Latin American And Iberian Cultures · Columbia University
Grade based on attendance and participation, midterm, oral presentation, final, and one short essay reflection. Extremely easy to get an A.
Professor Castro Ramos is super welcoming and overall an extremely kind person. That being said, if you are a native Spanish speaker, be prepared to have your patience tested by the errors other people make that are never corrected. Because she is very lenient, class discussions will often go unfinished and be heavily geared toward allowing students to practice their speech at the expense of more proficient students who want to learn about the actual topics. Still, her love for the class and being able to discuss more than what is on the syllabus makes for a very fulfilling experience. I wish I could take the class with her again.
2 writing assignments, 1 take home midterm essay, 1 presentation, and a take home final essay
Prof. Castro is very welcoming and constantly encourages students to speak. As a native Spanish speaker I found sometimes the conversation moved a bit slowly. The content is interesting and the class is very dynamic. Prof Ramos is very chill when it comes to grading and deadlines and you can tell she is truly passionate about sharing her interests and culture with students, though sometimes the class goes on tangents and the entire period is spent taking about something that was not on the plan. But overall 10/10 would recommend for any Spanish speakers interested in Puerto Rico and Bad Bunny
We didn't have any homework or readings if I recall correctly. I just showed up to class and took notes on the occasion. Just getting the gist of it will get you through. I ended up with an A and think her grading is chill/fair. Take this class if you can!
Going into this class, I expected to have a lot of work and for my grammar to be challenged and nitpicked. I quickly realized this was untrue. Though your grade is based solely on your presentation of two essays and a presentation, if you pay attention in class, you will know what to say. Granted, if you are hoping to learn something, I don't know if this is the class for you. It felt more like a seminar where we all interacted, shared on thoughts on what she lectured about and such. It was a gem to me, but I acknowledge too that I'm a native Spanish speaker. I also know it (Sports, Politics, and Identity) is much less work in comparison to other advanced language through context courses! She is the kindest sweetheart always willing to help and support in many ways. Wish I could take it every semester cause I miss her so much!
Midterm, oral presentation, and a final. Grading was generally fair. You don't have to pay much attention to do well.
This course was, above all else, easy. No homework -- just a midterm and an oral presentation. That said, if you are looking to LEARN, do not take this class. Prof Castro Ramos is a sweetheart, but she showed up 10+ mins late to every single class (granted, I didn't mind). The syllabus was from 2004 and quite outdated. The content and lesson plans were unstructured, and it was difficult to pay attention without presentations.