SPAN 2
Elementary Spanish
Description: Lecture, three hours; laboratory, two hours. Taught in Spanish. Laboratory is online. Introductory Spanish language and culture course that is proficiency-oriented, communicative, and task-based to help develop communicative competence in four skill areas (listening, speaking, reading, and writing), as well as cultural competence. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 4.0
Units: 4.0
4 of 8
Most Helpful Review
Spring 2021 - I very much enjoyed my experience with Cristina over the last two quarters. She is truly committed to making sure you're not only prepared for exams, but that you actually immerse yourself in the Spanish language and enjoy learning it. Her slides were always engaging and she is very accommodating. This class does have a required attendance component; there are only two lectures (1h 15min) a week that are mandatory in order to receive full credit for participation for that week. Usually, the class is structured so that you learn new material through an online homework system, MyLab, and then practice it in class with the professor and in breakout rooms. Although Cristina's lectures were always very clear, the MyLab component could be frustrating sometimes because of the sheer volume of assignments (sometimes up to 80 due before one class) and complex material. The attempts are unlimited, but I always had a hard time figuring out grammatical rules and weird structures over MyLab. I wish the course were structured so that the MyLab was used as a practice AFTER the professor teaches the lesson rather than the other way around, but I guess that's just the nature of the flipped-classroom and ultimately outside of the professor's control. The exams were very straightforward. There's a midterm and a final, each broken up into three parts--an oral, a written, and a reading/listening. I always felt I had adequate practice and performed relatively well on the written and reading/listening. I appreciate that Cristina is very generous while grading the oral exam (usually in a partner group or a 4-person group) given she understands we are new to the language and that speaking can be very difficult. Overall, I would highly recommend taking this course with Cristina if you have the opportunity--you will not regret it!
Spring 2021 - I very much enjoyed my experience with Cristina over the last two quarters. She is truly committed to making sure you're not only prepared for exams, but that you actually immerse yourself in the Spanish language and enjoy learning it. Her slides were always engaging and she is very accommodating. This class does have a required attendance component; there are only two lectures (1h 15min) a week that are mandatory in order to receive full credit for participation for that week. Usually, the class is structured so that you learn new material through an online homework system, MyLab, and then practice it in class with the professor and in breakout rooms. Although Cristina's lectures were always very clear, the MyLab component could be frustrating sometimes because of the sheer volume of assignments (sometimes up to 80 due before one class) and complex material. The attempts are unlimited, but I always had a hard time figuring out grammatical rules and weird structures over MyLab. I wish the course were structured so that the MyLab was used as a practice AFTER the professor teaches the lesson rather than the other way around, but I guess that's just the nature of the flipped-classroom and ultimately outside of the professor's control. The exams were very straightforward. There's a midterm and a final, each broken up into three parts--an oral, a written, and a reading/listening. I always felt I had adequate practice and performed relatively well on the written and reading/listening. I appreciate that Cristina is very generous while grading the oral exam (usually in a partner group or a 4-person group) given she understands we are new to the language and that speaking can be very difficult. Overall, I would highly recommend taking this course with Cristina if you have the opportunity--you will not regret it!
AD
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2025 - I took a class with Yessenia for Spanish 3 but she isn't listed so here is my review. I felt pretty stupid every day in this class. I dreaded being cold called and I never felt like a safe environment to learn Spanish was fostered. I've taken both Spanish 1 and 2 at UCLA so I have a pretty good comparison to this course. I know that this is more advanced, but most of the time the entire class (except the Spanish speakers that should never have been in this class in the first place) was lost on verbal instructions. Yessenia talked pretty fast and wouldn't check in to make sure we were understanding. We never really do in class activities that are actually helpful to my learning. The most I have had to write is a sentence or two but then on the exam we were expected to write quite a few words. We barely practiced for the oral exam either yet were expected to have a fluent well flowing conversation. The class was conducted entirely in Spanish which I was expecting, yet I felt like I learned very little compared to my other classes which were a mix of English and Spanish. I also feel like the quizzes were harder than they needed to be - not to mention they are in person and not online like all of the other classes I have taken. I also feel like mandatory attendance harmed the class because people showed up even when they had no interest in being there. Those of us who wanted to learn were overshadowed by the people there only for attendance. I can tell that Yessenia cares, but it would be nice if she would teach to the level where the class is, not just the select few Spanish speakers who took the easy class rather than the appropriate one. We barely ever went over the vocabulary and half the time didn't even practice the grammar. To be completely honest, I am not sure what we do during class time but I am always more confused afterwards. I would recommend that people take this class with a different instructor if they actually want to learn Spanish and not have their confidence harmed. If you have the opportunity, take this class with anyone else, but if you can't be prepared to not learn, be cold called, and deal with mandatory attendance.
Fall 2025 - I took a class with Yessenia for Spanish 3 but she isn't listed so here is my review. I felt pretty stupid every day in this class. I dreaded being cold called and I never felt like a safe environment to learn Spanish was fostered. I've taken both Spanish 1 and 2 at UCLA so I have a pretty good comparison to this course. I know that this is more advanced, but most of the time the entire class (except the Spanish speakers that should never have been in this class in the first place) was lost on verbal instructions. Yessenia talked pretty fast and wouldn't check in to make sure we were understanding. We never really do in class activities that are actually helpful to my learning. The most I have had to write is a sentence or two but then on the exam we were expected to write quite a few words. We barely practiced for the oral exam either yet were expected to have a fluent well flowing conversation. The class was conducted entirely in Spanish which I was expecting, yet I felt like I learned very little compared to my other classes which were a mix of English and Spanish. I also feel like the quizzes were harder than they needed to be - not to mention they are in person and not online like all of the other classes I have taken. I also feel like mandatory attendance harmed the class because people showed up even when they had no interest in being there. Those of us who wanted to learn were overshadowed by the people there only for attendance. I can tell that Yessenia cares, but it would be nice if she would teach to the level where the class is, not just the select few Spanish speakers who took the easy class rather than the appropriate one. We barely ever went over the vocabulary and half the time didn't even practice the grammar. To be completely honest, I am not sure what we do during class time but I am always more confused afterwards. I would recommend that people take this class with a different instructor if they actually want to learn Spanish and not have their confidence harmed. If you have the opportunity, take this class with anyone else, but if you can't be prepared to not learn, be cold called, and deal with mandatory attendance.
AD
4 of 8
