Discover the Best Computer Basics Classes Near Me
The definition of computer basics has come a long way from the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator and large systems that once filled an entire room. At their inception hundreds of years ago, computers were designed to crunch numbers for humans to check for accuracy, but as technology has advanced, computers now do so much more than compute complex math equations relatively quickly. Nearly instantaneous tasks like emailing, Internet surfing, blogging, and managing files have become a staple fixture in modern society.
Computers are a big part of staying connected and exploring the world nowadays, and that’s why it’s important to know how to securely navigate a personal computer. And because technology is steadily evolving, IT professionals and those wanting to go into the computer and data science field need to continue expanding their knowledge as new tech arrives on the scene. Although computers have simplified life in many ways, operating computers come with a learning curve.
Why You Should Learn Computer Basics
Technology seems to be one of the things driving the world forward, so having some knowledge of computer basics allows you to join in on this forward momentum. Not only can learning how to safely leverage modern amenities like online shopping, email, Internet surfing, and word processing make your life a little easier while connecting you to a wider network, but computer skills are also helpful in both your professional life. Basic computer skills make you a stronger candidate for employment and can allow you to demand better pay rates corresponding to your level of expertise.
Investing in your professional growth pays dividends, whether you turn it into a side hustle or add it to your employable skills. Data entry specialists, customer service representatives, administrative professionals, and project managers all use basic computer skills to create more efficient workflows and make their work less stressful. Taking continuing education classes or professional development courses in various computer skills can keep you up-to-date in your field of expertise or even push you into a higher salary range. There are big advantages that come with mastering multiple computer programming languages or multiple graphic design software.
5 Ways to Learn Computer Basics
Learning computer basics can be as involved or as laid back as you want it to be. With so many options available, it’s easy to tailor your learning experience to your current situation and timeline. It doesn’t matter if you’re a complete newbie to computers or if you’re looking to build on the computer skills you already have, your learning experience will be what you make it to be. Here are a few ways to learn computer basics to consider.
- Traditional in-person learning. Traditional education settings are still the most effective way to learn computer basics. With in-person classes, both students and instructors are in the same place and can physically interface with one another. Instructors can give demonstrations of techniques and then move about the classroom to provide hands-on and individualized assistance to students who need it.
- Online learning. Taking a class online isn’t all that different from an in-person class. Instructors can still provide live individual assistance to participants who need it, but it looks more like a screen share and a mouse pointing out instances of concern. Many of the traditional in-person learning opportunities are also offered as a live virtual class too, so learners can choose what’s most comfortable for them.
- On-demand learning. If a scheduled class isn’t a possibility for you, then on-demand classes may be a better fit. On-demand or self-paced learning isn’t taught live and it’s not always taught by a professional or certified instructor. You can find on-demand classes on online platforms like YouTube and at your public library. You’ll be able to learn as fast or as slow as you like and on your own schedule.
- On-the-job training. Because computers are a big part of most professions, from waiting tables to engineering, many employees will get some sort of on-the-job training to get them accustomed to the computer system the workplace uses and their computer protocols. Taking this route to learn computer basics is relatively quick and easy, and you’ll have the benefit of conferring with a co-worker if you need further assistance.
- Reading books. One of the great things about reading is that it allows you to learn anything you want to learn. As long as you can comprehend the material, you can read a book or two and learn a new skill. When you have questions about the reading material, you’ll either have to do an Internet search or reach out to the author for clarification. Some books that are intended to be teaching materials may come with a website to reference or a DVD.
In-Person Computer Basics Classes
In-person classes are still the gold standard of education for most people. It’s familiar, it’s accessible, and it yields great results. There is no shortage of computer basics classes around the country, so if you think you can benefit from taking a computer basics course, here are some courses that may be helpful to you.
Noble Desktop, located in Midtown, Manhattan, is New York state licensed and Adobe authorized. With these certifications, students can be sure that they’re getting quality training in technology with classes that are led by top instructors who have written training workbooks that are widely used in the field of technology. Unlike many technology training facilities, Noble Desktop supplies its students with both computers and the applicable software that is necessary to learn the skills they need to succeed, so there’s no reason to bring your own laptop or purchase software licenses right away. This multifaceted school has been training computer professionals, graphic designers, coders, and career changers for over 30 years.
If you’re interested in making a career change and considering data science, Noble Desktop’s Data Science Certificate can help get you well on your way. This adult beginner’s course offers hands-on training and mentoring from experts in the industry because your success is important. By the end of this training, you will have transformed into a data analyst, having learned how to analyze and program with Python, create machine learning models, build and present data visualizations and dashboards, and how to build your portfolio for a successful job search. Successfully completing this 18-session course earns you certification as a data scientist and 1-on-1 mentoring with an experienced data scientist.
It’s time to get a firm grasp of Microsoft PowerPoint in this PowerPoint in a Day course offered by Noble Desktop. This class teaches the basics of PowerPoint and how to create dynamic presentations that convey your message to your audience in an impactful and engaging way. By the end of this course, you’ll be able to use tables and charts, animations, and images in your presentations. The class focuses on functionality just as much as effective storytelling. Included free with this class is a PowerPoint video suite with hours of customized content. You’ll be able to review the course content with high-quality video and lifetime access on your own device.
Los Angeles City College located in East Hollywood, offers free noncredit courses for professional and personal skills development, career training, and typical for-credit college classes. Their free noncredit classes fall under their Community Services. Classes are offered to students of all ages, skill levels, and professions. Students can take classes out of necessity or just for fun and use the skills they learn to improve themselves.
Their Computer for Beginners Series is a four-week course for adults that will teach learners with little to no experience with computers how to operate and use a personal computer or mobile device confidently. This course begins with making computer knowledge accessible and helping students move past their fear and reservations about technology. Then learners will move on to Windows systems and file management, how to use the Internet safely, securely, and wisely, and how to navigate email applications. These basic skills can create a strong foundation for novice computer users and help them feel confident with the little things, like surfing the Internet and creating and retrieving files.
ONLC Training Centers offer computer education in over 300 locations around the country, including in Chicago and Los Angeles. Their Los Angeles center in Westwood offers a full course lineup that’s useful for both the computer novice and the more experienced computer user. ONLC was started by two former Dupont Company mainframe programmers in the early 1980s and has grown into one of the largest privately owned IT training companies.
Adobe Photoshop Core Skills: Level 1 offered by ONLC Training Centers covers the basics of Adobe Photoshop and its user interface as well as how to work with its selection tools and various strategies to create and edit images that are striking and make a real statement. Course objectives for this class include basic photo corrections, choosing and working with selection tools, basic layering, and masks and channels. Although the class is taught using Windows PC, the instructor will point out the small differences that appear when using Photoshop on a Mac system.
Colorado Free University is located in East Denver, and it prides itself on being a lifelong learning center offering learners a variety of enrichment courses. CFU was born out of the free speech movement during the 1970s and had the mission of making education more egalitarian, eliminating barriers to education, and allowing students to learn the things they wanted to learn. Today classes are geared toward adults who don’t have a lot of free time to spend learning but want to gain useful skills. All of the instructors are community members who have knowledge and expertise in their field.
For those who are interested in Using Google G Suite, this Colorado Free University course will teach the fundamentals of G Suite. This includes Gmail, Google Drive, Google Sheets, Google Docs, Google Forms, and Google Hangouts. Participants do not need to have any prior experience with Google’s G Suite, but it does help to be familiar with Microsoft Office and personal computers. This is a beginner-level class for learners ages 17 and up.
Just outside of Atlanta, in Alpharetta, is Neuskills, LLC. Neuskills has your goals in mind and prioritizes your time. They offer 1-on-1 training and consultation services and technology classes that support long-term growth and solid foundations with immediate application in mind. In their Lightroom Classic: Streamlined Workflow students of all levels, ages 15 and older will master the import and the library module. The class also teaches professional techniques for culling images efficiently and how to share images and edits in real-time. Participants will even learn best practices for recovering missing images and how to create a backup plan to protect images, edits, and presets.
About an hour outside of Washington D.C. is Learning Tree International in Herndon, Virginia. They are a leading educator of IT professionals in business and government organizations all over the world. Learning Tree International helps to optimize workforce efforts through its training and custom learning paths. Learning Tree Education Centers are located all over the world, offering education in topics like web development, programming languages, cloud computing, and software design.
In their Microsoft SQL Server Training Course, students learn how to create SQL Server databases, write transact-SQL queries, make the most out of Management Studio, and integrate SQL Server into Microsoft Office. This SQL Server course is intended for adult beginners, so no previous experience is necessary. Class sizes are small enough to feel intimate while allowing learners the opportunity to collaborate and problem-solve with classmates.
Virtual Computer Basics Classes
The glaring difference between in-person and online computer basics classes is the flexibility that online classes offer their students. When you’re unable to find a class in your location or you plan on being on vacation during class times, online classes allow you the freedom to learn wherever in the world you need to be. Not only is your location, not an issue, but also your schedule is less of an issue. There’s no need to factor in the time it takes to commute to class.
Hands-on learning looks more like screen sharing and spotlighting in virtual classes, whereas in an in-person class, the instructor can stand over your shoulder, take control of your mouse, or help you make adjustments. Online courses also require you to supply your own computer or mobile device and software. Some course materials may be digitally supplied, but if you prefer a hard copy, you’ll need to print it yourself.
QuickBooks Online for Beginners is a course for learners ages 16 and older. The class teaches students how to identify the information that a business needs to track and how to put that data into QuickBooks. At the end of this course, learners will feel confident in their ability to organize business finances in the popular accounting software including paying vendors, sending invoices, tracking business expenses, and creating a chart of accounts. Although this is an intensive class, the expert bookkeeping instructor will make difficult topics easy to understand and help learners to avoid common missteps.
In AutoCAD: User Interface & Basic Drawing (ACD-001), adult learners will learn the basic environment of AutoCAD. The instructor will guide participants in accessing commands, using the pointing device, and understanding the Cartesian workspace. At the end of the course, students should be able to create a model using basic drawing skills and editing coupled with viewing options.
Introduction to Excel-Learn Basics is a course that teaches participants how to build basic spreadsheets in a working environment. In this course students will cover sorting data, formulas and functions, working with workbooks, worksheets, and worksheet tabs, and formatting for design. The instructor will help students to discover how Excel can make their workflow easier and how to become fluent in basic Excel operations.
Private Group Computer Basics Classes
If your organization is looking for a class to add to a team-building event, consider including computer basics classes for private groups online. CourseHorse offers captivating live online group classes for your business with no booking fees and confirmation of your booking is sent within 24 hours, multiple platforms are supported, and you can change your group size after booking if needed.
Premiere Pro Corporate Training is a class that supports up to 20 participants and focuses on editing video footage for TV, social media, and other video platforms. Participants will learn how to import videos, pictures, and B-roll into Premiere Pro, clean up background audio, color correct video, and add transitions. There are a lot of features in Premiere Pro that can give videos the kind of professional and clean look that audiences resonate with.
If there is a course you’re interested in that you don’t see listed publicly, please reach out to CourseHorse through the contact form on their website to find out what they can schedule for you. Private group classes are a service they provide, so there are always options available.
What Will I Need to Learn Computer Basics?
You will need a computer or mobile device and the specified software to learn computer basics. There are learning centers that do provide students with both computers and software, but some do not. Be sure to ask whether or not the necessary equipment will be provided when choosing a school. Many of the class materials will be supplied by the instructor, including workbooks and textbooks.
Is it Difficult to Learn Computer Basics?
Learning computer basics is easy for some and more challenging for others. Regardless of which side of the spectrum you fall on, you’ll have to put in a lot of effort to achieve your goal of conquering computer basics. Having a basic understanding of computers can open you up to a whole new world, and it is accessible as long as you’re dedicated to learning the skill.
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