V-ALUES -- Mission & Learning Objectives:

Our MISSION POSSIBLE is to empower you with new skills and understanding to enable you to become ACTIVE PARTICIPANTS (not mere bystanders) on the use of desktop computers.

Our LEARNING OBJECTIVES include the development of skills and experiences through five areas of computer proficiencies.

[1] Through Microsoft WINDOWS environment, you will learn to use the mouse, menus, dialog boxes to run applications, arrange icons, and manage files.

[2] Through Microsoft Works WORD PROCESSING, you will learn to create, edit, preview, and print -- memos, letters and documents. You will also learn to create illustrations with Draw and to combine various applications through mailmerge features.

[3] Through Microsoft Works DESKTOP PUBLISHING, you will learn to create, edit, preview, and print -- multiple columns, borders around text, WordArt, ClipArt, and footnotes.

[4] Through Microsoft Works SPREADSHEETS, you will learn to create, edit, preview, and print -- numbers, labels, formulas, functions, and charts.

[5] Through Microsoft Works DATABASE, you will learn to create, edit, preview, and print -- forms, fields, records, queries, and reports.

I-NFORMATION -- on the Instructor & the Course:

INSTRUCTOR: "Mr. V." has over 15 years of corporate training and college teaching experience. He has taught at University of San Francisco, California State University Hayward, California State Polytechnic University Pomona, College of Alameda, Laney College, Merritt College, and Vista College on various courses in Business, Computer Information Systems, Computer Programming, Educational Technology, Finance, Math, Statistics, and Telecommunications. His students range from lower-division undergraduates to graduate MA & MBA students. He has created numerous web pages and has assisted others in publishing their own. His web page can be found at http://web.usfca.edu/~villegas/.

COURSE: CIS 205 is designed as an introduction to the many uses of the desktop computer -- word processing, spreadsheet, database, and desktop publishing. PREREQUISITE: none except your desire to learn.

S-KILLS -- Required & Desired:

REQUIRED: We expect everyone to arrive at school READY-TO-LEARN. Althought no prior computer experience is required, we expect people to know how to read, write, and follow directions.

RECOMMENDED: We prefer to have students who are comfortable working alone (self-reliant) and with others (team-spirited). No programming skills are required; however, we expect students to know how to type and use a word processor.

DESIRED LEARNING OUTCOME: Upon completion of this course, students will be proficient on all three "R's" of computer liteRacy: [1] Reading ability -- students will develop a continually evolving dictionary on computer information systems that will empower them to read and understand news and articles on the subject; [2] end-useR ability -- students will engage in numerous hands-on activities that will empower them with confidence to deal with new situations; and [3] pRogramming ability -- students will witness various desktop presentations and will have opportunities to create their own programming applications.

"RIGHT ATTITUDE combined with GOOD APTITUDE leads to higher ALTITUDE for learning."

T-OOLS -- Textbooks, Materials, Computer Accounts:

REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS: There is ONE (1) required textbook for this class -- [TEXT-1] MIchael Halvorson, Microsoft Works 3.0 for Windows Illustrated (Cambridge, MA: Course Technology Inc., 1995).

RECOMMENDED TEXT: Although not required, this recommended text can prove helpful to those who want to know how to use the World Wide Web and how to send email to the instructor and to fellow classmates. At your discretion, buy the book -- Donald I. Barker & Chia-Ling H. Barker, The World Wide Web Featuring Netscape Navigator 2 Software (Cambridge, MA: Course Technology Inc., 1996).

REQUIRED MATERIALS: You are required to have at least FOUR IBM formatted high-density disks to store all your work for this class. One of those disks should be a copy of the data disk to do the tutorials in your textbook. Such disk is available through the instrutor. When you complete all your lab assignments, you should save all those files on your data disk and make a duplicate copy to be submitted along with your printouts to the instructor.

REQUIRED COMPUTER ACCOUNTS (Provided): Once you are officially registered for this class, College of Alameda will provide you with two computer accounts. You will have a computer account with LOGIN (e.g. av6789) and PASSWORD (e.g. 123456789) to use the Local Area Network (LAN) at the computer lab. You will not be able to use the computers without this account.

RECOMMENDED COMPUTER ACCOUNTS (Not Provided): You are not required to have an email account. But if you want one so that you can send messages to anyone throughout the world and retrieve your messages anywhere without any special software except a web browser like Netscape or Internet Explorer, apply for a FREE account at http://www.hotmail.com.

A-CTIVITIES -- Schedule of Classes & Topics:

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***** Phase ONE: WINDOWS & WORKS *****

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• WEEK ONE -- August 22 (Friday) or October 24 (Friday)
EXPLORE Windows and Works 3.0
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Working with Windows + Unit 1 -- Works 3.0
LAB: [TEXT-1] STEPS -- Working with Windows + Unit 1 -- Works 3.0
HOMEWORK: [TEXT-1] CONCEPTS REVIEW -- Working with Windows & Unit 1

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***** Phase TWO: WORD PROCESSING *****

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• WEEK TWO -- August 29 (Friday) or October 31 (Friday)
Trick or treat with Microsoft Works WORD PROCESSING
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 2 -- Creating a Memo
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 3 -- Enhancing the Look of Your Document
LAB: [TEXT-1] STEPS -- Unit 2 and Unit 3
HOMEWORK: [TEXT-1] CONCEPTS REVIEW -- Unit 2 and Unit 3

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***** Phase THREE: DESKTOP PUBLISHING *****

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• WEEK THREE -- September 5 (Friday) or November 7 (Friday)
WYSIWYG -- What You See Is What You Get!
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 4 -- Getting Started with Desktop Publishing
LAB: [TEXT-1] STEPS -- Unit 4
HOMEWORK: [TEXT-1] CONCEPTS REVIEW -- Unit 4

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***** Phase FOUR: SPREADHSEETS *****

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• WEEK FOUR -- September 12 (Friday) or November 14 (Friday)
One for You, Two for Me, . . .
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 5 -- Building a Worksheet
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 6 -- Working with Spreadsheet Functions
LAB: [TEXT-1] STEPS -- Unit 5 and Unit 6
HOMEWORK: [TEXT-1] CONCEPTS REVIEW -- Unit 5 and Unit 6

• WEEK FIVE -- September 19 (Friday) or November 21 (Friday)
Which is bigger $10,000/day for a penny that doubles daily for 30 days?
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 6 -- Working with Spreadsheet Functions
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 7 -- Creating Charts with the Spreadsheet
LAB: [TEXT-1] STEPS -- Unit 6 and Unit 7
HOMEWORK: [TEXT-1] CONCEPTS REVIEW -- Unit 6 and Unit 7

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***** Phase FIVE: DATABASE *****

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• WEEK SIX -- September 26 (Friday) or November 28 (Friday)
NO CLASS -- Instructor is out of town OR celebrating Thanksgiving Day!
LECTURE: none -- Happy Thanksgiving!
LAB: none -- gobble, gobble, gobble!!!
HOMEWORK: read the rest of the book!

• WEEK SEVEN -- October 3 (Friday) or December 5 (Friday)
GIGO -- Garbage In, Garbage Out
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 8 -- Building a Database
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 9 -- Working with Existing Databases
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 10 -- Creating Database Reports
LAB: [TEXT-1] STEPS -- Unit 8, Unit 9 and Unit 10
HOMEWORK: [TEXT-1] CONCEPTS REVIEW -- Unit 8, Unit 9 and Unit 10
• WEEK EIGHT -- October 10 (Friday) or December 12 (Friday)
Will you MERGE with me? Que Sera, Sera! What Will Be, Will Be!
LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 12 -- Working Illustrations with Draw

LECTURE: [TEXT-1] Unit 13 -- Combining Works Applications

LAB: [TEXT-1] STEPS -- Unit 13 only (Unit 12 is optional)
HOMEWORK: [TEXT-1] CONCEPTS REVIEW -- Unit 12 and Unit 13

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***** Phase SIX: LET'S CELEBERATE! *****

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• WEEK NINE -- October 17 (Friday) or December 19 (Friday)
Success happens not by chance but by choice!
Potluck Party, ALL WORK DUE (no exceptions) and Exam!
CLOSED-BOOK, OPEN-NOTES FINAL EXAM: [TEXT-1] Units 1 through 10, 12, 13

S-UCCESS -- Deliverables & Grade Breakdown:

Your course letter grade will depend upon your total accumulated points as below:

Breakdown of 1000 Points -- total maximum possible points

400 points -- Class Participation: Be prepared and on time, participate in electronic and live discussions. Absences and tardiness on either lab or lecture will count against you! If you are registered for this class and plan to drop the class, you are responsible for doing so by the deadline. If you fail to withdraw from class and no longer showed up, you may receive an "F" grade. So be sure to take the appropriate action!

400 points -- Test (and/or Quizzes): A test shall be given to assess your CONCEPTUAL understanding of the subject matter. This is a closed-book exam. However, you will be allowed to use your notes which can be handwritten or word-processed but not photocopies of other people's works (such as textbooks).

200 points --Lab Assignments: One of the best means of evaluating your PRACTICAL understanding of the subject matter is through tyour lab assignments. Both hard copy (print-outs) and soft copy (electronic files on disk)of your lab assignments must be submitted to the instructor to receive full credit. You should keep your original disks and simply make and submit a copy of them to the instructor.

Tardiness -- All work that are turned in after they are due receive a deduction of 20% from the maximum points allowed for each (fraction of an) hour late. However, no work shall be accepted after the last class! ALL work are due at the beginning of the class lecture on the last day of class!

Makeup exam and INComplete grades -- are not given except for extreme cases due to medical or legal reasons. See instructor instead about extra credit!

Extra Credit: Points lossed for absences or poor performance in presentations may be offset by points earned for extra credit work approved by instructor. No makeup is allowed for email copies of homework assignments. However, the maximum points that can be earned on extra credit cannot exceed 80% of the work being replaced. Typical extra credit work involves attendance/presentation and publication of web page report on "first-hand experience" on computer expos, user group conferences, EdTech seminars, or volunteer services e.g. NetDay or CUE Conference.