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The use of authentic and practical contexts facilitates the acquisition of vocabulary and grammatical structures. Students are coached in the analysis of linguistic and extra-linguistic elements during the reading and writing practices.
Our evaluation system in all Spanish courses integrates convergent (grammatical structures) and divergent (global use of language) techniques in our test procedures. All levels evaluate oral, listening, reading and writing assignments. There is a maximum of 10 students in each language acquisition course.
This course is an introduction to Spanish for beginners with no previous knowledge of the language. Students will develop basic linguistic skills necessary in order to communicate in common situations. The course covers basic grammatical structures, vocabulary, communicative expressions and frequent situations in settings such as restaurants, stores, buses and others. Emphasis is given on understanding, speaking, reading and cross-cultural perspectives.
This course is for students who have completed a minimum of 60 contact hours in Spanish studies and already have a command of elementary grammatical tenses. Students will advance on their previous experiential knowledge and further develop their oral, reading, written and listening skills. Students will expand their vocabulary and language usage in order to facilitate interaction with the Costa Rican environment and be able to express themselves in the past.
Students in this course should have a good communicative command of usual everyday situations and a structural command of the present tense. The objective of this course is to develop the student’s skills emphasizing on oral and written presentations and more complex grammatical structures. Students should develop a good command of all past indicative tenses.
This course emphasizes the discourse enrichment on contexts related to description and simple narrations. The contents include vocabulary building and detailed work with the subjunctive mode and other complex grammatical structures. Students will also learn idiomatic expressions used in Costa Rican.
This course is for students who already have a high intermediate level of Spanish and wish to better their communicative skills and pronunciation. The emphasis is set on situational every day conversation and certain cultural issues. The methodology enhances structured speech to provide a firm base in patterns of spoken Spanish progression towards free conversation.
This course is based on grammatical analysis, expansion of vocabulary, idiomatic expressions through readings, and student compositions at a complex level. The objective is for students to acquire a high level of communicative Spanish that will permit them to express their opinion and thoughts on complex and controversial subjects.
This course is for students who want to polish their oral and written skills. Students should have a high linguistic level and full knowledge of grammatical structures in order to work on polishing stylistics. Students will practice narrative constructions, reactions on non-expected contexts, how to report compiled information. The course also covers important aspects about myths, beliefs and other cultural issues in Latin America.
This course is based on acquiring the skill of self-correction. Students will acquire higher levels of diction and fluency trough the exposure to oral contexts, idiomatic language and the varieties of Spanish spoken in different Spanish-speaking nations. This course develops skills in reading, discussion, analysis, self-correction and research. Emphasis is given to pragmatic production and students must be prepared to spend a minimum of 2 extra hours per day for assignments.
Pre-requisite Heritage speaker with advanced level of communication
This course is for heritage speakers who need to acquire proficiency in the use of complex grammatical structures. Emphasis will be given to listening, writing and reading skills.
This course focuses on advanced communication and presentation skills. Students will work on communication techniques and efficient oral expression in formal contexts.
This course is for students with an advanced level of Spanish who wish to learn general information about the development and processes of some of Costa Rica’s main entrepreneurial settings. By the end of the course students will have a general knowledge of business vocabulary and usual business practices in Costa Rica. The course contents are complemented with a couple of field visits to some of Costa Rica’s developing businesses.
This course is for high advanced level students who want to further develop their written skills through different composition practices and techniques. The course studies complex and difficult syntax topics.
Special attention is given to stylistics and composition structure.
This course is designed for the purpose of giving health personnel, who do not have any previous Spanish experience, the tools necessary for interacting with and interviewing simulated Spanish speaking patients.
During the four weeks of the course the students will acquire the linguistic knowledge and skills that will permit them to communicate at a basic level with simulated Spanish speaking patients.
Pre-requisite two semesters minimum of College Spanish.
This course is designed for health personnel that have taken a minimum of 100 elective hours of Spanish as a second language. The goal of this course is to deepen the knowledge of medical related Spanish and increase the competency of communications in specifically simulated situations with Spanish speaking patients.
Pre-requisite four semesters minimum of College Spanish.
This course is designed for health personnel that have an advanced background in Spanish and who need to improve their linguistic competency in order to interact with their Spanish-speaking patients and their families.
This course is designed for the purpose of giving general law enforcement professionals, who do not have any previous Spanish experience; the tools necessary for interacting with and interviewing simulated native Spanish speakers. During the four weeks of the course the students will acquire the linguistic knowledge and skills that will permit them to communicate at a basic level in simulated situations with Spanish native speakers.
This course is designed for law enforcement professionals that have taken a minimum of 100 elective hours of Spanish as a second language.
The goal of this course is to deepen the knowledge of law related Spanish and increase the competency of communication in specifically simulated situations with native Spanish speakers. Students from law enforcement areas can also enroll in afternoon electives.
