Major Requirements

Credits Required: 

Total credits:120

Credits in the major: 44

No more than 8 units taught by departments other than WLC (that is, prefixes other than SPAN, WLC and JAPN, etc.) may be applied to the Spanish major. Units taken at other institutions, such as during study abroad programs, can be approved by a major advisor.

You officially begin the major by enrolling in the WLC 300: WLC Major ProSeminar where you work with the instructor to create or revise your Individual Learning Plan. That ILP maps out how you will achieve each of the Major Learning Outcomes designated below by successfully completing the listed courses or alternative assessment options. You conclude the major by completing your Capstone Project in WLC 400: WLC Major Capstone, a publicly presented project that displays your cumulative learning in the major. [Learn more at WLC Capstone and CSUMB.EDU/capstone].

Major Requirements and Learning Outcomes are identified below. In order to graduate, students must also meet all general education and university requirements. 

 

Core Courses

  • WLC 300: WLC Major ProSeminar (2 units)
  • SPAN 301S: SL in Latino Community (2 to 6 units)
  • WLC 400: WLC Major Capstone (4 units)

MLO 1: Language Proficiency

The student sustains performance in speaking, listening, reading and writing at the Advanced level of language proficiency, as outlined by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL):

1.1 Speaking ability: The student is able to satisfy the requirements of everyday situations and routine school and work requirements. Can communicate facts and talk casually about topics of current public and personal interest, using general vocabulary. The student can be understood without difficulty by native speakers.

1.2 Listening ability: The student is able to understand main ideas and most details of connected discourse on a variety of topics beyond the immediacy of the situation. Comprehension may be uneven due to a variety of linguistic factors and topics.

1.3 Reading ability: The student is able to read prose selections of several paragraphs in length, particularly if printed clearly and if prose is in familiar sentence patterns. Reader understands the main ideas and facts but may miss some details. At this level the student can read such texts as descriptions, narratives, short stories, news items and routine personal and business correspondence.

1.4 Writing ability: The student is able to write routine social correspondence and join sentences in simple discourse of at least several paragraphs in length on familiar topics, and is able to express him/herself simply with some circumlocution. Good control of the most frequently used syntactic structures, but makes frequent errors in producing complex sentences. Writing is understandable to natives not used to the writing of non-natives.

[Note: Final Language Proficiency is demonstrated in WLC 400: WLC Major Capstone]

MLO 2: Language and Linguistic Knowledge

The student develops an understanding of the structure of the Spanish language and is able to use an appropriate level of formality according to the situation, whether in writing or in speech.

The student completes between two and six courses (depending on his or her choice of emphasis, as either language and linguistics knowledge or literary and cultural knowledge) related to the Spanish language and linguistics. These courses deal with: the sound system of Spanish, the history of Spanish, advanced grammar, Spanish-English translation, a general introduction to Spanish linguistics, Spanish for professional application (medical, legal, etc. spheres), composition and conversation.

Required Courses

  • SPAN 301: Comp/Oral Practice (4 units)
  • Students will complete one of the following courses:
  • SPAN 302: Hist/Phonetic Struct Span Lang (4 units)
  • SPAN 303: Adv Spanish Grammar (4 units)
  • SPAN 305: Spanish for The Professions (4 units)
  • SPAN 313: Intro to Spanish Linguistics (4 units)
  • SPAN 315: Intro Translation Span/Eng (4 units)

MLO 3: Literary and Cultural Knowledge

The student develops a reasonable understanding of the ways of thinking (ideas, beliefs, attitudes, values, philosophies), the behavioral practices (patterns of social interactions) and the cultural products – both tangible and intangible (for example, art, history, literature, music) — of Hispanic cultures.

There are two pathways by which this outcome can be fulfilled:

  • Pathway 1: The student completes between two and six courses (depending on his or her choice of emphasis, as either in language and linguistics knowledge or literary and cultural knowledge) in Hispanic literature, culture or society. General areas to choose from are: literature, the social sciences (anthropology, geography, history, political systems), art history, music history, religion or other non-Spanish courses specific to Hispanic culture or society.
  • Pathway 2: With prior approval and guidance from WLC faculty, the student may opt for a more individual pathway. He or she may choose to independently study, research and analyze four of the following areas as they are reflected in the civilization or national culture of the language chosen to study: architecture, dance, dress, fiction, healing processes, high art, issues of gender and racial equity, music, national history, poetry, political systems, popular art, religious beliefs, theatre.

Required Courses

  • SPAN 304: Intro To Hispanic Literat (4 units)
  • and at least one more from this list:
  • SPAN 306: Cultur/Civ Span Ltn Amer (4 units)
  • SPAN 316: Span Culture & Civ (4 units)
  • SPAN 321: Masterpieces of Hispanic Lit (4 units)
  • SPAN 322: Masterpieces Latinamer Lit (4 units)

MLO 4: Secondary Cultural Knowledge

In addition to the Spanish language and Hispanic cultures, the student demonstrates a general knowledge of a socio-cultural group other than a Hispanic one or mainstream American culture. The student develops a basic understanding of the ways of thinking (ideas, beliefs, attitudes, values, philosophies), the behavioral practices (patterns of social interactions) and the cultural products – both tangible and intangible (for example, art, history, literature, music) – of the second culture.

There are two pathways by which this outcome can be fulfilled:

  • Pathway 1: The student completes at least one upper division course whose focus is a socio-cultural group not reflected by a Hispanic culture. General areas to choose from are: literature, the social sciences (anthropology, geography, history, political systems), art history, music history and/or the second cultural group. Examples include:
  • Pathway 2: The student may opt for a more individual pathway, choosing to independently study, research and analyze the working components of the second culture.

MLO 5: Cultural Praxis

The student demonstrates that he or she has been actively immersed in and has internalized Hispanic culture.

There are three pathways by which this outcome can be fulfilled:

  1. Pathway 1: By participating in a study-abroad program in a Spanish-speaking country for at least one semester. WLC's Spanish program has exchange agreements with the University of Aguas Calientes and the University of Queretero in Mexico, and the University of Córdoba in Spain. In addition, through CSU International Programs, you can study at universities in Madrid or Granada, Spain or in Santiago, Chile.
  2. Pathway 2: By living and working in a local heritage community over an extended period of time without interruption for at least two years.
  3. Pathway 3: By participating in and/or completing 10 of the following cultural learning scenarios with accompanying documentation, in the target language:
  • Participate in service learning within a local heritage community for a minimum of eight weeks beyond the actual service learning requirement.
  • Make a minimum of three home-visits in the local heritage community to interact and communicate with members of the Hispanic culture regarding topics of personal interest, the community, culture and language.
  • Attend or view via media a minimum of 10 cultural events and /or social activities of Hispanic culture.
  • Actively participate and/or perform in a school or heritage community event or celebration.
  • Participate in a heritage-community project (of some duration) that requires proficiency in Spanish and knowledge of Hispanic cultures.
  • Conducting a one hour in-depth interview with a speaker of Spanish, eliciting, in a conversational manner, comments of a biographical nature, cultural and social observations and anecdotal reflections.
  • View and comment on 10 movie-length films produced within and about Hispanic culture.
  • Participate at least five times in organized sports or recreation activities of Hispanic culture.
  • Demonstrate cultural skills by making hotel reservations, ordering meals and shopping in stores or markets in heritage settings where Spanish is spoken. This objective is assessed by faculty.

MLO 6: Information Technology Literacy

The student demonstrates an ability to use technology in support of his or her scholarly work, including gathering, organizing and analyzing sources and employing appropriate delivery techniques in both written and oral formats.

Emphasis

An emphasis is an informal collection of coursework; emphasis titles do not appear on student transcripts.

Language and Linguistics

Required Courses

  • Select four courses from the following for the Language and Linguistics Emphasis:
  • SPAN 302: Hist/Phonetic Struct Span Lang (4 units)
  • SPAN 303: Adv Spanish Grammar (4 units)
  • SPAN 305: Spanish for The Professions (4 units)
  • SPAN 313: Intro to Spanish Linguistics (4 units)
  • SPAN 315: Intro Translation Span/Eng (4 units)
  • LING 392: Nat Lang/Lang Acquis (4 units)

Literature and Culture

Required Courses

  • For students with an emphasis in Literature and Culture, select four courses from the following:
  • SPAN 306: Cultur/Civ Span Ltn Amer (4 units)
  • SPAN 307: History&Politics Of Mex (4 units)
  • SPAN 308: Hist/Cultr Aztlan:SW US (4 units)
  • SPAN 309: Hist & Polit Of Latn Amer (4 units)
  • SPAN 310: Hispanic Child Lit (4 units)
  • SPAN 311: US Foreign Policy Pac Rim (4 units)
  • SPAN 321: Masterpieces of Hispanic Lit (4 units)
  • SPAN 322: Masterpieces Latinamer Lit (4 units)
  • SPAN 328: Latina Life Stories (4 units)
  • SPAN 329: Auto/Biografias (4 units)
  • SPAN 365: The Chicano Novel (4 units)
  • SPAN 370: The Chicano Community (4 units)
  • SPAN 425: La Literatura Mexicana (4 units)
  • SPAN 426: Narativa Hispanoamericana (4 units)
  • SPAN 427: Latin Amer Women Writers (4 units)
  • SPAN 428: La Literatura Afrolatina (4 units)
  • HCOM 328: Latina Life Stories (4 units)
  • HCOM 329: Auto/Biografias (4 units)
  • HCOM 344: Chicana/Latina Experiences (4 units)
  • HCOM 345: Chicano Life & Culture (4 units)
  • HCOM 455: Paradigms Of Chicano Comm (4 units)
  • SBS 325: Art of the Aztec Empire (4 units)
  • SBS 348: Maya Civilization (4 units)
  • SBS 480: The Queretaro Project (2 to 4 units)
  • HCOM 247: African Legacy Worldwide (4 units)