Our course will provide students with computer skills and technological knowledge to meet the current demands of high school and to face rigorous higher education coursework, career challenges and a globally competitive work force. Problem solving, and cooperative learning form the foundation of this course with ethical and legal behavior regarding the use of technology and intellectual property paramount.

Within the format of project-based learning students will demonstrate advanced computer operation and application skills by creating and publishing products related to real-world situations. Project cultivate higher thinking levels of proficiency in word processing, outlining, graphic design, spreadsheet computation and charting, database management, and multimedia authoring and presentation. Online segments of the course will cover practical strategies in understanding and using technology tools to access, interpret, cite and present information. The exploding realm of hand-held computing devices, their purpose, functionality, and the myriad of applications coming to the market will be explored.

Students will collaborate sharing ideas and experiences with classmates via First Class and with emerging Web 2.0 technologies such as social networking sites, wikis and blogs. They will apply information literacy skills to access, manage, and communicate information. They will be challenged to think critically and creatively to solve problems and make informed decisions surrounding issues that affect individuals, the world community, and the environment. Through participation in this course, students will gain enhanced understanding of global interdependencies, of diverse cultural perspectives, points of view, and values.