2024 UD-UMW
Summer Spanish Institute

Hosted by: Universidad de Deusto in Bilbao, Spain in partnership with the University of Mary Washington.

Dates: July 1 to July 19, 2024 (Three-week course, 60 contact hours)

“Experience Multicultural Spain: New Resources for the Classroom” (4 US graduate credits)

Get a glimpse of Bilbao and its surroundings in the following short videos:

Tour around  Bilbao landmarks

Bilbao, Best European City 2018

Bilbao, a fascinating transformation

“Bilbao, 10 Years Later“, New York Times (Sept, 23, 2007).

Click here for a short film about Bilbao (Bilbao Film Commission)

Participants

The Summer Institute is aimed at teachers of Spanish as a foreign language in the U.S.A. and Canada,  teachers in bilingual, immersion, and Spanish-for-native-speakers programs, in grades K-12, and Community College teachers.  The program may also serve the academic needs of students enrolled in Master’s degrees in the US.

Course Description

Course for teachers interested in updating their grammar and cultural teaching resources, and in living a dynamic academic experience of individual and group immersion in the Spanish context. Class activities, which will be very practical and full of academic content, will be implemented by other out-of-the-classroom activities (visits to landmarks, popular festivals, food tasting tours…) that will allow teachers to get to know the reality of Spanish culture and society at first hand, and will provide new perspectives for every teacher to update their teaching strategies.

Schedule

Four hours per day in the morning Monday through Friday. Some cultural and complementary activities will be held in the evening and on weekends.

Location

Bilbao is a modern and metropolitan city, located in the Basque country, a northern province of Spain that borders the Bay Of Biscay to the north and the Pyrenees mountains and France to the east/northeast. Although known in the past as the industrial and financial capital of the north, Bilbao has undergone tremendous changes these days, including the opening of the Guggenheim Museum. Today’s Bilbao is bustling, friendly, and beautiful. It is big enough to offer all the diversity and advantages of a city, and yet still small enough to be manageable for the visitor.  One can easily walk almost anywhere–from the “Casco Viejo” (Old Town) to the shopping and business district to the Guggenheim and back across the river to the University.  A convenient metro system connects downtown with the surrounding neighborhoods providing easy access to the northern beaches.

The Universidad de Deusto is a private Catholic university established and run by the Jesuits. Founded in 1886, UD has become a thoroughly modern university and prides itself on its participation in numerous international study programs. It is located on the banks of the Ibaizabal River across from the Guggenheim Museum. Click here for additional information about the city and the University of Deusto.

Room and Board

Participants will enjoy a single room with a private bathroom at the Colegio Mayor Deusto.  This university-operated residence hall, located within walking distance of campus, features a dining room, a computer room, laundry service, a TV room, and a music room. The price includes full room and board, that is, housing, and three daily meals: breakfast, lunch, and dinner (Spanish style).

Check-in for the residence hall is July 1st. The reception and official welcome, as well as the start of the classes, will be on July 2nd. A representative of the Program will take the participants from the residence hall to the University campus.

Program Goals

• To update the knowledge of Spanish teachers from a linguistic, cultural, and methodological point of view.
• To provide teachers with useful teaching resources and materials for their classes.
• To offer teachers the chance to get to know current Spanish culture at firsthand, both in and outside the classroom.
• To contribute to the linguistic training of Spanish teachers, with a special emphasis on the natural use of Spanish in daily life.

Program content

Participants will work on the following areas:

• Multicultural Spain

An approach to the knowledge of the Spanish regional variety, characterized by its cross-cultural nature, and also of its society by means of dynamic activities in and out of the classroom, in order to be able to use them as teaching resources applicable to their classrooms.

• Pedagogical Approaches to Spanish Language Teaching

An in-depth approach to the knowledge and use of the Spanish language through practical principles and exercises, and the analysis of their teaching according to different methodologies. Special emphasis will be made on grammar aspects problematic for native speakers of English.

Besides, all teachers will be offered the option of participating in a conversation exchange program with University of Deusto staff in order to improve their oral skills.

Evaluation

• If the participant is not interested in transferring the credits obtained in the Course, the only requirement is their attendance and participation in the classes. The participant will receive an attendance certificate for all participants who have attended at least 90% of the scheduled classes.
• If the participant wishes to transfer the credits obtained in the Course, they will need to submit a final paper or project. The participant will receive an academic certificate from the Universidad de Deusto and from the University of Mary Washington including the number of credits and the grade obtained according to the American system (letter grade). The final grade breakdown is the following:
  • Participation: 30%
  • Assignments: 35%
  • Final Presentation: 35%

Program Cost

2.100 Euros.

Please refer to the links below under “application and course description” for additional details.

NOTE: The University of Deusto reserves the right to cancel the course if the number of applications does not meet the minimum required. Therefore, UD and UMW encourage participants not to make final travel plans until they receive official notification via email.

Program Activities

• Welcome reception and orientation. Opening remarks about the University and Bilbao, with practical orientation. First contact with professors (academic advising and information about workshops).
• Guided visit to historical and avant-garde Bilbao: Old Quarter and Ensanche.
• Day visit (including lunch) to San Millán de la Cogolla (La Rioja), the birthplace of the Spanish language, located in a region of world-renowned wines.
• Food tasting tour: pintxos.
• Visit to the Guggenheim Museum: Spain in the context of national and international contemporary art.
• Visit to the Fine Arts Museum of Bilbao.
• Tour along the Way of St. James in Bilbao: History, art and religion.
• Visit a local school and participate in round-table conversations about school academics, curriculum, bi-or-tri-lingual trilingual education, etc.

Optional Visits*

• Visit Santillana del Mar (Cantabria), a medieval town of great architectural interest, and the museum of Altamira Cave, which was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO.
• Visit Pamplona and the Running of the Bulls.

* Not included in the price. Please inquire about special rates during Orientation.

The following visits and activities are suggested for participants to do on their own:

• Nearby beaches that can easily and quickly be reached by metro: Ereaga, Sopelana, and Plentzia.
• Portugalete and Las Arenas, bound by the Bizkaia Bridge or “Puente Colgante”, UNESCO World Heritage.
• Urdaibai area including the iconic town of Gernika (which inspired Picasso’s monumental painting), Mundaka, and Bermeo (typical coastal towns with a long-lasting fishing tradition.
• Castro Urdiales, a charming coastal town near Bilbao.
• Santander and El Sardinero beach.
• Vitoria, the capital city of the Basque Country, whose old quarter is worth a visit.
• Jazz Festival of Vitoria and San Sebastian, for music lovers wishing to enjoy the performances of first-line jazz players.
• Trips to the multiple festivals and traditional fairs available in nearby picturesque villages.

Transportation

Participants are responsible for their travel arrangements from their home country to Bilbao. There are several daily flights from the US and Canada to Bilbao via London, Amsterdam, Brussels, Madrid, Milan, Paris, or Frankfurt.

Reimbursement Policy

The amount to be reimbursed will be the amount received by UD, regardless of the $ – € exchange rate at the moment. Contact cide@deusto.es for additional details.

Application Form and Syllabus

Program application and course description.

Registration deadline: April 30, 2024

For more information please contact:   

Dr. Jose A. Sainz
University of Mary Washington
Center for International Education
Lee Hall 438
Phone : 540-654-1261
Email : jsainz@umw.edu