Computer Applications

This is a course that does not exist in the Manitoba curriculum, but it contains content that is extremely relevant to students, and useful for their life during and beyond secondary school. The idea of this course comes from one I attended during my time in high school, with the same name. The course taught students how to use readily available computer programs and software to support their own professional development.

The following is a list of topics that I would want to cover and the corresponding software/program that we would use to optimize our project.

· Business Cards – Microsoft Publisher, Microsoft Word

Students will learn how to size their margins and they will learn the significance of alignment in professional documents. The assessment piece would have the students design their own business cards.

· Resumes – Microsoft Publisher, Microsoft Word

This topic would build off of the business cards to a more detailed document. Alignment would be a huge consideration with the amount of content on a resume, and students would learn get to experiment building one from scratch, or managing a template. The assessment piece would have the students design their own resume.

· Presentations – Microsoft PowerPoint, Sutori, Prezi, Google Slides

The third piece of the Professional Unit would have students learn the intricacies of presentation software. Microsoft PowerPoint would be the software used in class, where students would learn about transitions, links, and animations.

· Portrait Editing – Adobe Photoshop, Pics Art Studios, Photopea

On the digital literacy side, students would start by learning how to edit portrait photos. This would include discussions about positive body image, and students would learn some of the tools that professionals use to alter professional portraits.

· Soft Programming – Alice 2.5

Alice is a free software provided by Carnegie Mellon University where students can learn the absolute basics of a programming language to create interactive 3D animations and games. The assessment would be open ended, but include multiple criteria for the students to meet in their project.

· *Music and Production – Fruity Loops Studios, Audacity

Students will learn the basics to making simple songs/loops using an actual production software. *A license will be necessary to utilize FL Studios.* Audacity is a tool that the students can use to edit their music tracks by changing a number of preset parameters.

I have put this package of content together because these are the tools that I have used the most since high school. This was the only course where every facet of information was useful in the professional world, and I think students today would benefit hugely from developing their digital literacy with these programs. The assessments are designed to simulate real professional experiences to further prepare our students for their futures.

Sample Lesson Plan