Catalog

This book was edited for an upper-division writing-intensive course centered on major issues of culture in the context of the Spanish-speaking world. It is not a history of civilization, nor is it a survey of either Latin American or Peninsular literature. Rather, our objective here is to familiarize ourselves with the different issues central to the development of the Hispanic world as a cultural entity, and to practice analyzing and questioning received notions of culture in this context. We will examine all sorts of texts--literary, visual, musical, and filmic--from all periods of both Latin American (including Brazil) and Peninsular history, reading them through the lens of a series of topics found below. The materials were compiled, edited, and written by the instructors from the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Studies at the University of Minnesota -Twin Cities. With this publication, we wish to make this book available to any equivalent courses at other institutions.

In colleges and universities across the country underrepresented minority students, first generation students, and transfer students face an uphill battle. The starting circumstances and college experiences of these students are not equitable and are not conducive to student success. Barriers and challenges that are closely associated with these intersecting student populations include structural racism, colorblindness, reduced generational wealth and income, mental health issues, stereotype threat, the imposter phenomenon, a fixed mindset, microaggressions, implicit bias, intellectual marginalization, increased family responsibilities, inadequate pre-college preparation, cultural mismatch, transfer shock, information overload, stigmatization, and social isolation. Collectively these challenges result in reduced feelings of belonging, increased stress and anxiety, and reduced engagement and performance, which leads to the achievement gaps observed between affected students and their unaffected peers. Acknowledging the reality and seriousness of these problems is essential if our goal is to allow all students to thrive and be successful.