{"id":425,"date":"2021-02-18T16:39:06","date_gmt":"2021-02-18T16:39:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/basicspanishdraft2\/?page_id=425"},"modified":"2021-12-05T02:28:39","modified_gmt":"2021-12-05T02:28:39","slug":"102-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/parkerspanish101\/102-2\/","title":{"rendered":"SPAN 102"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Interpretive, Interpersonal, and Presentational Modes of Communication<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exploring Culture<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were a few practices I learned about in Spanish 102 that helped me to understand and explore the culture more. For example, in our VHL homeworks we learned about how open-air markets worked, and how it is common to bargain for a lower price on an item. We also learned about how addressing someone properly (i.e. using Usted\/Ustedes shows respect, and not using them for certain people is frowned upon). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I felt that learning about these practices was extremely important and insightful. Learning about open-air markets was not only interesting, but because it can be a common practice in different parts of the world, learning about it helps me to understand the culture more. Learning about open-air markets in particular challenged my worldview because in the US, bargaining for items is not a common practice, so I did not even know that was something other people did until I started learning more about other countries and their cultures. This helped me to realize that there are tons of different ways people do the same things I do, even if it looks a little different. I feel that before this, I just subscribed to the misconception that open-air markets were similar to stores or stands in the US. Now, I know that open-air markets are much different, and are really a really cool and interesting way to shop and get certain items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Engaging in Communities<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is extremely important to engage in your local and global community when able to. This is how you grow your understanding of the world, and ultimately benefits everyone. Engaging in a community can look a lot of different ways, such as volunteering, speaking to people in or outside of your community, educating yourself on local and global issues, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have not been able to engage in my local, or global community in a way that relates to Spanish, to the extent that I would like to be able to in the future. The one way I engaged with a global community that relates to Spanish, is doing TalkAbroad. I was able to speak to the same person both times I did it, and it was wonderful to be able to talk and learn about each other’s lives! I learned about her family and what they liked to do for fun in Costa Rica, where she’s from. While this was a small way to engage with a global community, I do believe that it was an extremely valuable experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(TalkAbroad conversations are attached under Interpersonal communication)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interpersonal Communication<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As mentioned above, TalkAbroad was one way I was able to engage and communicate with someone who speaks Spanish. On TalkAbroad, you are able to go through profiles, and choose someone you\u2019d like to speak to. Then, you schedule an appointment, and get to speak with them for around 15 minutes in Spanish. There are general topics to talk about each time as a guideline, but oftentimes you stray from the topics because of the natural flow of the conversation. My professor also would speak in Spanish the vast majority of the time in class, and only really used English when we were learning new concepts. In class, we would often practice or do activities in Spanish with our peers, and would respond and engage in class discussion in Spanish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For TalkAbroad, I was very apprehensive at first. I was nervous that I did not know enough conversational Spanish to be able to speak to someone for 15 minutes straight, much less in Spanish. However, I was pleasantly surprised during both appointments when the 15 minutes went by with ease. I think part of this was due to the fact that my partner both times was very responsive, even when I was struggling to express what I wanted to say. She would ask clarifying questions, and suggest words to help me when I was stuck, which I was extremely grateful for. I did excel in understanding what she was saying, and I feel that the fact that my professor would speak to us in Spanish very often helped me with this. I was able to interpret and understand most of what my partner was saying, even if I did not know the words exactly. I even was able to talk at length about our shared favorite TV show, Greys Anatomy. For the future, I think before each TalkAbroad appointment, I should do a little more review on the suggested topics, even going outside of what the textbook says. I believe this would help me to be able to engage even more in the conversation, past just what I learned in class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it came to communication in class, oftentimes it was spontaneous. We did not really prepare for talking with our classmates, and we were given the opportunity to just \u201cgo for it\u201d. I feel that this was extremely beneficial because we could make mistakes and fumble through what we were trying to learn, and were collaboratively learning from each other as we went. Of course, our professor was very understanding, and would help us as we went. She would also speak and engage with the class in Spanish, and the culture in the classroom was extremely positive. As the semester progressed, all of us became more and more comfortable speaking Spanish with one another, and the professor, which ultimately helped us all improve. At first it was difficult to follow, simply because I took Spanish 101 over zoom last semester, and it was extremely difficult to engage with my classmates in Spanish that way. But, this semester my class was in person, and I saw my ability to communicate effectively and spontaneously in Spanish improve exponentially. In the future, I think I will continue to engage with my class and professor in this way, because I have learned that this is the best way for me to learn and improve.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First TalkAbroad<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Second TalkAbroad<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Presentational Speaking<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We did not have any graded or \u2018official\u2019 presentational speaking assignments this semester in Spanish 102. However, we were called upon in class to answer questions in Spanish. The professor would put an assignment up on the board, and we were given time to answer the questions on paper. Then, when we were done, we could raise our hands to answer what we had. Oftentimes, this included speaking whole sentences\/phrases in Spanish. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At first, this was very difficult for me. I was only semi-confident in the actual correctness of my answers, and I felt nervous to speak by myself for the whole class to listen. However, as the semester went on and I became more comfortable, not only did I raise my hand to answer more often, the confidence in my answers grew. I always excelled at understanding\/interpreting what the questions were asking. For the future, I think to improve I would just need to try and shake off not being confident in my Spanish knowledge. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In-class speaking activity<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Presentational Writing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We did two presentational writing assignments in class this semester. Both were compositions, and covered two different topics. The first composition was an interview about a recent clothing trend, and the second composition was a restaurant review. Both had to meet a few different requirements based on the topic, and had to be entirely in Spanish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For my clothing trend interview, I decided to talk about how trendy white heeled boots are currently. I wrote a short introduction introducing the trend, and then did a kind of question-answer format for the middle, and then a brief conclusion at the end. I asked the interviewee about her favorite trend, and why she liked them. The easiest thing for me to do in this assignment was to use the various vocabulary words I had learned during the clothing unit. The most difficult thing for me to do was write a two sided conversation without it sounding unnatural or strange. I overcame this by reading over the paper a few times, and trying to make it sound realistic in order to see if it came across how I wanted. I think I did well at meeting the requirements of the project, and using the vocabulary effectively. To improve in the future, I think I would spend more time revising my assignment, and possibly making it longer by adding more substance, rather than just trying to meet the guidelines exactly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the restaurant review, I reviewed a restaurant from my hometown called True West. True West is a breakfast\/brunch cafe that I frequented a lot in high school. I talked about the different foods they sell, the atmosphere in the restaurant, the prices, and if I would recommend it to a friend or not. The easiest thing for me to do in this assignment was talk about the food at the restaurant, while the hardest thing for me to do was discuss the prices. I often find myself struggling with numbers and expressions involving them, but have been slowly improving over the semester by using them more and more. To improve even more in the future, I think I could do more review activities to solidify my understanding even further.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attached below is the final draft of my first composition. Our second composition has not been graded yet.<\/p>\n\n\nComposition-1<\/a>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interpretive Listening<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oftentimes, our homework assignments would have listening portions, and we would do listening activities in class. For these, we would listen to a clip of a person speaking Spanish, or a conversation in Spanish, and we would have to answer questions based on what was said. We would also have portions like this on our tests. The professor would also speak in Spanish very often, and give directions in Spanish. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At first, I found interpreting the parts that were just audio, and no video, to be extremely challenging. Oftentimes in class, body language, facial expressions, and hand gestures are all ways that can help to understand what someone is saying, and with just audio this is difficult. For example, in the assignment \u201cLa mejor comdia\u201d I listened to two people have a conversation about restaurants and food they liked, and then answer questions about it. Since it was just audio, I found myself listening to it several times to catch parts I missed, or check to see if I was understanding correctly. Listening to the audio multiple times did help, because I was able to focus on small sections each time, and then ultimately I\u2019d understand the whole thing. What I found to be most interesting about these activities is how much physical expression matters when communicating with someone. While it is not completely necessary, it is extremely beneficial. With each activity, I feel that I have become better at reading inflections through people’s voices, and using that to help me interpret what is being said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Due to the nature of the assignment, I can only upload the audio text version of it, and attached below are the questioned I answered.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Interpretive Reading<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We did a few different assignments in class that involved interpretive reading. For example, we read articles from the textbook, and looked at clothing websites in Spanish. These assignments would be a part of classwork, and were also for homework sometimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In particular, one website we looked at was the clothing website \u2018Zara\u2019. We did this during our clothing unit. Our professor would ask us to interpret what the names of the different clothing items were, read the prices, and the different categories of clothing. One of the more difficult things for me was interpreting the different wording on the website. Oftentimes when websites are translated things do not always translate correctly. I did find certain translations interesting, as sometimes I am not sure why it said it a certain way. To overcome this, I really just used context clues on the website to figure out what things were. From this, I took away that websites and digital media, especially when it’s being translated, may not always be perfect, and this has definitely helped me, as I will know this for in the future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was different when it came to the articles in our textbooks, as those were written in Spanish to begin with. In particular, we read one article about native fruits and vegetables in different countries. I found that I understood most of the vocabulary in this article, but I struggled to remember the vocabulary that was new in the article, and was defined in a section toward the bottom. Looking at the new phrases threw me for a little bit of a loop, since I had never seen them before. To overcome this, I slowed down while reading, and gave myself ample time when answering the questions, so I could read the article as much as needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Works Cited<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c3 – La Mejor Comida.\u201d Vhlcentral.com<\/em>, VHLCentral, 2021, m3a.vhlcentral.com\/sections\/1131404\/activities\/132394.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVHL | Reader.\u201d Vhlcentral.com<\/em>, 2021, reader.vhlcentral.com\/aventuras5e\/student-edition\/ave5e_vtext?rid=1131404&page=210#\/book\/ave5e_vtext\/chapter\/leccin_8__a_comer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVHL | Reader.\u201d Vhlcentral.com<\/em>, 2021, reader.vhlcentral.com\/aventuras5e\/student-edition\/ave5e_vtext?rid=1131404&page=210#\/book\/ave5e_vtext\/chapter\/leccin_8__a_comer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Interpretive, Interpersonal, and Presentational Modes of Communication Exploring Culture There were a few practices I learned about in Spanish 102 that helped me to understand and explore the culture more. For example, in our VHL homeworks we learned about how open-air markets worked, and how it is common to bargain for a lower price on… <\/p>\n

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