More than a year after the launch of a new Spanish education major at Syracuse University, less than five students have enrolled in the program.

The major allows students to obtain an undergraduate degree in Spanish and a teacher’s certification to teach the language in New York state at the secondary level in grades seven through 12.

Gail Bulman, head of the Spanish department, said the idea for the program had been discussed for over a decade, and was planned, developed and approved by the state and SU over the course of three years. Bulman said the current enrollment is much lower compared to other education programs. The Spanish department has reached out to members of the Office of Admissions to pitch the major to incoming students.

“We are hoping that students will get the word out more than anything because it is a new program,” said Bulman.

Kathy Oscarlece, school placement coordinator for teaching and leadership programs in the School of Education, said the program’s weak enrollment is surprising.

“I’ve had people come in here all the time saying ‘we want Spanish education,’” she said.

Program Specialist of Teaching and Leadership Programs Marie Sarno said in an email that when the program started last fall, only freshmen could apply to it.

“We couldn’t accommodate students who had a need to graduate in less than four years from when we started it,” Sarno said. She added that one of the reasons for starting the program was the perceived need for teachers.

Despite low enrollment, Bulman said the program does not see any large-scale changes on the horizon, outside of more recruitment.

Bulman said jobs as a Spanish teacher generally have fewer applicants in comparison to other teaching jobs.

Bulman said the major is special because it gives students two advisers: one in the College of Arts and Sciences and the other in the School of Education. The major prepares students for the New York certification exams, and because of the requirements in New York paralleling other states, students at SU would be at an advantage, Bulman said.

Bulman said there is no Spanish education at the primary level because few schools offer language programs for children. But she also said becoming certified at the primary level would only take a few more courses and another exam. A proficiency exam is also part of the program after the third year of the major, prior to the start of student teaching.

“My colleagues worked diligently to create a strong program that will prepare our students to go out and effectively teach in the public school setting,” said Spanish Instructor Katie Clinton in an email.

The new program also includes two capstone methods courses to be taken during senior year. One of them is LIN 421 “Introduction to Methodology of English/Foreign Language Teaching” and the other is SPA 403 “Introduction to Methods of Teaching Spanish.”

“They were very much designed,” said Oscarlece. “SU is very unique in the fact that we offer methods classes for each content area.”

Bulman added that, unlike other schools, the major does not include a master’s degree, which would likely extend the program to five years.

In the Feb. 3 article, “Department looks to increase enrollment in new Spanish Education major” Gail Bulman’s title was misstated. Bulman is the chair of the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. The Daily Orange regrets this error. 

Published on February 3, 2015 at 12:01 am

Contact Rob: rromano@syr.edu