Lumen Learning is pleased to announce the availability of Waymaker Introductory Spanish I and Introductory Spanish II. Lumen’s affordable Waymaker course materials replace expensive textbooks by blending innovative learning design with outstanding open educational resources (OER) to increase student learning and success.

Spanning a full academic year’s worth of content for introductory Spanish, this “remixable” course sequence gives instructors the freedom to reorder course content to fit their preferred course structure, learning outcomes, and term length. Instructors are no longer bound to the order content appears in a standard textbook; instead, they can easily adjust content modules to match how they like to teach each term of Introductory Spanish.

Waymaker Introductory Spanish I & II also represents a strong fit for the many institutions and programs shifting towards online instruction. Thoughtful, evidence-based learning design and digital-first format make Waymaker course materials effective in online, face-to-face and hybrid modalities. Waymaker’s “personalized study plan” format guides students through digital course content while helping them become more self-directed learners. Careful attention to content and platform accessibility ensures these course materials work well for individuals with varying abilities. Together these measures make Waymaker course materials “online-ready,” helping reduce uncertainty for instructors as they work through the impact of COVID-19 on course design and instruction.

In developing the openly-licensed course materials, course designers and subject matter experts looked for opportunities to make the content fresh, humorous, and playful, reinforcing research findings that humor and play have an important role in second-language acquisition. Amusing assignments and a fresh, engaging and often surprising sensibility in the course content make the course sequence unique. For example, this conversational activity asks paired partners to imagine they are security guards discussing a number of unusual (and fictional) happenings when animals run amok on a college campus.

Two security screens, side by side. One is covered in a static pattern, showing nothing. The other, labeled "library," shows a goat standing on a pile of books and eating one of them.

The Waymaker Introductory Spanish I & II sequence covers thematic vocabulary, grammar instruction, numerous self-check drills and exercises, open-form communicative activities, scaffolded writing assignments, and reading passages exploring various aspects of life and culture in the Spanish-speaking world.

Waymaker courseware also includes:

  • Robust supplemental materials: assignments, quiz banks, PowerPoints, EPUB for offline access, etc.
  • Personalized study plans to help students learn and master the course learning objectives while becoming self-directed learners
  • Complete, up-to-date, digital course materials to replace expensive textbooks
  • Seamless learning management system (LMS) integration, allowing students to work inside Blackboard, Canvas, Brightspace, and Moodle

Visit this page for more information and to preview complete course materials.