Essential Spanish for Educators

EDZU 9010 (3 credits / 45 hours)

Location: Online
Instructor: Jean Marie D'Aversa

Start Date: 06/26/2024
End Date: 07/16/2024
(There will be weekly “live” assistance via Zoom to enhance and support student learning.)

Course Syllabus

Did you know that more than 37 million people in the United States speak Spanish? In fact, Spanish is currently the fastest growing non–English language in the United States. It's not far of a stretch to think that all educators will most likely encounter Spanish-speaking students and families at some point throughout their career. From New Mexico to Nebraska to New Hampshire, virtually every school and every classroom contains English language learners - but not all teachers and administrators have the background to meet these students' needs effectively. If you don’t interact with Spanish-speaking people on a regular basis, the language barrier may seem intimidating. Support your students' success by emphasizing family engagement through creative and interactive strategies.

This course is specifically designed for teacher, administrators, support and counselors to communicate and understand Spanish speaking families. Being able to communicate with students and families in Spanish helps breaks down barriers and welcomes families into the school and into their child’s education. Building that relationship where students, teachers and families are all invested in the student’s learning will only have positive impacts on a student’s success. This course will provide you with resources and links to communicate with students and parents of Spanish speaking families. You will learn vocabulary that covers every aspect of a student’s school career as well as parent communication for report cards and conferences.

Teachers enrolled in this course will...

Know

• The fundamentals of the Spanish language along with important grammatical contexts. 
• Key phrases and sentences utilized for parent/student communication.
• Sentence structure and how to converse with a parent or student who is Spanish speaking.
• Sites/Programs to assist in translations and build upon lessons and communication.
• Important school vocabulary and build upon sentences by utilizing the key skills and tricks throughout this course.

Understand

• Basic Spanish phrases to communicate with Spanish speaking families and students.
• Key vocabulary for report card comments and grading/progress reports.
• How to utilize the grammar skills learned to build upon sentences.

and Be Able To

• Converse in simple Spanish with a native speaking family or student based on school vocabulary. This will be important for parent-teacher conferences, CSE meetings, Annual reviews, attendance, report card discussions, student grade discussion, and student classroom behavior. 
• The teachers in this class will be able to utilize the knowledge and skills learned to build upon their vocabulary and enhance their conversations.