Computer Skills for the Workplace
Most
jobs today require a working knowledge of certain computer skills. Employers
seek and reward employees with the skills and knowledge to send messages across
the country via e-mail; use a spreadsheet to create a graph and paste it into a
report; add and edit data in a database; understand the implications of file
sizes, memory limitations, and network arrangements; and recognize the function
and features of modern computer components. Any job candidate who already
possesses these skills will stand above those who do not.
This course is designed to provide the fundamental computer competencies you
need to survive and prosper in today's fast-changing workplace. You will learn
how to implement the powers of modern office software to work faster and more
efficiently. We'll focus on practical application for software most common to
the workplace. When you finish this course, you will have learned why employers
consider technological literacy so critical to the success of any organization.
To enroll in this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
Requirements:
Microsoft Windows 95 or newer with any edition of Microsoft Office 2000 or newer; or Mac OS X with any edition of Microsoft Office 2004 (Mac); Internet access, e-mail, and the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser. Note: Please be sure to install Microsoft Office on your computer before the course begins.
Syllabus:
All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two
lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do
not have to be present when the lesson is released, but you must complete each
lesson within two weeks of its release.
A new section of each course starts on the second or third Wednesday of each
month. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space
the start date for each course at least two months apart.
| Week One |
| Wednesday - Lesson 01 |
| Whether you're looking for a new job or looking to
improve your position at your current company, computer skills are
essential to your success. In our first lesson, we'll examine how
companies set up and use technology solutions. Then we'll take a close
look at some of the components of those solutions. Just understanding
how technology fits into the overall flow of work at your company will
advance your position relative to your peers. |
| Friday - Lesson 02 |
| Your computer has a software program installed on it
that's referred to as an "operating system." Most often, this system is
Microsoft Windows, but it could be others, such as Macintosh or Linux.
In this lesson, you'll learn how this system controls many important
parts of the computer and how you use those controls every day for tasks
like managing where you keep important files, and printing hard copies
of documents. We'll also talk about menus, taskbars, and shortcuts along
the way. |
| Week Two |
| Wednesday - Lesson 03 |
| Copying and pasting are two of the most
important things you'll learn to do with your computer. These simple
tasks leverage the enormous power of computers and can save you hundreds
of hours or work. We'll cover these two tools in today's lesson. We'll
also discuss the dialog box—again, a simple concept once you know
how to use it, and once you master it, you'll have come very far in
understanding how to interact with your computer. |
| Friday - Lesson 04 |
| Next to e-mail, the word processor is probably the
most frequently used application software in the workplace. Yet, if
you've never taken the time to learn the basic features of most word
processors, you're not performing nearly to your potential. In today's
lesson, you'll learn and practice the important capabilities of word
processors like Microsoft Word. |
| Week Three |
| Wednesday - Lesson 05 |
| During this lesson, we'll address three additional
areas of word processing: formatting, organizing information, and using
special tools. Once you understand formatting tools, you'll be able to
make your text take on a special appearance so that it draws attention
where you want it to. For example, you can underline, bold, or italicize
text in the middle of a paragraph for emphasis. After you learn about
text formatting, we'll go over paragraph and page formatting. We'll also
examine how to organize data in tables and lists. |
| Friday - Lesson 06 |
| During today's lesson, we'll go over some important
fundamental concepts related to spreadsheets, including spreadsheet
organization, formatting, basic formulas, and data sorting. Once you
discover how to create a basic budget spreadsheet, you'll see how the
skills and knowledge you gain from this lesson can have a powerful
impact on your ability to contribute more in the workplace. |
| Week Four |
| Wednesday - Lesson 07 |
| In this lesson, we'll discuss more details about the
spreadsheet, and how to provide easy-to-understand, accurate data.
You'll learn how to build graphs that can graphically display numeric
information so you can easily demonstrate trends, analyze past results,
and predict future performance. You'll also find out how to use some
advanced spreadsheet tools that can make your spreadsheets even more
effective. |
| Friday - Lesson 08 |
| E-mail affects your work performance in two ways:
First, it allows fast communication among geographically dispersed
workers, and second, it provides rapid dissemination of large documents
and files to those same workers. In today's lesson, we're going to study
the best ways to use e-mail to enhance your work performance. We'll
examine some rules for writing business e-mails, and you'll learn about
e-mail etiquette and how to insert emotions into your messages. Then
we'll discuss some of the advanced functions associated with e-mail,
such as attaching documents. |
| Week Five |
| Wednesday - Lesson 09 |
| During this lesson, we'll examine the components of a
database, focusing primarily on the user interface. In your job, you
might use this interface to perform a lot of different functions,
including data input, data output, and data maintenance. Clerks work
with databases to input information. Other employees might work with
databases to filter, sort, and read information. Database-management
personnel interface with databases to keep them accurate, reliable, and
secure. |
| Friday - Lesson 10 |
| In today's lesson, we'll go over some of the
computer's utility programs to help you better understand the operation
and organization of your computer. Additionally, these programs will
help you manage and safely maintain the data on your computer. The
utility programs we'll discuss here deal primarily with file
maintenance. Some of the functions associated with these programs are
viewing files, compressing files, diagnosing problems, uninstalling
software, defragmenting disks, backing up files, and running screen
savers. |
| Week Six |
| Wednesday - Lesson 11 |
| Today, we'll go over the major storage media
available in the workplace, as well as their corresponding
characteristics. These major media types include hard drives, memory
sticks, compact discs (CDs), tapes, and PC cards. We'll review some of
the terms people use to describe memory size, and then we'll compare
file sizes to different storage options. We'll also relate storage
options to the different work tasks you might perform, and we'll discuss
when each option is most appropriate for a certain task. |
| Friday - Lesson 12 |
| In our final lesson, we have three specific goals. The first is to identify ways to use your computer skills to find a new job. The second is to use those same computer skills to get a promotion within your current organization. Our third goal is to explore strategies for continued learning in order to support your ever-growing employment goals. |
To enroll in this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
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