Overview of Assignments

Here is an overview of all of the different types of assignments in the course. You can find detailed directions for the assignments and the grading criteria in the module where they are assigned.

Portales Activities

SPA 201 covers Lecciones 11-14 in Portales. You have to complete your assignments on Portales site weekly. All the assigned sections from Portales are required and will be graded. Please see your calendar in Portales for due dates.
You may also complete unassigned activities for extra practice. Those will not be graded.
Some assignments require writing or recording your voice, while others require listening and reading.
Partner Chats will require you to record a conversation with a classmate.
You will receive a percentage grade in Portales and the grade will be transferred to Canvas at the end of each lesson. The percentage grade will be entered as a percentage in your Grade Center. For example, if you earn 100% grade in Portales Lección 11, it will be entered as 100% for Lección 11 in your Grade Center.

Conversifi Sessions

Conversifi is an interactive language exchanges that pairs post-secondary Spanish language learners with native speakers for conversation practice. You must complete eight 15-minute sessions as a "learner" (speaking Spanish) to receive full credit (50 points each) for the Conversifi assignment. Topics and additional information are available in the Conversifi module.

Interactive Activities

Personal Introduction
For the personal introduction assignment, you will record a video introduction of yourself in Spanish for your classmates. Then, you will reply in writing (in Spanish) to two or more classmates’ videos.

Cultural Reflection Activities
There will be a Cultural Reflection Activity in each lesson where you will interact with classmates via written language. These written responses are required to be thoughtful, reflective, and concise. The cultural posts are done in English and Spanish. Please read the instructions carefully to know which language to use.

Speaking Activities
The speaking activities are designed to help build your confidence in speaking Spanish and to prepare you for the oral assessments. You will post video recordings to questions posed in the speaking activities in Canvas for each lesson.

Online Class Meetings
Our online class meetings on Zoom will give you the opportunity to meet with your instructor and classmates synchronously to practice interpersonal communication skills. You are required to attend one meeting per lesson.

Quizzes & Final Presentation

There are Canvas quizzes for each of the four lessons covered in this course. They are designed to prepare you for the proctored assessments. You will have a time limit for each quiz. No outside sources may be used while you take the quizzes.
For the final presentation of this course, you will film an instructional video in Spanish for your classmates. You will submit an outline and script so that your instructor can provide you with feedback before you film.

Proctored Written & Oral Assessments

There are two (2) proctored written assessments and two (2) proctored oral assessments. You must earn a combined average of at least 60% on the written proctored assessments and at least 60% on the oral assessments in order to pass the course, regardless of your grades for the other assignments. The proctored assessments provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate your mastery of the course knowledge.
The written exams will assess your listening comprehension, vocabulary, grammar, writing and reading comprehension skills as well as your cultural knowledge. You will have a time limit for each assessment.
You need to schedule an online meeting time with your instructor for the 2 oral assessments on Zoom. You should be in a quiet, private environment without distractions.
You can find the information on how to take proctored assessments in the Taking Proctored Assessments section of the Syllabus.