Discover Oviedo.

Immerse yourself in Spanish language and culture in Oviedo during a semester or summer session. Language courses are taught by local faculty at the Curso de Lengua y Cultura Españolas para Extranjeros (ELE) at the University of Oviedo. ELE instructors, experts in their field, have extensive experience teaching American students. A cross-cultural communications course, taught by an AHA staff member, provides you the opportunity to explore and process your study abroad experience.

To see a complete course list for any of the following, click on the term below:
SUMMER I
SUMMER II
FALL SEMESTER 2010
SPRING SEMESTER 2011

FALL AND SPRING SEMESTER PROGRAM INFORMATION
At the ELE, intermediate and advanced students generally take a total of 200 contact hours (3 - 5 classes) in the Fall Semester and 250 contact hours (3 - 5 classes) in the Spring Semester. In addition, a U.S. visiting faculty member course offers 50 contact hours each semester.

Students with little or no previous knowledge of Spanish can attend the Spanish Beginners' Course for a total of 125 contact hours in the Fall Semester and 175 contact hours in the Spring Semester. Please consult with your home campus on how to maintain full-time status during the Beginners' Course offered during the Spring Semester.

As part of the orientation process, students will take a placement exam in Oviedo to determine their level of Spanish. After the placement exam, intermediate and advanced students can choose other courses they wish to take. Beginner students will follow the preset Spanish language curriculum for their level.

SUMMER SESSIONS I & II PROGRAM INFORMATION
Develop your practical language and conversation skills, make a quick transition to life in Oviedo, and gain better access to Spanish language and culture. AHA offers two intensive language sessions in Summer I  (July) and Summer II (August). AHA also offers a unique Hispanic Heritage course for native speakers of Spanish, which will run concurrently with Summer I. During the summer, students will earn 80 contact hours per session.

Each four-week session emphasizes reading, writing, listening, and speaking competence. Both sessions offer language proficiency at beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. Students will earn 80 contact hours per session.

Classes are held in the mornings allowing you the opportunity to enjoy the many leisure activities offered in the area during the summer. You will stay in residence halls near campus; these programs include field trips, guided visits, and other group activities.

SUMMER SESSION COURSES LISTINGS

Students with all levels of Spanish Language proficiency are welcome to study in Oviedo during the summer. Beginner students will take 80 hours of Spanish language.  Students at the Intermediate and Advanced levels are required to take 60 hours of Spanish language plus courses in Conversation and Topics in Spanish Society and Culture (taught in Spanish) for an additional 20 hours.

SUMMER I (80 contact hours)
Beginner Spanish Language
Intermediate Spanish Language (60 contact hours + 20 hours Conversation and Special Topics) 
Advanced Spanish Language (60 contact hours + 20 hours Conversation and Special Topics) 

SUMMER I Hispanic Heritage (80 contact hours - native speakers only)
Summer I also offers a language program designed for students of who are native speakers of Spanish. All courses are taught in Spanish. Discover and develop your inherent linguistic abilities. Maintain and improve Spanish knowledge and transfer the skills of learned reading and writing in English into Spanish. Please note that students enrolled in the Hispanic Heritage program will not attend the Conversation and Special Topics modules.

SUMMER II (80 contact hours)
Beginner Spanish Language
Intermediate Spanish Language (60 contact hours + 20 hours Conversation and Special Topics) 
Advanced Spanish Language (60 contact hours + 20 hours Conversation and Special Topics) 

Conversation and Special Topics in Spanish Society and Culture
(Intermediate and Advanced)
Each of the topic courses below, with the exception of Hispanic Heritage program, are organized in weekly modules (1 hour per day) which are mutually independent. This allows you to choose a different topic each week, or select a thematic area for the duration of the program.

Summer I:
Spanish for Business
Topics in History and Art of Spain I
Topics in Spanish Cinema and Culture I
Conversation on Aspects of Spanish Culture I (syllabus coming soon!)

Summer II: 
Spanish for Business
Topics in Spanish Cinema and Culture II
Topics in History and Art of Spain II
Conversation on Aspects of Spanish Culture II (syllabus coming soon!)

FALL SEMESTER 2010 COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
Click on course titles for course syllabi. All courses are taught in Spanish unless otherwise noted.

AHA Courses
Cross-cultural Communication and Cross-cultural Perspectives (15 contact hours - mandatory)
Examine both the academic and experiential nature of cross-cultural communications. Analyze and process your personal intercultural experience in Spain. This course will be taught in English.

Distant Relatives: Spain and Spanish America since 1800 (50 contact hours)
Examine the relationship between Spain and its former colonies in the Americas since 1800. Discover a fresh perspective on the making of the modern Ibero-American world. Instructor: Carlos Aguirre , Professor of History, University of Oregon. This course will be taught in Spanish.(Intermediate and Advanced)

University of Oviedo ELE Courses
Follow these links for ELE course descriptions and syllabi in Spanish or in English for the titles listed below.

BEGINNER
Beginners' Course (110 contact hours + Cross cultural Communications course 15 contact hours)
This beginners' course welcomes students with little or no previous Spanish language experience. The course objective is for students to have mastered the general language rules and develop a common vocabulary for a variety communication situations. In addition to the beginners' course, students will enroll in the mandatory Cross-cultural Communication and Cross-cultural Perspectives taught in English by an AHA staff member. This cross-cultural communications course will provide you the opportunity to explore and process your study abroad experience.

INTERMEDIATE
English-Spanish Translation-Introduction (36 contact hours)
Reinforce and strengthen your knowledge of Spanish grammar and vocabulary through a comparative study of both languages carried out by translating English texts into Spanish.

Grammar in a Communicative Context (48 contact hours)
Transition into life in Oviedo and gain a better understanding of Spanish culture by developing and integrating the four linguistic skills: listening comprehension, reading comprehension, oral expression, and written expression.

History of Spain (36 contact hours)
Discover the economic, social, political, and cultural events that make up Spanish history with a special focus on historically significant events.

Latin American Culture: Literature, History, and Civilization (36 contact hours)
Explore the core movements and authors of contemporary Latin American literature. Discover cultural crossbreeding including the hotly debated subject of "identity", conflicts between "localism" and "universalism", emigration and its cultural effects, as well as Latin American dictatorships and the impacts they have on cultures.

Phonetics, Pronunciation, Reading, and Writing (48 contact hours)
Learn to express yourself clearly and to effectively communicate and understand the oral messages of your surroundings (listening comprehension). Develop pronunciation and intonation skills and identify the written representation of sounds (reading comprehension). Write in Spanish with orthographic preciseness (written composition).

Spanish Art History (36 contact hours)
Discover the history of Spanish art from its origins to the present day. Examine different artistic genres such as Asturian Pre-Romanesque, Gothic, Cubism, and Surrealism. Get to know the Spanish grand masters such as Velázquez, Goya, Picasso, Dalí, and Miró.

Spanish Literature(36 contact hours)
Complete a broad outline of Spanish literary history. Establish links between different authors, trends, and periods by reading and discussing selections from a variety of texts. Learn to understand the texts in a cultural, aesthetic, social, and political context.

Textual Analysis, Vocabulary and Composition (48 contact hours)
Learn to make the most appropriate and efficient use of learned vocabulary by way of textual analysis and composition.  Discover how to apply vocabulary in real and communicative situations using drawings, mime, dialogue, and texts.

ADVANCED
English-Spanish Translation (36 contact hours)
Take a practical approach by using translation as a tool for development of productive skills in Spanish as a foreign language. Texts to be translated will vary in style and subject.

Grammar in a Communicative Context (48 contact hours)
Transition into life in Oviedo and gain a better understanding of Spanish culture by developing and integrating the four linguistic skills: listening comprehension, reading comprehension, oral expression, and written expression.

History of Spain (36 contact hours)
Discover the economic, social, political, and cultural events that make up Spanish history with a special focus on historically significant events.

Latin American Culture: Literature, History, and Civilization (36 contact hours)
Explore the core movements and authors of contemporary Latin American literature. Discover cultural crossbreeding including the hotly debated subject of "identity", conflicts between "localism" and "universalism", emigration and its cultural effects, as well as Latin American dictatorships and the impacts they have on cultures.

Phonetics and Phonology: Theory and Practice (48 contact hours)
Acquire different skills through a sequence of studies ranging from phonemes to reflection on intonation. Study the Spanish phonological system, the phenomena of interest in oral Spanish ("yeísmo", "seseo", "ceceo", etc.), syllabic division, diphthongs, triphthongs and hiatus, accent and accentuation rules in Spanish, punctuation and intonation in Spanish (statements, interrogatives, and exclamations).

Spanish Art History (36 contact hours)
Discover the history of Spanish art from its origins to the present day. Examine different artistic genres such as Asturian Pre-Romanesque, Gothic, Cubism, and Surrealism. Get to know the Spanish grand masters such as Velázquez, Goya, Picasso, Dalí, and Miró.

Spanish Cinema: Spanish Culture through Film (36 contact hours)
Examine the subject of Spanish cinema and culture from a thematic and theoretical standpoint. Discover the history of the Spanish cinema as it relates to aspects of Spanish culture.

Spanish Literature (36 contact hours)
Complete a broad outline of Spanish literary history. Establish links between different authors, trends, and periods by reading and discussing selections from a variety of texts. Learn to understand the texts in a cultural, aesthetic, social, and political context.

Textual Commentary, Specialized Vocabulary (48 contact hours)
Work towards achieving a maximum level of communicative freedom and creativity. This course uses texts from different socio-linguistic and stylistic areas.

SPRING SEMESTER 2011 COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
Click on course titles for course syllabi. All courses are taught in Spanish unless otherwise noted.

AHA Courses
Cross-cultural Communication and Cross-cultural Perspectives (15 contact hours - mandatory)
Examine both the academic and experiential nature of cross-cultural communications. Analyze and process your personal intercultural experience in Spain. This course will be taught in English.

Literature of Fantasy, Crime, and Suspense (50 contact hours)
Explore three categories of plot-driven narratives: fantasy, suspense, and mystery. Analyze a selection of stories, novels, and films from the 19th- through the 21st- centuries as an entrée to reading in Spanish. Examine the deep aspects of Spanish culture, from early foundational legends to current anxieties and reconsiderations of history. Instructor: Alexandra Fitts, Professor of Foreign Languages & Literatures, University of Alaska Fairbanks.

University of Oviedo ELE Courses
Follow these links for ELE course descriptions and syllabi in Spanish or in English for the titles listed below.

BEGINNER
Beginners' Course (160 contact hours + Cross-cultural Communications course 15 contact hours)
This course welcomes students with little or no previous Spanish language experience. The course objective is for students to have mastered the general language rules and develop a common vocabulary for a variety communication situations. In addition to the beginners' course, students will enroll in the mandatory Cross-cultural Communication and Cross-cultural Perspectives  taught in English by an AHA staff member. This cross-cultural communications course will provide you the opportunity to explore and process your study-abroad experience.

INTERMEDIATE
English-Spanish Translation-Introduction (54 contact hours)
Reinforce and strengthen your knowledge of Spanish grammar and vocabulary through a comparative study of both languages, carried out by translating English texts into Spanish.

Grammar in a Communicative Context (54 contact hours)
Transition into life in Oviedo and gain a better understanding of Spanish culture by developing and integrating the four linguistic skills: listening comprehension, reading comprehension, oral expression, and written expression.

History of Spain (54 contact hours)
Discover the economic, social, political, and cultural events that make up Spanish history with a special focus on historically significant events.

Latin American Culture: Literature, History, and Civilization (54 contact hours)
Explore the core movements and authors of contemporary Latin American literature. Discover cultural crossbreeding including the hotly debated subject of "identity", conflicts between "localism" and "universalism", emigration and its cultural effects, as well as Latin American dictatorships and the impacts they have on cultures.

Phonetics, Pronunciation, Reading and Writing (54 contact hours)
Learn to express yourself clearly and to effectively communicate and understand the oral messages of your surroundings (listening comprehension). Develop pronunciation and intonation skills and identify the written representation of sounds (reading comprehension). Write in Spanish with orthographic preciseness (written composition).

Spanish Art History (54 contact hours)
Discover the history of Spanish art from its origins to the present day. Examine different artistic genres such as Asturian Pre-Romanesque, Gothic, Cubism, and Surrealism. Get to know the Spanish grand masters such as Velázquez, Goya, Picasso, Dalí, and Miró.

Spanish Literature (54 contact hours)
Complete a broad outline of Spanish literary history. Establish links between different authors, trends, and periods by reading and discussing selections from a variety of texts. Learn to understand the texts in a cultural, aesthetic, social, and political context.

Textual Analysis, Vocabulary, and Composition (54 contact hours)
Learn to make the most appropriate and efficient use of learned vocabulary by way of textual analysis and composition.  Discover how to apply vocabulary in real and communicative situations using drawings, mime, dialogue, and texts.

ADVANCED
English Spanish Translation (54 contact hours)
Take a practical approach by using translation as a tool for development of productive skills in Spanish as a foreign language. Texts to be translated will vary in style and subject.

Grammar in a Communicative Context (54 contact hours)
Transition into life in Oviedo and gain a better understanding of Spanish culture by developing and integrating the four linguistic skills: listening comprehension, reading comprehension, oral expression, and written expression.

History of Spain (54 contact hours)
Discover the economic, social, political, and cultural events that make up Spanish history with a special focus on historically significant events.

Latin American Culture: Literature, History, Civilization (54 contact hours)
Explore the core movements and authors of contemporary Latin American literature. Discover cultural crossbreeding including the hotly debated subject of "identity", conflicts between "localism" and "universalism", emigration and its cultural effects, as well as Latin American dictatorships and the impacts they have on cultures.

Phonetics and Phonology: Theory and Practice (54 contact hours)
Acquire different skills through a sequence of studies ranging from phonemes to reflection on intonation. Study the Spanish phonological system, the phenomena of interest in oral Spanish ("yeísmo", "seseo", "ceceo", etc.), syllabic division, diphthongs, triphthongs and hiatus, accent and accentuation rules in Spanish, punctuation and intonation in Spanish (statements, interrogatives, and exclamations).

Spanish Art History (54 contact hours)
Discover the history of Spanish art from its origins to the present day. Examine different artistic genres such as Asturian Pre-Romanesque, Gothic, Cubism, and Surrealism. Get to know the Spanish grand masters such as Velázquez, Goya, Picasso, Dalí, and Miró.

Spanish Literature (54 contact hours)
Complete a broad outline of Spanish literary history. Establish links between different authors, trends, and periods by reading and discussing selections from a variety of texts. Learn to understand the texts in a cultural, aesthetic, social, and political context.

Spanish Society and Culture (54 contact hours)
Break down clichés and stereotypical images of Spain by learning more about the Spanish and European culture of the Twenty-first Century.  The class is designed to meet students´ need for integration into Asturian academic and social life. Topics include family, education, gastronomy, Spanish university life, political structure, music, cinema, and geography.

Textual Commentary, Specialized Vocabulary (54 contact hours)
Work towards achieving a maximum level of communicative freedom and creativity. This course uses texts from different socio-linguistic and stylistic areas.

ACADEMIC CREDIT

All courses offered in Oviedo are recognized and approved for academic credit by various NCSA member institutions. Actual credit awarded is determined by the relevant department at your university in consultation with the study abroad office. Check with your study abroad adviser for more information.