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SPAN 190

SPAN 190: Topics in Hispanic Studies Taught in English

Credit Hours: (3)

This course studies trends in thought, literature, art, film, music, architecture, and social practices in Hispanic cultural expression in variable historical and geographical contexts. Topics and texts are drawn from Spain, Latin America, and U.S. Latino contexts. Topics may include nationalism, colonialism, ethnicity, race, class, gender, migration, modernization, religion, and popular culture. Assignments may include guided oral presentations and/or student-directed research projects. Taught in English.

 

Content

An introduction of trends in thought, literature, art, film, music, architecture, and social practices in Hispanic cultural expression in variable historical and geographical contexts in Spain, U.S. Latino and Latin America countries. The course introduces students to the relevant social, political, economic, and historical complexities of Hispanic cultures and societies using primary cultural texts and other creative cultural product expressions. The course is intended to prepare students for more advanced work in the humanities by developing skills and techniques of textual analysis. Students learn how to produce interpretations in the context of key historical and political events, to understand how these elements have shaped Hispanic societies, changing concepts of cultural identity, advantages and challenges of diversity and inclusion, and global challenges and opportunities in the human world. Though specific topics and units will vary according to the interests and expertise of the individual instructor, the course provides a panoramic view of artistic humanistic expression in the Hispanic world addressing the study of diverse forms of cultural production including relevant readings to understand socio-historic and thematic significance of cultural artifacts. Attention is also paid to a cross-cultural approach of the similarities and contrasts in the cultural practices of the Spanish- and English-speaking worlds. Readings and creative artifacts might include historical and journalistic texts, interviews, literary writings, pictorial and photographic art, films, and videos to provide a panoramic view of artistic humanistic expression in Spanish.

 

Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

This course emphasizes inquiry-based learning and deemphasizes traditional lecture in favor of a seminar style, interdisciplinary approach that engages students with the material about Hispanic cultures in a variety of ways. A typical day in class might alternate between guided and/or student-directed instructional units and one or more of the following reinforcing or exploratory learning activities:

writing-to-learn activities such as response logs, and/or short analytical papers tied to out-of-class readings/project and demonstrating students’ understanding of the Hispanic cultures, applying course-specific concepts, and exploring humanistic questions appropriate for the cultural topic under discussion;

cooperative/small group learning such as working in thematic groups with assigned primary texts to find pragmatic applications of the theories, concepts, and/or contexts discussed in class.

In addition to being evaluated as a group, individual group members might be asked to turn in a short paper demonstrating their proficiency applying the course concepts to a specific reading; defending a claim or citing a source; media-enhanced learning modules to include the use of film and/or music, as well as more recent innovations web/media based; assignment of critical thinking problems that can only be solved by using specific electronic or print sources.

 

Student Learning Outcomes

Learning Goal: To examine how historical, cultural, and social contexts and interactions shape diverse forms of Hispanic cultural expression in Spain, Latin America, and the United States. This course introduces students to a variety of historical, cultural, and social contexts for Hispanic Studies in Spain, Latin America, and the United States. Students examine how these contexts and interactions shape literature, visual arts, film, music, architecture, social practices, and other forms of cultural expression, as well as broader understandings of Hispanic cultures and societies.
Learning Outcome 1

Learning Outcome 1 is fulfilled through the following course goals and objectives:

  1. identify significant historical, critical, and other contextual factors that have shaped Hispanic cultures and forms of artistic expression;
  2. describe the significance of diverse forms of Hispanic cultural production, including literature, painting, photography, film, music, and architecture;
  3. examine culture as a site of convergence among different forms of social, philosophical, political, and ideological discourse;
  4. engage in critical discussion and in-depth analysis of representations of self–other relationships, race and class conflicts, and gender construction in diverse forms of Hispanic cultural expression.

Through discussion, informal writing, examinations, presentations, and analytical essays, students apply basic concepts of artistic and humanistic analysis to describe, interpret, and contextualize Hispanic cultural works accurately and meaningfully.
Learning Outcome 2
Explain the context of an artistic practice, cultural form, artifact, or philosophical idea.

Learning Outcome 2 is fulfilled through the following course goals and objectives:

  1. explain ways in which culture enriches our awareness and understanding of ourselves and of Hispanic societies;
  2. articulate how an understanding of a specific cultural expression connects to other cultural expressions and to broader areas of human knowledge;
  3. communicate clearly about enduring questions—past and present—concerning human life, culture, society, and ethics;
  4. develop increasingly sophisticated interpretations of cultural texts and other forms of cultural expression that engage these questions;
  5. produce informed responses to the form, content, context, and aesthetic qualities of cultural expressions;
  6. construct arguments that support or critically evaluate particular interpretations and viewpoints;
  7. read critically and write persuasively.

Students examine literary, artistic, and other cultural works as historically and culturally situated expressions rather than as isolated texts or artifacts. Course materials may be supplemented by historical, biographical, intellectual, political, and social sources that illuminate the forces shaping individual authors and artists, cultural forms, genres, traditions, and historical periods. Students might, for example, consider how changing concepts of nationhood shape literary and artistic traditions; how religious, political, or social conflict influences cultural production; how changing social structures affect representations of identity, race, gender, class, and authority; or how cultural traditions are adapted in response to new audiences and historical circumstances.

Through discussion, writing, research, presentations, and other course activities, students explain the historical, cultural, social, and intellectual contexts surrounding Hispanic cultural production and analyze how those contexts shape its meaning and interpretation.

 

Assessment Measures

SPAN190 uses a variety of assessment measures, which may include a number of the following:
writing-to-learn activities and speaking activities such as reader's logs, double-entry reading journals, student-designed discussion questions, and oral presentations that install in students the ability to be a public speaker; tests or quizzes on assigned readings or contextual information; in-class or take-home essay exams on assigned readings; in-class writing assignments; creative writing exercises based on what is studied; critical review of scholarly essays or articles; student-led discussion of assigned readings enriching his/her critical perspective to approach/understand problems and offer conceivable solutions; guided and/or student-directed research projects; in-class oral presentations tied to out-of-class projects.

 

Other Course Information

Cross listed as CCST 190

 

Review and Approval

November, 2022

November 10, 2026.  Effective Fall 2027.

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