Foreign Language & Multicultural Studies Credit via Distance Education
Syllabus: Portuguese 3325. Advanced Portuguese Conversation. 3 Credits
Prerequisite: PO 2214 or equivalent
Course Objective: Improve foreign language and culture skills while attending a designated academic institution abroad. Students will improve basic skills in the following areas: increase awareness of daily interactions in a variety of situations: family life (by living with a host family), academic life (by attending classes on a daily basis), and other cultural aspects such as participating in cultural excursions (to museums, historic sites, typical local activities, holidays or celebrations, etc.).
Emphasis is on active command of the language, not passive knowledge. In addition to improving grammar and vocabulary skills, students are expected to improve their accurate, appropriate, and spontaneous use of the language. To facilitate this, classes abroad will be given entirely in the language of the host country.
As relates to multicultural studies, students are expected to develop a better understanding of the culture of the country in which they are studying, increase personal awareness of daily interactions in a variety of situations: family life (by living with a host family), academic life (by attending multicultural classes on a daily basis), independent research (through a journal or project) and other cultural aspects such as participating in cultural excursions or activities (to museums, historic sites, typical local activities, holidays or celebrations, etc.).
Course Requirements: (Details for each item will be given in the next section)
- Complete Study Abroad Orientation and Planning exercises prior to initiating studies abroad.
- Reside with a host family.
- Complete a minimum of 50 hours of formal in-class instruction in a multicultural environs at a designated school abroad as verified by certificate of completion or detailed transcript.
- Send weekly Cultural Learning Log Entries to the course instructor via WebCT or email
- Complete a Multi-Cultural Paper or Project on a topic of your choice and approved by the course instructor.
- Complete on-line quizzes/exams
- Complete site evaluation.
Study Abroad Orientation: An important part of studying abroad is being prepared for the experience before you go - which you accomplish by researching basic facts about the country you will be visiting. This phase of the course assists you to prepare yourself mentally, complete needed documentation, become aware of safe health and travel issues, learn the basics about the government and social systems, and develop learning strategies to improve your interaction with and understanding of the culture. You will review various internet sites and answer questions about each. Note: If you are receiving credit for more than one course, this needs to be completed for only one course.
Reside in a homestay: This is the best way to become integrated into the culture of the country in which you have decided to study. Your daily interactions with hosts will help you develop a greater understanding of the country and its social systems. In addition, residing in a non-English speaking homestay provides and excellent opportunity to practice and improve your foreign language skills. Your structured classes at school need to be supplemented by spontaneous conversation practice and cultural immersion in homestays and in the local community. Under special circumstances and with written permission of the instructor, the homestay may be substituted by a different multicultural activity which provides equal or greater cultural insights.
Complete a minimum of 50 hours of in-class instruction: There is no exception to this requirement. In order to receive the 3 credits offered for this course, you must complete a minimum of 50 class-hours. This is typically done over a five-week period of time taking four hours of class per day. If you wish, you may complete this over a longer or shorter period of time by taking fewer/more class-hours weekly. Language learning is a cumulative process. As a result, it is essential that you attend all classes, come to class well prepared, and complete all daily assignments. Late arrival to class may be posted as an absence.
Note: No partial credit is awarded for additional hours (like 60) or fewer hours (like 40). To take an overload (more than 20 classes/week) requires pre-approval by your US course instructor. If you complete 50 hours, you may consider earning additional credits by taking a different course and completing ALL class-hours and requirements for that course . Please contact the Foreign Studies Coordinator to arrange this possibility. It is your responsibility to arrange to have the Certificate of Completion/Transcript sent from the foreign school to the US university offering this course prior to the last day of the academic cycle listed below.
SUGGESTION: Use the country as your “language lab”. The more you are out communicating with native speakers, the faster you learn the language. Avoid networking entirely with other foreign students.
Cultural Learning Log & Paper: This is one of the most important aspects of the course. This exercise is designed to help you reflect upon what you have learned about the culture and customs of the country in which you are studying. Observations that should be included are: interactions with your host family and other locals, cultural events or historical sites, excursions, etc. The length of each weekly entry should be 1 to 2 pages in length. This can be written in English or Portuguese (preferably Portuguese). You will receive an email from the instructor acknowledging the receipt of each entry.
In addition to the Cultural Learning Log, you will need to complete a research paper (3-6 pages for undergraduate courses, 7-10 pages for graduate courses, MLA format) or project on a topic preapproved by the course instructor.
SUGGESTIONS: Schedule DAILY activities which force you to interact with native speakers after class. This builds fluency, enhances multicultural understanding, and can provide the basis for your research paper or project.
Ideas from past students:
- Volunteer or engage in service learning
- Design a survey form. Then use it to conduct interviews abroad. (This gives you a framework to systematically meet native speakers and quantify results. Many students have also published articles in newspapers or magazines back home using this format.)
- Join a local club or organization that does what you enjoy doing. (What are your hobby, sports, art, social, religious, academic, or professional interests? Folks abroad like doing that too! Find and meet them on the internet BEFORE you go abroad so you have a smooth transition after you arrive.)
- Earn some money. (What businesses, media outlets, schools, or organizations at home want to sell to, buy from, recruit from, or get information about the country you will visit? You will be surprised. Past students have landed jobs conveying or collecting information, conducting surveys, participating in trade shows, visited distributors, writing human interest articles or analysis - you name it.)
Quizzes/Exams: These quizzes are to evaluate your proficiency with different grammatical concepts related to the course. Take the quizzes until you achieve a 100% score.
Site Evaluation: Each student will complete and return a site evaluation for the school abroad attended. This evaluation is provided to you by the US University Study Abroad office. Please note that your transcript will not be released until the evaluation has been received.
Evaluation:
Quizzes (WebCT or other) 30%
Cultural Learning Log & Paper/Project 15-20%*
Certificate of completion/Transcript 35%
Study Abroad Orientation 10%
Host Family Stay 5%
Site Evaluation 5%
Total 100%
* Extra credit may be earned for Cultural Log and Paper or Project
Grade Scale:
90-100% A
80-90% B
70-80% C
60-70% D
Below 60% F
Pass/Fail S/U
NOTES: A student may take the course for an S/U (Pass/Fail) option. If the student wishes to take the course under this option, it must be indicated at the time of enrollment. A student striving for an “S” must receive a 70% or better.
Grades will be posted (transcripts mailed) at the end of each academic cycle as follows::
Jan 31 for Fall Semester (courses scheduled to be completed between Aug 1 & Nov 30
Jun 15 for Spring Semester (courses scheduled to be completed between Dec 1 & Apr 30)
Sep 15 for Summer Session (courses scheduled to be completed between May 1 and Jul 31
Grades are issued only in Official Transcript form. No special circumstances or letters will be provided.