The Undergraduate Spanish Major Curriculum: Realities and Faculty Perceptions

Abstract: This article presents the quantitative and qualitative results of a nationwide survey of Spanish department faculty on the components of their undergraduate Spanish major curriculum and their perceptions of these components, as well as their perceptions of recent Modern Language Association (MLA) reports (2007, 2009) and the reports' influence on curricular change in their programs. Results indicate that, while institutions required and offered a wide variety of courses, literature courses composed the core of the curriculum. Faculty perceptions regarding the importance of particular courses varied, but courses that were more frequently offered and required, such as Advanced Language, Culture/Civilization, and Introduction to Literature, were rated the most highly, while courses that have not traditionally been part of the major, such as Spanish for the Professions, Translation, and less frequently taught linguistics courses, were rated among the lowest. Many faculty were familiar with the MLA reports, and many departments had recently made curricular changes, some of which were influenced by the reports' recommendations. Implications are discussed, including the need for professional development and graduate student education.Key words: Spanish, college, curriculum design, perceptions, programIntroductionFew foreign language educators would contest the key role that the undergraduate major curriculum plays in their language program, yet little research has been con- ducted regarding what courses and experiences institutions around the country require of their Spanish majors, nor have studies been published on the attitudes of Spanish faculty members toward the courses and experiences deemed necessary for a Spanish major. While there have recently been calls to overhaul the undergraduate foreign language curriculum (see Doyle, 2010; Maxim, 2009; MLA, 2007, 2009; Nuessel, 2010; Porter, 2009; Sanchez-Lopez, 2010), faculty faced with the task of revising their curricula have little data on which to base their deci- sions, other than that which they collect at their own institutions, their own observa- tions, and other anecdotal evidence. This study aimed to support the curriculum revi- sion process by providing information re- garding current curricular requirements and offerings for the undergraduate Spanish lan- guage major at a representative selection of institutions of higher education around the United States. In addition, it examined faculty perceptions concerning curricular require- ments and offerings, as well as the Modern Language Association (MLA) reports' (2007, 2009) influence on curricular reform at their institutions.Review of LiteratureRecent reports by the MLA, "Foreign Lan- guages and Higher Education: New Struc- tures for a Changed World" (2007) and "Report to the Teagle Foundation on the Undergraduate Major in Language and Lit- erature" (2009), have drawn renewed atten- tion to the undergraduate foreign language major curriculum. In its 2007 report, the MLA Ad Hoc Committee on Foreign Lan- guages made a wide range of recommenda- tions for foreign language education in colleges and universities in the United States, focusing particularly on curricula and governance structures. A frequently quoted warning from the report signaled the urgency with which the MLA Ad Hoc Committee viewed the current foreign lan- guage education situation: "Foreign lan- guage departments, if they are to be meaningful players in higher education- or indeed if they are to thrive as autono- mous units- must transform their pro- grams and structure" (MLA, 2007, p. 3). A key assertion made in the report was that "the language major should be struc- tured to produce a specificoutcome: educated speakers who have deep translin- gual and transcultural competence" (p. 3). Curricular recommendations stemming from that assertion included the need to move beyond the traditional curriculum that is composed of a two-tiered language vs. …