Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

SPA 271 focuses on any combination of essays, novels, short stories, poetry and theater from Latin America, Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and / or Spain. The course is designed to provide intermediate and advanced students of Spanish with the opportunity to study literature and to practice and improve skills in listening, speaking, reading, writing and vocabulary usage, as well as to further understanding and appreciation of diverse perspectives, experiences and issues facing women in Spanish-speaking countries. The course fulfills the distribution requirements for the AA degree, the diversity requirement, and the general education requirement for other associate degrees.

Upon completion students should be able to:

1. Analyze, through writing and discussion, diverse literature by women from Spain and/or Latin America.
2. Identify notable literary works and authors, representative of the eras, geographic regions and/or social issues being studied.
3. Identify distinct literary voices.
4. Identify specific cultural norms, perspectives, and forms of expression in literary works by women from Latin America and/or Spain.
5. Examine one’s own cultural filters in reference to cultural practices and perspectives presented in the literature.

Students must attend regularly and come to class having read assigned selections and having prepared any assigned exercises and reflections.  Written work is required and the course will be conducted entirely in Spanish.

This course focuses on ample practice in conversation, reading, writing, listening and the study of Spanish language cultures through art, literature, and other media.  To support the development of Spanish language proficiency, Spanish grammar is reviewed, with particular attention placed on complex structures. The course is conducted in Spanish.  Students are expected to work in tasks that involve individual and group projects.

Students are assessed in a combination of the following:

• Class participation
• Quizzes
• Written assignments (in or out of class)
• Mid-term exam 
• Individual and/ or group projects
• Final exam

The themes and concepts covered are related to the Spanish-speaking cultures.   These are some of the issues explored in the readings, writings and discussions:

Latinos in the US

Spain and Latin America

School- High School, University, and Study abroad 

Gender relations

Family, life stages and events

Celebrations, food, and other human experiences

Social classes

Rural and urban life 

History and politics

Hopes, ideals, plans