Division of Continuing and Global Education
Functional Spanish for Emergency Medical Responders
Possessing strong communication skills is vitally important to the work of Emergency
Medical Responders (EMR). However, communication can be hampered if an EMR and a patient
do not share the same language. This course offers lessons that will help EMR’s develop
essential Spanish listening and speaking skills that will help them understand and
be understood when communicating in Spanish. Participants will receive short thematic
lessons that will teach them essential Spanish words and phrases that they will likely
encounter on the job. They will also receive a Spanish phrasebook for reference.
This class is offered in partnership with The Hub for Language Teaching and Learning.
Audience: Non-Spanish Speaking Emergency Medical Responders who work in areas with sizable Spanish speaking populations, such as the Central Valley.
Dates: September 20 - December 20, 2021 (10 lessons) Online, asynchronous. Requires approximately 10 hours to complete.
Students who complete all modules by December 20, 2021, will receive a certificate of completion.
Fee: $25. Class number 77935. One optional Fresno State CEU available for $25. Register online by clicking on
the red registration button below.
Instructors: Dr. Jaydene Elvin is the coordinator of The Hub for Language Teaching and Learning
and a professor in the Department of Linguistics, where she is the coordinator for
the Teaching English to Speakers of other Languages/Second Language Acquisition and
Teaching program. Prior to earning her doctorate, she earned a BA in Spanish and an
MA in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. Dr. Elvin lived and studied
in Spain for one year and has returned for teaching and research purposes.
Cheryl Chan is the assistant coordinator of The Hub for Language Teaching and Learning
with over 20 years of experience in the field of Teaching English as a Second Language.
After earning an MA from UCLA, she taught abroad in Mexico and Germany as well as
at the adult, community college, and college/university levels in California.