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SELF- DESIGNED HONORS EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PROJECT PROPOSAL

Basic Information
Full Name: Tyus Temple
UC Email: templets@mail.uc.edu
College: McMicken College of Arts and Sciences
Major: Biological Sciences
Title of Project: Architecture of Spain
Thematic Area (choose only one): Global Studies
Expected Project Start Date: June 1, 2015
Expected Project End Date: June 11, 2015
Project Information
1. Provide a detailed abstract of your proposed honors experiential learning project.
For this eleven-day trip to Spain, I hope to study the wide variety of architecture that the country has while being
able to see how the architecture has formed, and is representative of, Spanish culture. By studying the architecture, I hope
to learn about the countrys history and current events and how their culture differs from American culture. I also hope to
see how the world is a large, interconnected community, which I need to participate in as a citizen of the world, through
studying the architecture. This trip has been entirely planned on my own with the help of my high school Spanish teacher.
Taking Spanish Language classes and some art history courses, combined with my natural interest in foreign
language and architecture, will help me make the most out of this trip. Taking this trip, in turn, will help me strengthen my
language skills while also increasing my knowledge about the architecture of another country.
Spain is a country that has a long history with many different people and empires ruling over the country. From
the Visigoths, to the Romans, and then the Moors, Spain has had an incredible amount of diversity in its leadership, and
consequently its architecture. The public buildings influenced by the Romans and the impressive palaces, like the
Alhambra, from the Moors are just a few examples of the types of buildings that were built throughout the countrys
impressive history. Also, specific individuals have had a long-lasting impact on the appearances of Spain like Antoni
Gaud and his gaudy architectural style. To reinforce what I learn over in Spain, I will be taking photographs, making
posts on social media, and journaling my experiences daily. Upon returning to the United States, I will create an in-depth
PowerPoint presentation about my trip and publish it on my learning portfolio.
Trip Itinerary:
June 1 - Depart the US and arrive in Barcelona
June 2 Visit the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
June 3 Visit the Sagrada Familia, Casa Batllo, and Casa Mila
June 4 Travel to Madrid; visit the Museo del Prado
June 5 Visit San Lorenzo and the Plaza Mayor
June 6 Visit the Segovia aqueducts and Alcazar de Segovia
June 7 Travel to Cordoba; visit the Great Mosque
June 8 Travel to Granada; visit the Gypsy Caves of Sacromonte
June 9 Visit the Alhambra
June 10 Visit the Cathedral of Granada and the Royal Chapel
June 11 Depart from Spain for the US
Clearly and thoroughly address how each of the following elements will be exhibited in your work:
2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within the Honors Thematic Area (identified above)
Even though I am dedicating a large portion of this trip to observe and learn about the architecture in Spain, I
believe that this trip is of the Global Studies theme.
1) Possess global literacy, including knowledge of geography, history, current world issues and similarities
and differences among cultures

I will achieve to possess global literacy through my studying of the architecture from numerous
time periods, which consequently will help me learn about the history of Spain since art and architecture
often implicitly reveal the significant historical events that occurred during the time the building was
constructed. Also, since Spain is such a significant portion of the Iberian Peninsula, I will be able to have
a general idea about the architecture, history, and current events of the Iberian Peninsula as a whole.
2) Participate in a global society and understand the role of a global citizen
Since Spain is an area in the world that has been populated for a very long time, I will be able to
see how the entire world has been and is interconnected through studying the architecture of the
buildings. From the Visigoths, the Holy Roman Empire, and the Moorish Empire, Spain has been
connected to a gamut of cultures and is connected to many different cultures still today. An important part
to any culture is the architecture of its buildings, and through studying the architecture, I will be able to
realize how the citizens of these different cultures were able to influence the traditional Spanish culture
into the contemporary Spanish culture today. Through this, I will be able to realize just how important it
is for me to understand how society is global, how the global society works, how to participate in the
global society, and my role as a citizen in this global society.

3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories (include reference list, as appropriate)

A.
A trip to Spain would undoubtedly help me improve my fluency in the Spanish language. As I am
a Spanish minor, travelling to a Spanish-speaking country will help me solidify the Spanish that I have
already learned while studying at the University of Cincinnati. This increased knowledge of the Spanish
language will also help me reach my career goal of becoming a pediatrician in a heavily populated
Spanish speaking area.
In the spring, I will be taking Spanish 1002, which will allow me to strengthen my knowledge of
basic Spanish that I learned through taking three years of Spanish in high school. No matter how much I
learn in the classroom setting and how well I learn the material in the classroom setting, I am sure that I
will learn characteristics about the language while abroad that I would have never learned in the
traditional classroom setting.
Besides my professional goals, I have always had an interest in architecture, which began when I
took an art history class in high school. By making the focus of my trip the architecture that is found in
Spain, I am not only learning more about the Spanish language, but learning about architecture in a
different country, which will be amazing to see in real-life versus pictures online or in a textbook.
B.
In order to prepare myself to go abroad to Spain for the first time, I will be taking Spanish 1002
this upcoming semester. This, combined with my three years of Spanish in high school, will allow me to
know some basic Spanish so I will be able to somewhat break down the language barrier that I will
encounter. For the architecture component of my trip, I have a fairly decent background regarding the
architecture that I will be encountering because I took an art history course in high school, which had
many examples of architecture in Spain.
Besides classes that I will be or have taken, I have learned more about Spain through watching
YouTube videos, such as ones from travel companies like Door2Tour, that gave me a general idea of the
culture into which I will be submersing myself. I have also watched videos from Kahn Academy and
other sources where the architecture of the periods (and of the people who built them) is discussed,
allowing me to refresh my memory on the styles and defining characteristics of periods like the
Romanesque Period or people like Gaud
4. Initiative, Independence, and/or Creativity
Not only will this be my first time visiting Spain, it will be my first time ever leaving the continental United
States. I have planned this whole trip by myself with the guidance of my former Spanish teacher in high school,
demonstrating my initiative and independence in this trip. This is not just a general trip visiting all the attractions in
Spain, but it specifically focuses on the architecture that is shown in the country; everything from the works of the

Ancient Romans, the Moors, and Antoni Gaud. This wide array of architecture I will be looking at will help me get
the big picture of the architecture in the country.

5. Reflection
My reflections will primarily center on the appreciation for the architectural importance of Spains buildings,
from its time as a Roman province all the way to contemporary times. Before I depart the United States, I will journal
what I think about the importance of Spains architecture and how it has influenced society based off of what I already
have learned from art classes and my project research. While I am on my trip in Spain, I will do fairly extensive
journals at the end of every day about the places that I visited, what I learned while I was at those places, and what I
observed while being there. However, in order to remember everything that I will be learning during the day, I will
take more general notes while I am out and about during the day in order to properly journal everything that I did
during the day. To supplement my notes that I take during the day and the journals that I write in the evening, I will
take photographs of the attractions that I visit and the trip as a whole.
My journals while there will focus on anything new that I learned about the places I visited, how the aesthetics of
the building are different in person versus seeing pictures online, and how I have a new understanding of Spains
architecture from visiting these locations. Upon returning to the United States, I will write one last post-trip journal.
This journal will primarily focus on how my thoughts of architecture in Spain and its influence on contemporary
society has changed due to the trip that I have taken there; also it will include how my appreciation for the
architecture in Spain has grown.

6. Dissemination
I will have two main parts to my dissemination in my trip to Spain. First, I will make posts on several social media
sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, with pictures of my journey and the buildings whose architecture I am
observing with brief descriptions of what I am learning from each attraction. By posting my journey through pictures on
numerous social media sites, I know that I will be sharing these pictures and my experience with everyone in my life,
family and friends alike.
Upon my return to the United States, I am planning on creating a much more in-depth presentation in the form of a
PowerPoint presentation, which will include a higher level of reflection and more information about my whole experience
while in Spain. I will then publish this on my learning portfolio for anyone who wants to learn more about Spain, its
architectural history, or just interested in my trip as a whole, to view. Through my social media posts and my presentation
that will be published on my learning portfolio, I hope to encourage other students, and even the general public, to go
abroad and see different parts of the world through my trip studying the architecture in Spain
7. Project Advisor(s)
Mr. Higgins was one of my Spanish teachers in high school. He has been to Spain numerous times and will be able to
help me plan every last detail of my trip so it will go smoothly and according to plan.
Mr. John Higgins
Spanish Teacher
Foreign Language Department
Celina Senior High School
John.Higgins@celinaschools.org
419-586-8300 ext. 1500

8. Budget (if applicable)

Expenses
Plane Ticket

Costs
$1,544.00

In-Country Transportation

Unknown

Admissions

$53

Housing Costs

$200

Food

$210

Total

$2,007

Explanation
Price of the round-trip ticket from
Cincinnati to Barcelona, Spain (and
from Barcelona to Cincinnati).
I am going to use the train system in
the country to move from city to city.
However, the transportation authority,
Renfe, does not have prices (of the 10day pass that I will buy) online.
A few of the attractions that I will be
visiting, such as the Alhambra, and the
Museo del Prado, have admission
prices.
Staying in hostels for the 10-night
journey; average price online varied
between $15 and $20.
Averaging meals around $10; $20 a
day; only $10 for the last day because
I will not be in Spain all day
***Total does not include the 10-day
train pass that I will be purchasing
(price unknown).