MTEL Spanish (28) case studies
MTEL Spanish (28) · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The MTEL Spanish (28) is the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure subject-matter test used in the state's educator licensure process for Spanish. It is intended for candidates who need to demonstrate the breadth of their Spanish proficiency and their knowledge of the language, its structures, and its cultural contexts before or alongside other licensure requirements. The MTEL Spanish (28) case studies are 5 cases and about 2,998 words.
1Translating a Family Literacy Night Notice: Register, False Friends, and Lexical Ambiguity
At a K–5 school in Massachusetts, the family-engagement coordinator must send a Spanish version of a notice for a 'Family Literacy Night.' The English draft reads: 'Parents are invited to assist at our family literacy workshop. Please realize that attendance is mandatory for at least one guardian.
668 words, about 3 min2Heritage Speaker Writing: Separating Dialect, Development, and Transfer
Alvarez teaches Spanish for Heritage Speakers II. A student, Marisol, writes: 'Mi tía es muy aburrida cuando no hay nada que hacer' (she means her aunt feels bored); 'La gente en mi barrio son muy amables'; 'Yo tengo 16 años y soy estudiante'; 'Ella se recuerda de su abuela.' Marisol is fluent, reads at grade level in Spanish, and switches to English for 'awkward' words.
653 words, about 3 min3Listening Assessment with Caribbean Spanish: Dialect or Deficit?
At a district benchmark meeting, teachers review a listening item for Spanish II. Students hear a 45-second voicemail from a Puerto Rican speaker: 'Oye, ¿qué tú quieres que te traiga de Ponce?
569 words, about 3 min4Pragmatic Failure at a Community Visit: Directness and Address Forms
During a Spanish Club visit to a senior center, Diego, a nonnative advanced student, approaches the director and says, 'Dame el micrófono' and 'Tú, ¿dónde está el baño?' The director frowns but helps him. Later, Diego asks a peer, '¿Me regalas un vaso de agua?', which a Colombian volunteer finds charming but a Mexican-American classmate finds odd.
537 words, about 3 min5Choosing a Literary Excerpt: 'Coger,' 'Vosotros,' and Cultural Allusion
An advanced Spanish class is about to read a Peninsular poem that includes the lines 'Cogimos las flores del jardín / y vosotros mirabais la siesta.' The department chair wants to keep the poem because it is on the approved list and supports literary analysis. Two students from Argentina and one from Mexico laugh nervously at cogimos ; another student asks why the poem uses vosotros instead of ustedes .
571 words, about 3 min