for the analytical

essay after successfully completing the scholarly edition.

Rough Draft 5%
Final Draft 5%**

** A student will only be eligible for credit for the final draft
after successfully completing the rough draft.

Presentation 5%***

*** A student will only be eligible for credit for the

presentation if they successfully complete the final draft.

Attendance and Participation

20%

Final Exam

10%

Discussion Forums

15%

Reading Quizzes

30%

Scholarly Edition

10%

Please note that, aside from the final exam and reading quizzes, no partial credit will be awarded on
assignments. That is, if student work does not meet assignment criteria, no credit will be awarded.
Contingencies In order to lower student stress and create flexibility, each student will begin the semester
with five virtual fichas. Students may exchange fichas for privileges and second chances as follows:
1 ficha may be used to excuse an otherwise unexcused absence;
1 ficha may be used to excuse a failed or missed discussion forum entry/response.
1 ficha may be used to make up a missed autoevaluacin, group assessment, or mid-term consultation.
1 ficha may be used to make up a failed first draft of the analytical essay.
2 fichas may be used to redo a failed analytical essay. The revised, satisfactory version is due Nov. 4,
2016, if this exchange is chosen.
2 fichas/group member may be used to redo a failed scholarly edition. If a single group member does
not have at least two fichas to use for this assignment, that member will not pass the assignment.
The other group members may work to improve their project. The revised, satisfactory version is
due November 4, 2016 if this exchange is chosen.

SPAN 3853-001/002 FA16 Syllabus 6

Course Policies:
Attendance Students are responsible for the content of courses in which they are enrolled. Students have
a responsibility to inform faculty prior to absences. The only way to excuse an absence, other than
whenever possible. I will make every effort to find a reasonable accommodation for students who miss
class as a result of participation in Provost-approved University-sponsored activities or legally required
activities such as emergency military service or jury duty. These reasons and religious observances (see
below) are the only circumstances in which an absence may be excused in this course. All other
absences may be excused by using one ficha. If you will miss a significant number of class sessions
because of mental or physical health issues, please contact me as soon as possible to discuss. Generally,
modifications will be made where medically necessary and similar in scope to accommodations based
on temporary disability.
Technical Difficulties Assignments missed due to technical difficulties will not be excused. A student
may spend a ficha in exchange for the chance to make up or excuse a missed assignment (see
Contingencies, above). Please keep in mind that there are labs all over campus for you to use in case
your own equipment is malfunctioning. Visit http://www.ou.edu/content/ouit/learning/labs.html for their
locations.
If you are having a problem with an OU service such as Canvas, D2L, email, or a website, first visit OU
IT Alerts to find out if there is an outage causing the problem.
OU IT Services is available to assist students with technology questions. For help with the following
problems, visit https://support.ou.edu

Problems with D2L

Problems with email

Computer viruses

For help with Canvas, click the Help button in the lower-left corner of Canvas.
Reset your password for Canvas, D2L, or OU Email at https://account.ou.edu
Up-to-date antivirus software is available free of charge to all OU students, faculty, and staff. Visit the
Helpdesk website, http://askit.ou.edu, and search on the keyword: antivirus
OU IT can fix computer hardware problems for a fee. Visit the Helpdesk website
at https://support.ou.edu
If you would like to speak with OU IT Services in person you can go to their website to locate Service
Centers around campus.
OU-Norman IT
Inclement Weather Classes will be held, rain or shine, unless President Boren decides to #makethecall
and cancel activities at the University. I will not unilaterally cancel classes due to weather.
If a student chooses not to attend due to weather on a day when classes are held, this will be considered
an unexcused absence. That student may spend a ficha in exchange for excusing such an absence.
In the case that classes are cancelled, please check Canvas for make-up activities.

SPAN 3853-001/002 FA16 Syllabus 7

University Policies:
Adjustments for Pregnancy/Childbirth Related Issues Should you need modifications or adjustments to
your course requirements because of documented pregnancy-related or childbirth-related issues, please
contact me as soon as possible to discuss. Generally, modifications will be made where medically
necessary and similar in scope to accommodations based on temporary disability. Please see
http://www.ou.edu/content/eoo/faqs/pregnancy-faqs.html for commonly asked questions.
Title IX Resources For any concerns regarding gender-based discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual
misconduct, stalking, or intimate partner violence, the University offers a variety of resources, including
advocates on-call 24.7, counseling services, mutual no contact orders, scheduling adjustments and
disciplinary sanctions against the perpetrator. Please contact the Sexual Misconduct Office 405-3252215 (8-5, M-F) or OU Advocates 405-615-0013 (24.7) to learn more or to report an incident.
Reasonable Accommodation Policy Any student in this course who has a disability that may prevent the
full demonstration of their abilities should contact me personally as soon as possible so we can discuss
accommodations necessary to ensure full participation and facilitate your educational opportunities.
These students can also contact the Disability Resource Center, (Goddard Health Center, Room 166,
325-3852) to make a formal request for accommodation.
Academic Integrity Academic integrity means honesty and responsibility in scholarship. The basic
assumptions regarding student academic work at the University are:
1. Students attend the University in order to learn and grow intellectually.
2. Academic assignments exist for the sake of this goal and grades exist to show
how fully the goal is attained.
3. A students academic work and grades should result from the students own
effort to learn and grow. Academic work completed any other way is pointless,
and grades obtained any other way are fraudulent.
Academic integrity means understanding and respecting these basic truths, without which no university
can exist. Academic misconduct violates the assumptions at the heart of all learning. It destroys the
mutual trust and respect that should exist between student and professor. Academic misconduct is unfair
to students who earn their grades honestly.
Religious Observance It is the policy of the University to excuse the absences of students that result
from religious observances and to reschedule examinations and additional required classwork that may
fall on religious holidays without penalty.