IT and English Language Courses

Courses Description: 

These courses serve as introduction to basic concepts, and structure of IT and English language and they are intended for capacity building of community, government, private institutions and interested individuals. The main objective of these programmes is to improve the basic level knowledge of information technology (IT) and English Language and a higher level abilities in using Personal Desktop computers, and English language and their applications.

Courses aims and objectives:

1.      To develop a high level of understanding of the fundamental principles of IT and English language.

2.      To work comfortably with computers.

3.      To write and speak English fluently.

4.      To ensure that a computer user has understanding of best practices and the advantages of using a PC.

5.      To promote the productivity of employees who work with the computers

Evaluation strategies:

     Evaluation will be through quizzes, home work and final examination. Certificates are issued after completing the courses and passing the final exams of the course.

IT Programme

The IT courses are grouped into two modules: the first module is intended to introduce the trainee to computer basics, windows operating system, word-processing, and internet basics. These courses are mandatory. The second module is designed to make the trainee acquainted with some application of computers in daily life and they are optional. The trainee is allowed to choose one or more course among this group.

Table 1 and 2 give a list of first and the second modules respectively.

Table 1: Computer basic, windows, word-processing and internet basics:

Module 1

The following are the syllabuses of first module:

1-  Computer basic concepts

Lesson 1: What is a computer? Hardware and software, programs, types of computers, multimedia or business systems and operating systems.

Lesson 2: Memory and storage devices, input and output devices, the disk drives and CD rooms, types of processors and their speeds, the CPU, RAM and ROMS.

Lesson 3: The Key Board, the mouse, the printer and the scanners.

2-   Computer  Operation and MS-Windows

Lesson 1: Unpacking a new computer, connecting the components, starting a computer with MS windows XP, Vista and Windows 7.

Lesson 2: Resetting a computer, shutting down a computer, Windows DeskTop properties, task bar and start windows properties, working with mouse, working with keyboards.

Lesson 3: Opening Windows, using scroll bars, sizing and resizing a Windows, moving windows, arranging and closing windows, control panel, adjusting date and time.

Lesson 4: Entering commands, a menu, menu symbols, Dialog Boxes, Tex box boxes, drop-down lists, open Buttons, check  boxes, command buttons, using Tabs and Dialog boxes.

Lesson 5: Windows help, the contents help, index feature, find feature and dialog boxes.

Lesson 6: Viewing windows application and accessories, viewing drives, folders, and files; creating and deleting folders and files, using the recycle bin, moving and copying files and folders.

3- Word Processing with Microsoft Word

Lesson 1: Program Interface, what is MS word? Opening the documents, the program interface, the title bar, the menu bar, formatting bar, the drawing bar, the status bar, Task pane, show and hide toolbars, adding and closing the program.

Lesson 2: Basic skills, creating a new blank document, typing practices, viewing options, changing zoom, changing paragraph direction, changing typing language, text selection, selection by  mouse, text deleting, undo, using the spell checker, saving a document, closing a document, open an existing file, verifying the case of a text, moving and copying an item, formatting text, some practical examples.

Lesson 3: Additional skills, typing practices, bullets and numbering, creating dropped capital letter, inserting a picture from the clip art, creating movable text, inserting a word art drawing picture, inserting auto shapes, header and footer, inserting symbols.

Lesson 4: Advance skills, some typing practices, creating a table using a table menu, adding text to a table, adding rows and column, changing the orientation of the text in cell, changing the alignment of the text in the table cell.

Lesson 5: Adding a border to a table, adding shading to a paragraph or selected text, adding border and shading, insert text on auto shape, adding or changing the 3D effect of drawing object,  changing fill color in drawing object, dividing documents into columns, create news paper columns, column breaks, text wrapping break, previewing a document, printing a document.

4-  Internet Basics

Lesson 1: Internet services, examples of websites, connecting to the internet, working with web pages, linking to website, changing home page.

Lesson 2: The internet explorer web browser, safety in the Web browsing, searching internet with Google, Yahoo, MSN.

Lesson 3: Creating a new account, creating an e-mail, the mail box, sending e-mails.

Lesson 4: Using NetMeeting, Face book, Yahoo Messenger, File transfer protocol.

Table 2: Computer Applications, MS Excel,  MS Access, MS PowerPoint

Module 2

The following are the second module syllabus:

1-    Concepts of Spread Sheets and Microsoft Excel

Lesson 1: Program interface, spreadsheet basics, opening program, program interface, adding and renaming the worksheets, standard toolbar, moving through the cell, resizing rows and columns, selecting cells, moving and copying cells.

Lesson 2: formatting cells, formatting toolbar, formatting cells dialog box, dates and times, styles, style dialog box, Auto format.

Lesson 3: Working with formulas, formulas, basic functions, Auto Sum, basic and complex sorts, Auto fill, alternating text and numbers with auto fill, auto filling functions.

Lesson 4: Working with charts, chart source data, Chart options, chart location, resizing and moving charts, and chart formatting.

Lesson 5: printing work sheet, page setup, margins, header, footer, and print preview

2- Microsoft Access

Lesson 1: some definitions, database, an object, table, field, record, design view, datasheet view.

Lesson 2: Working with MS Access, starting Access, creating a data base, creating tables, switching views, manipulating data.

Lesson 3: Query, creating query using wizard, opening a query and adding criteria to a query.

Lesson 4: Forms, creating a form using a wizard and creating a report.

3- Microsoft Power Point

Lesson 1: What is Microsoft Power Point, starting the program, Power point screen, program interface, viewing options, view buttons and slide, slide sorter view, show slide, the task pane, to view different panes, pull-down menus.

Lesson 2: creating a blank presentation, closing a slide layout, place holders, saving a presentation, closing and exiting the power point, creating a new presentation using the traditional method, inserting new slide, copying a slide, slide sorter view, working with slides in normal view, changing slides in outline view.

Lesson 3: Adding design in an existing presentation, view templates, choosing color scheme, the auto content wizard, types of output, making changes to content, adding text to original slide.

Lesson 4: The formatting toolbar, formatting text, formatting menu, copy, cut and paste, bulleted list, formatting a bulleted list, customizing a bulleted list, formatting a numbered list, inserting clip art into a slide, inserting pictures from a file, inserting pictures or clop art using a slide design layout, resizing pictures and clip art, inserting a chart, setting maximum value for a chart, choosing a different chart type, labeling a chart, inserting a diagram or organization chart.

Lesson 5: Inserting a table, inserting an auto shape, inserting word art, inserting a hyperlink, animating slides, emphasis and exit, setting direction and speed, animating a bulled list, controlling the text, the slide master, viewing the slide master elements, the title master, using spell check, printing a slide presentation.

English Language Teaching Programme

The Centre will adopt a New Headway series of book for teaching English. The choice of appropriate level will depend on the replacement tests that will be prepared by the Center. Table 3 lists the names New Headway book series that will be taught in this program.  In addition to those books, English and conversation and writing will also be part of the course.

Table 3: Names of New Headway books covered by the course