Ateneo - UPO

Morphosyntax of Spanish (theory and practice in translation)

Manuel Carrera Díaz, Grammatica Spagnola, Laterza, Bari; Materials (texts) uploaded on Dir during the course
REFERENCE WORKS: Diccionario de la Lengua Esapañola (RAE); Maria Moliner, Diccionario de uso; Diccionario Salamanca de la lengua española

The aim of the course is to provide the student with a good level of knowledge of Spanish morphosyntax (including through contrastive analysis with Italian and through the practice of Spanish-to-Italian translation), reinforcing the grammatical notions and linguistic skills acquired during the three-year course; analysing and understanding texts, expressing themselves with appropriate language and vocabulary.
The expected linguistic competence is intermediate-advanced (level C1.1) of the CEFR, adapted to the academic requirement.

Pass at 2nd year level (Esercitazioni di Lingua Spagnola II + Linguistica Spagnola A)

Lectures, exercises with case discussions; analysis and translation of various types of texts in the classroom.
Students will be called upon to apply the theoretical knowledge gained during the 2nd and 3rd year. Students will be constantly invited to work on linguistic contrastivity, also as a source of enrichment in learning and linguistic self-awareness.
There will be activities with discussion of errors, presentation of case examples.

Every year, a Vademécum is published on all the Dir pages of Spanish Language and Linguistics, providing detailed information on exams, appeals, DSA and compensatory measures, Erasmus, etc. It is compulsory reading for all students.
Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request specific services and tools via the Staff Sviluppo e Coordinamento Carriere e Servizi alle Studentesse e agli Studenti, consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/services-students-physical-or-learning-disabilities Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, must contact the teacher in charge of the course to define the examination modalities, concerning academic aspects.

Written examination (2:30h).
It consists of:
1) two open-ended questions on the topics of Spanish morphosyntax covered in the course, to be answered concisely but with linguistic precision, setting out the key issues and providing coherent and relevant explanatory examples; 2) translation and morphosyntactic analysis of a short text (approx. 1,500 characters), highlighting the phenomena that can be identified in contrast with Italian.
The following will be assessed: theoretical understanding of linguistic phenomena (norms, varieties and exceptions in Spanish morphosyntax), and the clarity of the student’s formulation; and the quality and accuracy of the analysis of the Spanish text, with particular attention to the contrastive aspects.
The final mark will be the average of the two parts.
To pass the exam, students must achieve at least 18/30 in both parts; if they do not, they will have to retake the entire written exam in a subsequent sitting.

An assignment will be assessed as ‘excellent’ if it demonstrates: a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the topics covered in the course; well-developed analytical and summarising skills; excellent command of specialist vocabulary and linguistic concepts; the ability to develop theoretical arguments through the use of a wealth of relevant examples; and an excellent translation.
An assignment will be graded as ‘satisfactory’ if it demonstrates: knowledge of the subject matter that is at times merely rote; appropriate and correct language; the ability to analyse and summarise; good use of examples in relation to a theoretical exposition; and a translation containing a few errors.
An examination will be assessed as ‘sufficient’ if it demonstrates: a basic knowledge of the syllabus (concepts and methodology), but with an awareness of the methodology employed; a basic and correct use of linguistic terminology; the presentation of appropriate examples in the discussion; a translation containing several errors.
An examination will be assessed as ‘unsatisfactory’ if it demonstrates at least one of the following characteristics: significant gaps in understanding (incorrect grasp of concepts or methodology); a presentation that is neither consistent nor coherent with the topics covered (use of inappropriate language; mere reproduction or listing of concepts or definitions, lacking the required conceptual links); a lack of focus on the topic under examination and the method used (with a scarcity, absence or incorrect use of examples); a translation marked by numerous errors and inaccuracies, and a failure to analyse or an incorrect analysis of most of the phenomena to be identified.

Contrastive Spanish / Italian syntax (use of the subjunctive; criteria for selecting verb tenses in subordinate clauses; periphrases; main types of subordinate clauses; modalisation of verb tenses and implicit moods; passive forms).
Analysis and translation of different textualities (mainly narrative, essay, journalistic text).

Knowledge
- Refine knowledge of the Spanish syntax of the period in a contrastive perspective, between Spanish and Italian (from simple awareness of the diverse variety of forms peculiar to Spanish to confident command of its grammatical and communicative nuances);

Skills
- ability to grasp the norm and variety of the Spanish language, in the syntactic domain (according to pragmalinguistic, sociolinguistic and register perspectives);
- being able to use this knowledge also in function of a good interlingual translation that can define and then evaluate possible translation choices;
- being able to reflect independently on the characteristics and particularities of the two idioms, Spanish and Italian, referring to acquired basic and advanced linguistic knowledge;

Transversal skills
- ability to correctly analyze Spanish texts of various types, recognizing the structures of each level (from the simplest to the most complex)
- autonomous ability to process linguistic data by deduction and/or inference, analogy/anomaly, etc.
- ability to use the textbook and teaching materials offered on Dir and reviewed in the classroom.
- ability to deal, consciously and with a versatile approach with new textbooks even those not used in traditional university teaching.