Course: Computer Applications II

Taught by Thomas Wilson, twilsonnpaa@gmail.com

Course Description:
Welcome to Computer Applications. This course is intended to teach students basic
computer skills that are valuable in various careers in the world and introduce
students to some general areas of computer use, computer science and IT-type work.
Course Objectives:
Students should understand the basics of the following, and be proficient in those
areas:
1.

Weebly websites (used for rest of course)

2.

Picture/Photo editing

3.

Audio Editing

4.

Video Editing

5.

Introduction to Programming

School-wide Goals
Spiritually
1.

Experience a personal relationship with God through prayer, Bible study, and worship.

2.

Incorporate principles of the Bible into personal daily living and decision-making

3.

Embrace Christian attitudes, values and practices while interacting with others.

4.

Experience the joy of Christian fellowhip.

5.

Commit to a lifetime of Christian service.

Intellectually
1.

Develop critical thinking skills to improve reasoning and analysis of a broad field of knowledge.

1.

Demonstrate effective communication skills in speaking, group discussion, and writing.

1.

Cultivate study habits and learning skills to successfully complete an academically challenging program,
allowing success in higher education

Physically
1.

Engage in behaviors that promote lifelong physical fitness and well-being.

2.

Acquire an understanding of the key risk factors and decisions that affect health.

Socially
1.

Work effectively as a group member in varying social circumstances.

2.

Be able to identify themselves positively within the school and local communities.

3.

Develop skills necessary for success in adult life.

4.

Engage in service to others.

5.

Accept responsibility for ones actions and decisions.

How will the course be graded?

Many students find this course to be difficult. Using a computer is easy but
understanding how it works can be very difficult. There are a lot of terms and
vocabulary the students will need to understand. Because of this, students need to
take good notes and pay attention in class to earn a good grade. Below is the scale
used to determine student grades.
A+

97% and above

You should consider a career in computers.

94% to 96%

Shine bright like a diamond.

A-

90% to 93%

You're doing great!

B+

87% to 89%

With a little more effort, you will be a top-tier computer guru.

84% to 86%

Solid score, but there is some room for improvement.

B-

80% to 83%

Start asking more questions both in and out of class.

C+

77% to 79%

Ask questions of the instructor and friends, and get your grade up.

74% to 76%

You need to start seeing the instructor outside of class when possible.

C-

70% to 73%

See the instructor immediately. Spend time on coursework outside class. You are
dangerously close to failing.

D+

67% to 69%

You are in peril. If you do not put in extra time and see the instructor and ask more
questions, you might be retaking this course.

64% to 66%

This is really bad.

D-

60% to 63%

This is very worse.

Below 60%

I'll be seeing you next year.

The different types of assignments:

There will be five basic types of assignments throughout the year. These five
assignment types are homework, quizzes, tests, typing speed and participation. They
will be differentiated as follows:
Homework:

50.00%

May be done in or out of class.

Quizzes:

20.00%

All quizzes will be unannounced! Every quiz is a pop quiz.

Tests or Final Projects:

20.00%

Comprehensive tests. Mandatory. twice per semester.

Typing:

*10.00%

Twice a week, 15 minutes of practice.

Participation
*10.00%
Putting in noticeable effort in and out of class.
*Typing and participation are graded in the same category.

Honesty
Any student found to be cheating would receive a 0 for the work in question. A
parent and teacher conference will be called and further action may be pending.

Homework:
Homework is graded the highest because, in the real world, employees are rarely
expected to be able to do work without access to the internet and other references.
Homework should be done in class when possible. Due dates for homework will be
assigned in-class, so students should take note of the due date when the assignment is
given.
Quizzes:
Students should expect a quiz after we learn something in class. This quiz will go
over the course content recently learned and may include a few questions from the
entire year. If a student is not present for a quiz on time, they will be allowed to retake the quiz if the office has approved the absence or if they are on a schoolsponsored event like sports or music.
Tests and Final Projects:
Students can expect one test or project half-way through the semester and another at
the end of the semester. Tests will cover all content that students have been expected
to learn through the semester. Students MUST be present and on-time for tests with
very rare exceptions. If a student cannot make a test on time, they will not be
allowed to re-take the test unless the absence is approved by the office.
Typing:
Every other day, the class period will start with typing. Typing at high speed is a
valuable skill, but more important is typing with good form. Grading for typing is
primarily based on the students hand position and form while typing, not their speed.
The students speed is expected to improve over time, but he/she will only receive a
good grade if using the correct hand positioning.
Participation:
As opposed to actual knowledge-based information, participation is an evaluation of
how much effort each student is putting in during and after class and is subject to the
instructors evaluation. The goal of this grade is not to prove knowledge but how
much effort the student puts into the class and how much respect the student shows
for other students, the instructor, and the classroom in general.

Late work:
If students are not able to complete homework by the due date, a 50% reduction in
score will be applied to any work that is turned in late. The last day to turn in any late
work is the Friday before finals no later than noon. This is (mostly) non-negotiable.
(See grace, below)
Three levels of grace:
Let's be honest, life happens. Yours should be focused on schoolwork and life at
NPAA so there should be no problem doing the schoolwork on time and effectively,
but life is unpredictable. Because of this, there are three levels of grace that are
extended to each student, somewhat like single-use lifelines.
Level 1: A student may turn in one homework late for full credit. This one
assignment must be completed and turned in by the end of grace (below). For this one
assignment, the student does not need to give an excuse, just to say that they want to
use level 1 grace on it and it will be taken for full credit.
Level 2: A student may request a single homework assignment to be completely
erased and averaged with the rest of his or her grade. Student may choose to use this
before or after the assignment has been assigned (or completed), but it may only
apply to one homework assignment. Students may choose the next assignment at
any time up to the end of grace (below).
Level 3: Finally, if the student has done particularly poor on a quiz, he or she may
request to do that quiz over. Once the quiz has been re-done, the higher score will be
counted towards students final grade.
End of Grace: Students must choose all levels by noon the Friday before finals
week. If student has not chosen by that time, they will not be allowed to choose
thereafter.
Exceptions: Some exceptions will be made for students that are absent for a
legitimate reason. Examples include but are not limited to school-sponsored events
(sports, music, etc.), doctor's notes, and students that make arrangements with the
instructor beforehand. In these cases, students will be allowed to do an assignment
outside of class and turn it in the next class period. Failure to do so will make it
subject to the penalties above. For quizzes, the quiz must be taken after school the
next day.

Responsibilities
Phones in class:
At the start of class, students must place their phones in a designated container. They
cannot retrieve it until the class period is over. If a student does not wish to give over
their phone, they may leave it in their locker. Failure to do so will result in
confiscation. Repeated incidents will result in increasing penalties.
Attendance:
Per school policy, attendance is mandatory. Students are expected to be in their seats
and ready to listen or work by the time the second bell rings. In this way, the student
will optimize their ability to learn from the class by not missing anything important.
Other responsibilities:
Be kind to other students and your instructor. Do not belittle other students. Act with respect
towards others.
Do not distract other students or the teacher. You can ask questions, but don't be distracting.
When working in pairs, keep your voice low enough that others cannot hear what you are saying.
(aka don't let them know your secrets)
If you work with someone else on homework, make sure you give them credit on the homework.
Nobody likes a copycat. (also plagiarism and stuff)
Try to focus on what the instructor is saying. It's good stuff. It will help you have a good grade at
the end of the year. If you can't focus, try to figure out what the instructor is going to talk about
next. Again, if you can't stay focused, don't distract others.
No swearing. If you're not sure, don't say it.
Nothing crude, rude, or lude in the classroom.
If the instructor says not to do something, don't do it.

If student is in violation of these rules, one of the following may happen. This
may include but is not limited to:

Being re-seated/moved.

Being deducted on homework.

Private meeting with the teacher.

Email to parents.

Phone call to parents.

Parent/Teacher/Student conference, may include administrative faculty.

Rewards for good behavior (in no particular order):

1.

Participation points, directly on your grade.

2.

Positive letter home to parents.

3.

Candy?

Required Materials for this class:

Students are required to have the following materials in class every day. You may not
use every one of these every day, but you must have it.

Notebook just for notes in this class. It must have your name and computer class on the
front.

At least two different colored pens, black/blue/green/purple are fine. NOT red.

A USB flash drive, at least 4GB, that the student can store files and projects on. It must have
your name on it (no sharing).

What do I do if my grades are not good enough?

For those that do not have a technical background, this may not be an easy class.
Most students will definitely have trouble with certain aspects of the course. If you
are having trouble at any time, be sure you take the following steps.
1.

Work with a partner. Often times your partner will find a mistake you made and you may
find something they did wrong as well. Teamwork ftw.

2.

Ask questions. If you don't understand something, it's better to ask and look silly than to be
silent and fall behind in your coursework.

3.

Review your notes at home. Because the instructor does not tell students when there will be
a quiz, it is good to look over the notes once again so your brain can recognize the points
you understand and the ones you dont.

4.

TALK TO THE TEACHER!!! If nothing else works the best thing you can do is to find the
teacher after school or during a study hall period. If you don't understand something, let's
talk about it so you can understand and do well in the class.

The last word:

Some students will have an easy time in this class because they already understand the things we
will be talking about. Other students will struggle because everything is new. If you are one of the
struggling students, I am willing to help you and review things with you during the study lab period.
But heres the reality check. If you choose not to come, I will not chase you down and force you.
Ultimately it is your decision if you want to come see me outside of class.
Also, I will be grading you and judging your work throughout this year. If you do poorly your
grade will reflect this, but it does not mean that I dislike you as a person. I try to grade everything
as evenly as possible. What this means is that I would much rather see you prove you are learning
what I am teaching you than to have you copy something directly from google or wikipedia. It is
my job to judge your ability to do computer-based work, not to judge you as a person.

Computer Applications Contract

Student responsibilities:
I agree to be to class on time every time this is possible. I agree to bring the three required items to
class every day (notebook, USB, two colors of pen but not red).
I agree to be respectful to the teacher. I will raise my hand when I have a question and wait to be
called on before talking. I will not interrupt the teacher's talking.
I agree to be respectful to the other students. I will not belittle other students or make them look
bad. I will not bother other students by hitting or poking them.
I agree to be respectful to the classroom. I will not leave my things in the classroom. I will not leave
trash in the classroom (except in the trash can). I will not throw things in the classroom. I will not
bring food into the classroom (except bottled water).
I agree that my grade is my responsibility and will do my best to have a good grade. If I am not
doing well, I understand that it is my own fault. I understand that if I do not have a good grade, it is
my job to find the teacher and ask for help.

Parent Responsibilities:
I understand that the instructor puts in a lot of time preparing for this class and evaluating the
students academically. I understand that I can check on my student's grades using Renweb.
I understand that I can contact the instructor at any time throughout the school year. If I need to do
so, I should email the instructor (twilsonnpaa@gmail.com) to get a response in a timely manner.
I understand that my student may or may not be good at this specific course. If the student is
struggling, I agree to try to help them before contacting the instructor. If I cannot help, I agree to
contact the instructor via email with questions or concerns about the student's classwork.

Instructor Responsibilities:
I agree to prepare a lesson for the students beforehand every class. I agree to attempt to make this
class as reasonably complete-able for a student at this level of education as I can.
I agree to grade classwork by the weekend following the due date whenever possible. I agree to
keep renweb updated as the homework is graded.
I agree to make myself available to both students and parents as much as is reasonably possible to
help with lectures or classwork. I agree to attempt to check my emails as much as possible in order
to respond to the students' and parents' concerns.

Student signature

Parent signature

Instructor signature

Date

Date

Date