FSI/UMUC SPRING SEMESTER SPANISH ONLINE

UNCLAS STATE 228733

SIPDIS

FOLLOWING DIR FSINFATC 1966 DTD 21 NOV, SENT ACTION SECSTATE
RUCNWO/MSMC WATCH OFFICE BEING REPEATED FOR YOUR INFO.
QTE:

UNCLAS FSINFATC 001966

SIPDIS

S/S-O PLEASE REPEAT TO ALDAC AND SEP POSTS

MCO REPEAT AS ALDAC

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: AFSI AMGT KFLO
SUBJECT: FSI/UMUC SPRING SEMESTER SPANISH ONLINE
COURSE


1. SUMMARY: AS PART OF THE DEPARTMENT'S POST LANGUAGE
PROGRAM INITIATIVE, THE SCHOOL OF LANGUAGE STUDIES AT THE
FOREIGN SERVICE INSTITUTE IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE
FOLLOWING COURSE OFFERINGS ONLINE VIA THE WORLD WIDE WEB:
ELEMENTARY SPANISH I, ELEMENTARY SPANISH II, AND
INTERMEDIATE SPANISH. THESE COURSES ARE OFFERED THROUGH
THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND UNIVERSITY COLLEGE (UMUC).
ENROLLMENT IS CURRENTLY LIMITED TO STATE EMPLOYEES,
ELIGIBLE FAMILY MEMBERS, SPECIALISTS AND MARINE SECURITY
GUARDS SERVING AT EMBASSIES WHO MEET THE QUALIFICATIONS
AS STATED IN THE COURSE DESCRIPTIONS. INTERESTED
APPLICANTS SHOULD NOTE THAT STUDENTS ARE EXPECTED TO BE
COMPUTER LITERATE AND TO BE COMFORTABLE NAVIGATING THE ON-
LINE ENVIRONMENT. STUDENTS WILL DEDICATE A MINIMUM OF 12-
15 HOURS PER WEEK TO COURSEWORK. FSI WILL COVER THE
COSTS OF THE PROGRAM FOR ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS. THE
APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION DEADLINE FOR THIS PROGRAM IS
JANUARY 8, 2001.

END SUMMARY


2. FSI REQUESTS THAT POSTS AND BUREAUS NOMINATE ASAP
INDIVIDUALS WHO WOULD BE INTERESTED AND CAN COMMIT TO
FULL PARTICIPATION AND COMPLETION OF COURSE. STUDENTS
ARE EXPECTED TO DEDICATE A MINIMUM OF 12-15 HOURS PER
WEEK TO COURSEWORK. ONLY THOSE WHO CAN COMMIT TO FULL
PARTICIPATION FOR THE ENTIRE DURATION OF THE COURSE
SHOULD APPLY. PARTICIPANTS WILL COMPLETE A TRAINING
AGREEMENT AT THE TIME OF REGISTRATION AND MAY BE REQUIRED
TO REIMBURSE THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE IF THE COURSE IS NOT
COMPLETED. THIS IS A STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR EXTERNAL
TRAINING SPONSORED BY FSI.


3. PARTICIPANTS WILL TAKE AN FSI FIELD PROFICIENCY TEST
FOR SPEAKING AND READING AT THE END OF THE CLASS TO GAUGE
THE OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS OF THE COURSE. THE TESTS WILL
BE SCHEDULED AS SOON AFTER THE COURSE ENDS AS POSSIBLE.
THE SCORE WILL NOT, HOWEVER, BECOME A PART OF THE
STUDENT'S PERSONNEL RECORD UNLESS THE STUDENT WISHES.
RECENT SCORES HAVE RANGED FROM 0/0& TO 1/2 IN SPANISH 101
AND UP TO 2/2 IN SPANISH 102. IN ADDITION, STUDENTS MUST
REGISTER TO TAKE THE UMUC FINAL EXAM FOR THEIR COURSE.
INFORMATION REGARDING THE FINAL EXAM IS AVAILABLE ON THE
COURSE WEBSITE. FSI ASKS THAT STUDENTS PARTICIPATING IN
THIS PROGRAM AGREE TO ALLOW UMUC TO RELEASE THEIR COURSE
AND EXAM GRADES TO FSI.


4. SUMMARY COURSE DESCRIPTION: IN AN ON-LINE COURSE,
STUDENTS ARE LINKED TO FACULTY AND COURSEMATES VIA THE
INTERNET. AN INSTRUCTOR MENTORS ALL STUDENTS
PARTICIPATING IN THE COURSE. THE INSTRUCTOR PROVIDES
GUIDANCE AND FEEDBACK ON ASSIGNMENTS, INCLUDING
PARTICIPATION IN ON-LINE CHATS. THE INSTRUCTOR LEADS
DISCUSSIONS, RESPONDS TO STUDENTS' INQUIRIES, AND PLACES
REVIEWED ASSIGNMENTS IN INDIVIDUAL ON-LINE FOLDERS.


5. STUDENTS USE TEXTBOOKS, THE VIDEO COURSE "DESTINOS,"
AN ON-LINE SYLLABUS, AND OTHER COURSE MATERIALS TO
COMPLETE THE COURSE. STUDENTS MAY ASK QUESTIONS IN
WRITING, E-MAIL THE POST LANGUAGE PROGRAM OFFICE, OFFER
RESPONSES, PARTICIPATE IN LANGUAGE CHATS, AND COMMUNICATE
ONE-ON-ONE WITH FACULTY AND OTHER STUDENTS ON-LINE IN A
BULLETIN BOARD FORMAT. STUDENTS PARTICIPATE WITH
FACULTY, CALLING OR CHATTING WITH THEM DURING ASSIGNED
OFFICE HOURS. THEY CAN ALSO CORRESPOND WITH THEIR
COURSEMATES AT ANY TIME. AFTER REGISTERING, STUDENTS HAVE
ACCESS TO A DETAILED SYLLABUS, INFORMATION ON THE COURSE
STRUCTURE AND TECHNICAL HELP.


6. UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND UNIVERSITY COLLEGE
DESCRIPTION
OF COURSES:

-SPAN 101 (4)
ELEMENTARY SPANISH 1 (TARGETED FOR STUDENTS WITH FEWER
THAN TWO YEARS OF SPANISH),INTRODUCTION TO THE FUNCTIONS
AND STRUCTURES OF THE SPANISH LANGUAGE, WITH EMPHASIS ON
THE FOUR SKILLS OF LISTENING, SPEAKING, READING AND
WRITING.

-ELEMENTARY SPANISH II (4)
PREREQUISITE: SPANISH 101 OR EQUIVALENT. FURTHER STUDY
OF THE SPANISH LANGUAGE, WITH EMPHASIS ON THE FOUR SKILLS
OF LISTENING, SPEAKING, READING AND WRITING.
SPANISH 201

-INTERMEDIATE SPANISH (4)
PREREQUISITE: SPANISH 102 OR EQUIVALENT. CONTINUED
DEVELOPMENT OF THE FUNCTIONS AND STRUCTURES OF THE
SPANISH LANGUAGE, WITH EMPHASIS ON THE FOUR SKILLS OF

LISTENING, SPEAKING, READING AND WRITING.

-SPANISH 201 STUDENTS MAY BE ASKED TO HAVE A BRIEF
TELEPHONE CONVERSATION IN SPANISH WITH AN FSI TESTER TO
VERIFY PLACEMENT ACCURACY.


7. THE ONLINE NATURE OF THESE COURSES ENTAILS CERTAIN
TECHNICAL PREREQUISITES, PARTICULARLY REGARDING INTERNET
CONNECTION SPEEDS. TO PARTICIPATE IN THESE ON-LINE WEB
COURSES, STUDENTS SHOULD MAKE SURE THEY HAVE ACCESS TO
THE FOLLOWING:

A PENTIUM II (OR EQUIVALENT) COMPUTER WITH A SOUND CARD
AND MICROPHONE,
A RELIABLE, HIGH-SPEED INTERNET CONNECTION (56K BPS MODEM
IS THE ABSOLUTE MINIMUM; T1, T3, DSL, CABLE MODEM
PREFERRED),AN ACTIVE EMAIL ACCOUNT.

STUDENTS WILL NEED TO PURCHASE OR DOWNLOAD THE FOLLOWING
SOFTWARE (INSTRUCTIONS FOR DOWNLOADING THEM ARE AVAILABLE
ON THE COURSE WEBSITE):
NETSCAPE 4.0 (OR EQUIVALENT) OR BETTER
YAHOO MESSENGER
MICROSOFT NETMEETING
REALPLAYER


8. REQUIRED COMPUTER SKILLS: STUDENTS MUST HAVE A SOLID
GROUNDING IN COMPUTER AND INTERNET SKILLS TO COMPLETE
THESE COURSES. PERSONNEL WITH LITTLE PREVIOUS EXPOSURE
TO THE FOLLOWING TYPES OF ACTIVITIES ARE STRONGLY
ENCOURAGED TO ACQUIRE THEM BEFORE SIGNING UP FOR THESE
COURSES.

AMONG OTHER THINGS, STUDENTS MUST BE COMFORTABLE
NAVIGATING AND SEARCHING THE INTERNET AND BOOKMARKING
WEBSITES,
DOWNLOADING AND INSTALLING PROGRAMS,
USING ADVANCED FEATURES OF AN EMAIL PROGRAM, SUCH AS
ATTACHING FILES TO EMAIL MESSAGES,
PARTICIPATING IN ONLINE CHATROOMS (PLEASE BE MINDFUL OF
TIME ZONE DIFFERENCES AS CHATROOMS ARE BASED ON
SYNCHRONOUS COMMUNICATION),
SAVING AND RETRIEVING FILES.


9. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE UMUC ONLINE COURSE FRAMEWORK
IS AVAILABLE ON THE ONLINE EDUCATION PAGE OF THE UMUC
HOMEPAGE. STUDENTS ARE URGED TO TAKE THIS "WEBTYCHO
ONLINE TEST DRIVE." CONTACT INFORMATION FOR A HELP DESK
IS ALSO AVAILABLE.


10. COURSE MATERIALS: FSI WILL POUCH ALL NECESSARY
COURSE MATERIALS (BOOKS, CD-ROM AND VIDEOS) TO REGISTERED
PARTICIPANTS. THEREFORE, INTERESTED PARTICIPANTS ARE
URGED TO APPLY AND REGISTER EARLY IN ORDER TO RECEIVE
THEIR MATERIALS ON TIME. STUDENTS MAY KEEP THE BOOKS AND
CD-ROM. HOWEVER, UNLESS STUDENTS ENROLL IN A SUBSEQUENT
COURSE, THEY MUST RETURN THE VIDEOTAPES TO FSI VIA POUCH
UPON COMPLETION OF THE PROGRAM.

APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION:
THE UMUC COURSES ARE COLLEGE COURSES AND CAN PROVIDE
CREDIT TOWARD A COLLEGE DEGREE OR TOWARD AN EVENTUAL
CERTIFICATE IN SPANISH. THEREFORE, IN ORDER TO REGISTER
FOR THE COURSES, YOU MUST FIRST BE ADMITTED TO THE
UNIVERSITY. ADMISSION IS QUICK, SIMPLE, AND NON-
COMPETITIVE.

THE APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION DEADLINE FOR THIS
PROGRAM IS JANUARY 8, 2001. BY THIS TIME STUDENTS MUST
HAVE INFORMED FSI OF THEIR INTENT TO ENROLL, APPLIED FOR
ADMISSION TO UMUC AND REGISTERED FOR THEIR SPANISH
COURSE. CLASSES BEGIN ON JANUARY 27 AND END ON MAY 14.

BEFORE COMMENCING THE APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION
PROCESS AT UMUC, PLEASE INFORM FSI OF YOUR INTENTION TO
ENROLL. THIS WILL GUARANTEE OUR ABILITY TO PROVIDE
CUSTOMER SERVICE AND MATERIALS AND ENSURE A GOOD LINE OF
COMMUNICATION BETWEEN UMUC, FSI AND THE STUDENT.
APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION IS DONE ONLINE AT THE UMUC
WEBSITE, WWW.UMUC.EDU. FROM THE MAINPAGE, THE FOLLOWING
STEPS WILL GUIDE YOU TO THE APPLICATION:
CLICK ON ONLINE EDUCATION, THEN CLICK ON ADMISSIONS (LEFT
SIDEBAR). NEXT CLICK ON UNDERGRADUATE AND THEN CLICK ON
UNDERGRADUATE APPLICATION. ON THE NEXT PAGE, INDICATE
WHETHER YOU ARE A U.S. CITIZEN OR NOT AND AN APPLICATION
FORM WILL OPEN IN YOUR BROWSER. PLEASE FILL OUT THE FORM
IN ITS ENTIRETY.

NOTE: FSI WILL COVER THE APPLICATION FEE AND TUITION. AT
THIS TIME THERE IS NO METHOD OF INDICATING YOUR
AFFILIATION WITH FSI ON THE APPLICATION. FOR THE
"ADMISSION FEE" AND "REGISTRATION PAYMENT INFORMATION"
SECTIONS OF THE APPLICATION, INDICATE "CHECK OR MONEY
ORDER IS IN THE MAIL," BUT DO NOT SEND A CHECK TO UMUC.

ONCE YOU HAVE COMPLETED AND SUBMITTED YOUR APPLICATION TO
UMUC, YOU MUST STILL REGISTER FOR THE CORRECT COURSE. TO
REGISTER, FILL OUT THE REQUIRED INFORMATION IN THE
"COURSE SELECTION" SECTION AT THE BOTTOM OF THE
APPLICATION PAGE.

NOTE: FSI RECEIVES A SUBSTANTIAL DISCOUNT FROM UMUC FOR
MILITARY PERSONNEL. IMMEDIATELY AFTER APPLYING TO UMUC,
MARINE SECURITY GUARDS MUST FAX A COPY OF THEIR MILITARY
ID (FRONT AND BACK; PLEASE MAKE SURE IT IS READABLE) TO
FSI, ATTN: CHRIS CONNELL (703) 302-6738.

ONCE ADMITTED, YOU ARE A UMUC STUDENT. IF YOU ARE
CONTINUING IN THE UMUC SPANISH PROGRAM, YOU DO NOT HAVE
TO BE ADMITTED AGAIN. HOWEVER, YOU MUST STILL REGISTER
ONLINE FOR YOUR COURSE.


11. PLEASE ADDRESS RESPONSES TO DIR FSINFATC AND SLUG
FOR SLS CHRISTOPHER CONNELL, OR REPLY BY EMAIL TO
CONNELLCE#STATE.GOV OR BY DEPARTMENT OF STATE OPENNET TO
CHRISTOPHER E. CONNELL. UNQTE: MINIMIZE CONSIDERED
TALBOTT