Comprehensive Spanish Exam
The Comprehensive Spanish Exam
is
required
of
all
graduating
Spanish
majors,
who
are
also
required
to
register
for
Spanish
485--Senior
Comprehensive
(1
credit)--during
the
Fall
Semester
of
their
graduating
year.
This
course
is
team-taught
by
faculty
of
the
Spanish
section
of
the
Department
of
Foreign
Languages,
and
usually given on every other Thursday for
two
hours
from
11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
A reading list of 10 major works is prepared for graduating
majors
in
Spanish
and sent to their home addresses over the summer before their
senior year. Students choose a reading list corresponding
to their particular area of concentration,( i.e.,
Peninsular
Literature
or Spanish American Literature), and read the texts over
the summer so that they will be able to discuss those texts
during the tutorial sessions (Spanish 485) that
will
be given during Fall semester of their senior year.
Graduating
seniors
with
a major
in
Spanish
who
are
studying
abroad
during
the
Fall
semester
are still required
to
register
for Spanish 485, but will have to consult with the professors
who have conducted the Fall tutorials when they return
to
Spelman. The coordinators have a list of the professors'
names.
The reading list consists of 10 works, six corresponding
to
the
student's
major
area
of
concentration
within
the
Spanish major, and four corresponding to the student's
minor
area of concentration within the same Spanish major.
For
example, if the student's major area of concentration is
Peninsular
Literature, her minor area of concentration is Spanish American
Literature. Similarly, if the student's major area of concentration
is Spanish American Literature, her
minor
area
of
concentration is Peninsular Literature. Students are responsible
for
finding
texts
of the 10 works. Suggestions as to
where
they may be found include: libraries, especially college
or university
libraries,
large
bookstores or even professors' offices.
The Comprehensive Exam consists of two parts, given on separate
days.
Part
One is
a two-hour
written
exam,
where
students
choose
from
various
topics and write three essays in Spanish on works representing
the major
area of concentration, and two essays in Spanish on the
minor
area.
The written exam is worth 60% of the final grade. Part Two
is an oral exam where students prepare a 5-minute presentation
in Spanish
on any
aspect of the culture or civilization of a country representing
the major
area of study, and subsequently field questions
from
a panel of two professors representing
the major
area.
The oral
section of the Comprehensive Exam is taped and a formal report
filed for review, if necessary. The oral exam is worth
40% of
the final grade.
